ST. LOUIS, July 7, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Every organization has a strategy. The real question is whether its culture is helping that strategy succeed or quietly undermining it. For leaders, that distinction shows up in the outcomes they care about most: retention, engagement, performance, innovation, customer experience, and long-term sustainability. The challenge is not recognizing that culture matters. The challenge is knowing how to intentionally build it while still running the business.

That's where the Chapman Foundation for Caring Communities, through its Caring Workplace program, works alongside community-serving organizations to provide the expertise and support needed to proactively build a thriving, productive, and healthy workplace culture.

This work is delivered through the Caring Workplace program's three-part approach. It provides a structured, evidence-informed framework that empowers every level of the organization by focusing on empowering team members, equipping leadership teams, and measuring what matters.

The Chapman Foundation understands that every organization is unique, shaped by its own history, strategy, and goals. The Caring Workplace program is rooted in six interconnected, human-centered leadership practices that work together as a unified model. These strategies offer a clear, flexible pathway to help organizations build the culture they envision, with an approach that can be applied across sectors.

When leaders decide to deepen their strategy to intentionally build the culture they want rather than leaving it to chance, organizations are less likely to experience disengagement, misalignment, and staff turnover, and more likely to develop resilient, accountable, high-performing teams. These teams continue to grow and strengthen in ways that sustain culture transformation and ensure both people and performance succeed together.

Learn more about the six strategies and three-part implementation approach: CLICK HERE

FROM FRAMEWORK TO IMPACT

The Chapman Foundation is currently implementing this work across sectors such as healthcare, city government, the military, educational institutions, and nonprofits.

Partners in the Caring Workplace program are embedding leadership development, team support, and daily operations to see meaningful shifts in both culture and performance. In practice, this includes establishing a shared language for communication and accountability, empowering leaders to model these behaviors consistently, and measuring progress through outcomes such as a 4.69 out of 5 employee rating for a caring workplace experience.

"That's what the (Caring Workplace) designation means to us. It tells the world, 'This is what you can expect if you come here as an employee, as a member, or if you interact with us in the community.' This is what you're going to get," remarked Laurie Butz, President & CEO, Capital Credit Union in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

Ultimately, this work reflects an environment in which investing in people directly strengthens performance across the organization and has positive ripple effects on the community it serves.

JOIN THE MOVEMENT

Community-serving organizations seeking to build human-centered leadership and cultures that strengthen their people and performance will find a strong fit with the Chapman Foundation. To learn more and connect with us about the Caring Workplace program, visit the website: chapmancommunities.org/caring-workplace-program

ABOUT THE FOUNDATION

The Chapman Foundation for Caring Communities is a national family foundation committed to creating stronger, more connected communities. Through leadership and communication programs, the foundation empowers individuals and teams to build trust, foster meaningful connections, and create lasting positive change.

In 2010, Bob Chapman, former CEO of the Barry-Wehmiller Corporation and author of the book Everybody Matters: The Extraordinary Power of Caring for Your People Like Family, alongside his wife, Cynthia, started the Foundation, which has grown into a national movement, reaching more than 18,000 individuals through classes and initiatives like the Caring Workplace program.

For more information, visit chapmancommunities.org

Media Contact: Natalie VanDyke; natalie.vandyke@chapmancommunities.org

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SOURCE Chapman Foundation for Caring Communities