Document your culture so people understand how things work here

Don't write marketing copy - tell the truth about a normal day. What's the energy like at 10am on a Tuesday? How do people talk to each other in the hallway or on Slack? Be upfront about the hard parts too. If deadlines get intense in Q4, say so. If Mondays are packed with meetings, own it. People can smell fake a mile away, and they'll trust you more when you're honest about the tradeoffs.

Here's the test most companies fail: pick 3-5 values that actually drive how you make decisions. Don't just list things like "integrity" and "excellence" that every company claims. Think about it this way - if someone was great at their job but kept violating one of these values, would you let them go? If yes, that's a real value. If you'd look the other way, it's not. Keep it honest.

Nothing frustrates people more than not knowing who's got the final call. Write down how things really work - not how you wish they worked. Who approves budgets? Who can say yes to a new hire? What happens when two teams can't agree? If your CEO makes most big calls, that's fine - just say so. People would rather know the rules than guess.

This is where most culture docs fall flat - they say "we invest in our people" but don't give specifics. Get concrete. Do you have a learning budget? How much? Can someone move from engineering to product? Has anyone actually done it? Share real examples of people who've grown in their roles. If you're a small company without formal programs yet, be upfront about that and explain what you're building toward.

Here's what people really want to know: if they're doing something wrong, when will they hear about it? Nobody wants surprises at their annual review. Lay out your feedback rhythm - weekly 1:1s, quarterly check-ins, or however you do it. And don't skip the uncomfortable part: how does your team handle conflict? A good culture isn't one where everyone agrees all the time - it's one where people can disagree without it getting personal.

Before you call it done, hand this to at least 3 people from different teams and ask one simple question: does this sound like where you work? If they laugh or roll their eyes at any part, that's your signal to rewrite it. There shouldn't be a gap between what's written and what's real. Once it passes the sniff test, put it somewhere everyone can find it - don't let it collect dust in a shared drive nobody checks.