I’ve always known culture matters—but this conversation with Heather Smith hit different.
You may already know Heather as the CEO of Talent Elevated, but what you might not know is how powerfully she blends emotional intelligence with systems thinking. She’s not just “HR with heart.” She’s strategy with soul. And after interviewing her for the Exceptional Companies Podcast, I walked away with a whole new framework for thinking about culture in my own businesses.
Here’s what stood out—and what I think every founder, operator, and executive needs to hear right now.
She Thought She Wanted Complexity. Turns Out, She Wanted Movement
Heather’s journey started in Lubbock, Texas, where she launched her career in human resources at a local hospital. She was young, hungry, and set on climbing the corporate ladder. And she did—fast.
Within a few years, she was running leadership development for one of the largest hospital systems in the country, leading a team at their corporate headquarters near Seattle.
But somewhere along the way, something cracked.
She told me, “I thought I wanted to be a Chief Talent Officer. But I couldn’t interact with the people I wanted to make an impact on. There were too many layers. I wanted to see things move.”
That insight, plus a shift in perspective during COVID, led Heather and her husband to pack up, move closer to family, and start a new chapter. She launched Talent Elevated to help small and mid-sized companies build intentional culture—not the kind you write in a handbook and forget, but the kind that drives everything.
“Culture Is Happening Whether You Like It or Not”
One of my favorite lines from our conversation.
Heather defines culture as “the shared attitudes, norms, behaviors, and beliefs among a group.” It’s not what you say. It’s what people actually do—especially when no one’s looking.
That hit home for me.
We talked about how so many businesses start with good intentions: mission statements, core values like honesty and integrity. But when I ask owners, “Tell me a story where this value showed up in your company,” I usually get crickets.
Heather’s perspective? That’s normal. But it’s also the problem.
She helps companies shift from vague aspiration to clear systems. One of the first things she installs is a values-based decision-making model. When two values (like agility and integrity) seem to be in conflict, the leadership team doesn’t ignore it—they talk it through, and make their rationale part of the company’s narrative.
Employees see more than we think. They can feel when something’s off—even if they can’t explain why.
How She Measures What Most People Can’t
I’ve met a lot of consultants who talk about culture. Heather actually measures it.
She starts with a comprehensive culture assessment built around nine tenets—things like communication quality, unified purpose, trust in leadership, and clarity of mission. It includes surveys, executive interviews, employee focus groups, and even reviewing documents and comms.
She calls it “a complicated game of telephone.” What leaders say and what employees hear are often very different. Her job is to surface that gap—and close it.
She also uses Net Promoter Score to gauge employee sentiment. It’s not the only number she watches, but it’s a meaningful one. And as she told me: “If your culture’s broken, your people aren’t in a space where they can innovate. They’re in fight-or-flight.”
Two Stories I Can’t Stop Thinking About
Heather shared two case studies that stuck with me.
The first was a 75-year-old agriculture company in Texas. The CEO had been running hard toward a bold new vision—but when he looked back, no one was following. He literally told her, “I used this beautiful Band of Brothers quote about getting out of the trenches together. And then I looked behind me… and I was alone.”
Heather helped that leadership team get aligned, listen more, communicate better, and share ownership of the direction. Over time, their employee Net Promoter Score jumped 11 points. But more importantly, that CEO got his breath back. He wasn’t carrying it alone anymore.
The second was a renewable energy firm in Northern California. They started with 23 employees, and Heather’s now helped them scale to 85—with culture baked into every phase. They do stay interviews, leadership offsites, values-based planning. Their Net Promoter Score hit the 80s last year. Eighties!
Both stories looked different. But both prove the same thing: whether you’re retrofitting old habits or building from scratch, intentional culture changes everything.
Culture Without Systems is Just Hope
One of my favorite back-and-forths with Heather came when we talked about EOS and systems. I’ve said for years: your systems will define your culture, whether you want them to or not.
She referenced an HBR article that confirmed it—culture isn’t about communication, it’s about systems.
If you’re not measuring it, building processes around it, and reinforcing it daily, it’s just a wishlist.
That’s why we track things like culture alignment on our scorecards. And why we use culture to make hiring and firing decisions. I shared a story during the episode about a new hire who left after four weeks because he realized he didn’t align with our core value of grit.
That was disappointing—but it was also clarity. We say it upfront: if you hate our values, you’ll hate working here. For 10 years.
What Happens When You Build Great Culture… But the Market Changes?
This is the question that really stuck with me after our interview.
What if you do everything right? You build the team, the trust, the systems. And then the market turns. The industry shifts. You’re no longer selling the same thing. What happens to that incredible culture you worked so hard to build?
Heather’s answer was so practical.
She said, “You approach it like a change management project. Where are we going? What’s the gap between here and there? And how do we help our team cross that gap—emotionally, operationally, and as partners?”
You don’t just run ahead. You pause. Ask questions. Get curious.
I’ve seen this in my own businesses—especially in our family office and oil & gas companies. The strategies we had a year ago didn’t work anymore. So we pivoted. Not recklessly, but clearly. We reframed what kind of company we are. We said, “We’re a company of innovation. That’s our constant. The rest can shift.”
But that only works when your people come with you.
What Most Companies Get Wrong About Culture
Toward the end of the episode, I asked Heather: What’s the worst advice you see about culture?
Her answer was sharp: “That you just need to talk about it. That communication is enough.”
In reality, she says, communication without aligned systems and executive buy-in does more harm than good. You raise expectations, gather feedback—and then do nothing with it. The result? Bitterness. Disengagement. Exit plans.
She also warned about trying to jump too far ahead—declaring a culture transformation when no one’s ready. “People put walls up,” she said. “And pretty soon, they just stop moving with you.”
I’ve seen it firsthand. You’ve got to make culture part of your operating system. One small step, measured and reinforced. Then another.
Her Parting Advice? Invoke Curiosity
As we wrapped up, I asked Heather for her biggest lever lately—and her final word of encouragement.
She named the book Traction by Gino Wickman and the EOS model as transformational. That framework gave her confidence that she wasn’t missing anything big in her business—and helped her prioritize what mattered most.
And her encouragement?
“Invoke curiosity.”
She explained how curiosity softens resistance. It gets you out of fight-or-flight and into critical thinking. It brings people closer. It opens the door to possibility.
I’ve thought about that a lot since we spoke.
If you’re building something bold, leading through change, or trying to get your team re-engaged—maybe curiosity is the most powerful tool you’ve got.
Thanks again to Heather for an incredible episode. And if you’re reading this and thinking, “Maybe it’s time to reimagine the culture in my business…” I hope this conversation gave you a roadmap.
Because exceptional companies don’t just happen. They’re built—intentionally.
AND MORE TOPICS COVERED IN THE FULL INTERVIEW!!! You can check that out and subscribe to YouTube.
If you want to know more about Heather Smith, you may reach out to her at:
- Website: https://www.talentelevated.org/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-smith-7959156
Connect with Chris Seegers:
- Website: https://exceptionalcos.com/
- Email: Ch***@************OS.com
Other Resources:
- Books: Selling Main Street by Chris Seegers
