When people talk about company culture, the spotlight usually lands on the CEO. After all, it is the person at the top who sets the vision, defines values, and speaks on behalf of the brand. But Ilia Jakel, a leadership strategist and emotional intelligence trainer, offers a different perspective. One that organizations often overlook.

“Your culture is not defined by your mission statement. It is shaped by how people feel every day at work,” Jakel says. “And those daily experiences are driven far more by frontline managers than by executives.”

Jakel has spent over two decades in corporate and healthcare leadership and now helps organizations across industries understand the powerful role middle management plays in shaping behavior, engagement, and performance. While CEOs influence strategy, it is managers on the ground who influence experience. And that is where culture truly lives or dies.

The Manager’s Role in Culture Is Undervalued, and That’s the Problem

Jakel has worked with companies struggling to fix culture issues by hosting all-hands meetings or rewriting corporate values. But the real disconnect, she points out, is often between what executives say and what managers do.

“You can have the most inspiring CEO in the world, but if your frontline manager dismisses ideas, ignores development, or creates fear, that becomes the culture,” she explains.

Frontline managers are the ones employees interact with most. They set the tone in meetings, give feedback, handle conflict, and model what is acceptable. If they are not aligned with the values being promoted from the top, culture falls apart at the operational level.

Jakel helps leaders see that managers are not just task drivers. They are culture carriers. Without the right support and training, even well-intentioned managers can unknowingly create environments of disengagement, fear, or dysfunction.

In contrast, when managers are emotionally intelligent, aligned with company values, and empowered to lead with intention, they amplify culture in every interaction. And the results speak for themselves.

Emotional Intelligence Is the Foundation of Cultural Consistency

The reason frontline managers have such a strong impact on culture, Jakel says, is because they control the emotional climate of their teams. Through their communication style, reactions to stress, and daily decision-making, they either create psychological safety or slowly chip away at it.

Jakel’s leadership programs are designed to equip managers with the emotional intelligence skills they need to lead effectively. This includes managing their own emotions, recognizing the needs of others, and communicating with clarity and empathy.

“Culture is not what’s written on the wall. It is what gets rewarded, what gets tolerated, and how people treat each other when no one is watching,” she says. “Managers are at the center of all of that.”

Her work involves helping managers understand the emotional signals they send, how their presence shapes morale, and how to intentionally reinforce cultural values through behavior, not just language.

In one company she worked with, small changes in how managers gave feedback, moving from criticism to coaching, led to a measurable improvement in engagement scores and team productivity. These shifts did not come from the C-suite. They came from the culture being practiced in daily conversations.

Culture Change Happens From the Middle Out, Not the Top Down

Jakel argues that one of the biggest mistakes organizations make is assuming culture change starts at the top. In reality, sustainable culture change happens from the middle out. Frontline and mid-level managers are the bridge between strategy and execution, between leadership vision and employee reality.

“If your managers don’t believe in the culture you’re trying to build, or don’t know how to model it, the message will never stick,” she explains. “Culture lives in habits. And habits are built or broken by the people managing others.”

Jakel helps companies identify and develop culture champions within their management ranks. Individuals who not only understand the values but are equipped to bring them to life. She works closely with these leaders to identify blind spots, create emotionally safe environments, and reinforce behavior that reflects the desired culture.

This approach builds a strong foundation of consistency across departments, ensuring that the employee experience is not left to chance or personality. It becomes a deliberate effort to embed culture through people, not just policies.

Conclusion: If You Want to Fix Culture, Start With Your Managers

Ilia Jakel’s work is a powerful reminder that culture is not something you roll out in a slide deck. It is something you live every day through leadership. And the leaders who have the most consistent contact with your people, your frontline managers, hold the greatest influence.

The CEO may define the company’s mission, but it is the manager who determines whether someone feels heard, respected, and valued at work.

If organizations want real culture change, Jakel advises them to stop looking up and start looking around. The key is not just executive alignment. It is manager activation. Because the most important culture shift does not happen in the boardroom. It happens in the one-on-one meetings, the hallway conversations, and the daily choices made by those closest to the team.

Jakel’s message is clear. Empower your managers, and you will transform your culture.

This article is published on Career Savvy