When Corporate Values Finally Showed Up for Work: A Culture Transformation Case Study at Serac Asia Sdn Bhd
- Coach Wendy Wong
- 3 days ago
- 5 min read
You know that feeling when an employee walk past the company values poster at the factory entrance and think, "I understand the words...but I don't quite feel the connection."
That's what Serac Asia Sdn Bhd — part of the global Serac Group — realized too.
A 55 year-old global packaging solutions leader— Serac Group — refreshed their corporate values and rolled out a new, inspiring global vision — complete with a tagline that captured four simple, well-articulated values.
But the real challenge wasn’t in defining the words.
It was in making them mean something to the people on the ground — from the plant floor to the leadership team.
That’s where our work began: turning global values into local meaning, lived experiences, and daily choices.
The Reality Nobody Talks About
Across 25 years in leadership development, I’ve seen a familiar pattern repeat itself.
Organizations pour energy into defining their values.
They hold global workshops, polish every word, and launch beautifully designed posters across offices and plants.
Then… it stops.
Unless local management makes a deliberate, strategic choice to translate those values into their local reality, they remain beautifully framed—but rarely lived.
Here’s why: The gap isn’t awareness.
It's translation.
Translation of what each value looks like in daily behavior.Translation of what it feels like in team culture.Translation of how it sounds in the local language and leadership tone.
And this is where I deeply appreciate this client’s management team — they recognized the importance of bridging that gap.
Rather than relying alone on global “cascades,” they invited us to co-create a process that made those values come alive — in ways their people could truly see, feel, and act upon.
What We Discovered in the Diagnostic Phase
Before designing anything, we began where every meaningful culture initiative should start — with understanding.
Hosted and championed by Serac Asia’s Operations Director, Ho Han Meng, we made a site visit, observed and listened. Through conversations, site observations, and leadership dialogues, three pivotal insights emerged — what we internally call the Pivot-Points.
Pivot-Point #1: Definition vs. Application
Everyone agreed that one of their refreshed values — "Daring" — was powerful. Yet the visual image representing it didn’t resonate locally. People couldn’t quite describe what calculated risk-taking looked like when suggesting a new process or challenging a long-held routine.
Pivot-Point #2: Knowing vs. Feeling
Values were understood cognitively, but not experienced. Employees could name the values, but hadn’t experienced what living them required — especially in moments of tension, decision, or collaboration.
Pivot-Point #3: Individual vs. Collective
Values existed as personal aspirations, not shared team norms. Individuals tried to “exceed expectations,” but few had experienced what it meant for a cross-functional team to exceed expectations together.
Our insight: They didn’t need more communication about values. They needed to feel and experience the gap — between stated ideals and daily realities — and then discover, through guided reflection, what closing that gap would truly require.
The Approach: Experience First, Explanation Formed.
The journey transformed into a three-phase path leading to the extraordinary Hanoi Summit.
Phase 1 was a half-day immersion where 50 people from Operations and Finance experienced what their values felt like in action.
Phase 2 came three weeks later—a full-day integration where teams translated those insights to teamwork, collaboration and decision-making of daily operations.
Phase 3 was the surprise: the client themselves launched a six-month challenge — entirely on their own initiative. We didn’t suggest it; they owned it.
That's when you know transformation is gaining real momentum.
What Made It Different
What made this journey different wasn’t just the activities — it was the design philosophy we shared with the client’s leadership team.
Diagnose Before You Design. We didn’t arrive with pre-packaged activities. We met them where they worked, visited the factory, and built experiences around operational pressures, language, and reality.
Experience Before Explanation. People don’t change from being told. They change from discovering. We created conditions where teams felt the gap between stated values and actual behavior — then experienced what closing that gap required.
Sustainable Impact, Not One-Off Sparks. We didn’t aim for a one-day high that fades by Friday. Together, we built language, tools, and momentum the teams could carry forward.
What Actually Changed
When people feel valued, they show up differently.
Initial quantitative results - The numbers echoed the behavioural shift:
4.5 / 5.0 across engagement metrics
97% said they understood company values at a deeper level
100% would recommend the program
At the Hanoi Summit, the Serac Asia team brought extraordinary energy and commitment — a reflection of how far ownership had already taken root.
Admittedly, as I write this, it’s just a week since the Hanoi buzz — and our client is now entering Phase 3: the Six-Month Challenge. This transformational journey is far from over; in fact, it’s only just beginning!
Even with partial data, the results are already clear: momentum has taken hold. But the real proof isn’t in the numbers — it’s in the behaviour that continues long after the workshop ends.
Client's Reflection:
“First of all, thank you again for an impactful session, both at Serac and in Hanoi. I’ve been keeping the momentum going since the Hanoi session — during every morning production meeting, ‘Quality Machine On Time’ is instilled to remind us of our shared vision and commitment.”
— Ho Han Meng, Operations Director, Serac Asia Sdn Bhd
What This Teaches Us About Culture Transformation
After working with dozens of organisations, one truth stands out:
Most culture programmes stall because they treat values as communication challenges. They’re not. They’re behavioural design challenges.
You can’t talk people into culture change. You have to create conditions where they experience what your values enable
You can’t talk people into culture change. You have to create conditions where they experience what your values enable — then give them the tools to practice those behaviours until they become second nature.
That requires:
Diagnose deeply where values and operations disconnect
Design experientially so people learn through doing, not telling
Integrate operationally so learning connects to daily work
Sustain momentum that outlives the facilitator
Most organisations skip the first three — and then wonder why nothing sticks.
Is This Your Gap?
If any of this sounds familiar, you may be facing the same disconnect:
Values are well documented but feel disconnected from daily work
Teams know what you stand for but struggle to live it under pressure
Cross-functional collaboration feels transactional
Previous programmes created temporary engagement but no lasting change
The question isn’t whether your values are right. It’s whether they’re operational. When values become the operating system — not the screensaver — everything shifts.
And that shift doesn’t come from better communication. It comes from better experience design.
Taking the Next Step in Leadership Growth
Culture change doesn’t start with a workshop. It starts with curiosity — leaders willing to ask where values, decisions, and daily actions connect or drift apart.
Because leadership is a journey. And every step forward counts.
Behind the Scenes with Petadiri
A little lighter moment from Hanoi — our team captured snippets of the preparation, facilitation, and the joy that filled the room.
It reminds us that culture work is serious in intent but deeply human in experience.
About the Author
Coach Wendy Wong is the Managing Partner of Petadiri Leadership Development, specializing in culture transformation and leadership capability building. For over a decade, she's partnered with MNCs and established firms across Malaysia to make corporate values operational—because when culture becomes a competitive advantage, organizations thrive.
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