CultureCon 2025 Recap: Top 5 Takeaways for Transforming Workplace Culture

Nick Lombardino
Aug 12
5 min read

Updated: Sep 15

CultureCon 2025 once again made history, this time as our largest gathering ever, with 635 total tickets claimed. The event earned an average score of 9/10 from attendees and was honored with a Certificate of Commendation from Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers for its significant impact on the community and workplace culture nationwide. Hosted in Madison, Wisconsin, CultureCon 2025 brought together thought leaders, innovators, and change makers from across six different countries to explore the future of work.

Attendees participated in an inspiring lineup of sessions, each offering practical strategies to transform their organizations. Thanks to our partnership with Covve, more than 3,200 connections were made on site through badge scan technology, contributing over $5,000 to philanthropic causes.

After reviewing attendee feedback and speaker ratings, here are the top five CultureCon 2025 takeaways from this year’s event:

1. Upskilling and Reskilling at Scale: Building a Future Ready Workforce

In her session “Upskilling and Reskilling at Scale: Strategies to Drive Growth,” ButcherBox’s Eliza Jackson tackled one of the most urgent challenges facing organizations today: preparing talent for a rapidly changing future. She walked attendees through the process of identifying and prioritizing essential skills for the next decade, while also creating an environment where continuous learning is the norm. From offering targeted incentives to embedding learning opportunities directly into the flow of work, Eliza shared actionable strategies for integrating growth into everyday operations. The session also showcased how AI technology can be leveraged to make upskilling programs more efficient, scalable, and impactful.

Key takeaway: By combining intentional skill building with scalable learning systems, organizations can create a resilient workforce equipped to meet the demands of the future.

2. Future Proofing Collaboration in the Digital Workplace

In “Future Proofing Collaboration in the Digital Workplace,” Atlassian’s Mark Cruth challenged attendees to rethink how we work together in an era where the pace of change has never been faster. He called out the outdated habits like unnecessary meetings that continue to drain productivity, and offered a vision for collaboration that is modern, efficient, and digital first. Participants explored practical tools and tactics to optimize both asynchronous and synchronous communication, empowering teams to collaborate smarter rather than harder. Mark’s five meeting hacks gave attendees a concrete starting point for transforming how their organizations work together in today’s distributed and fast paced environment.

Key takeaway: By embracing modern collaboration tools and replacing outdated habits, teams can work more efficiently, stay connected, and deliver greater impact in a digital first world.

3. Building a Culture of Belonging in Hybrid Environments

In “Building a Culture of Belonging in Hybrid Environments,” moderator Dr. Julia Wiener guided a conversation with four leaders redefining how organizations foster connection across distance: Kayla Giordano of Augeo Workplace, Heather Haas of ADVISA, and Mihae Ahn of LineZero. Together, they explored how belonging can thrive when work is split between physical and virtual spaces. The panel shared strategies for maintaining cohesion, ensuring all contributions are recognized, and anchoring workplace culture in a shared sense of purpose. From leveraging technology to designing intentional moments of connection, the discussion underscored that belonging is not tied to a location; it is built through inclusive practices, purposeful recognition, and consistent reinforcement of values.

Key takeaway: Belonging in hybrid environments thrives when organizations are deliberate about connection, recognition, and purpose, ensuring every team member feels valued and included no matter where they work.

4. Beyond the Thank You: Recognition as a Strategic Performance Driver

In “Beyond the Thank You: Recognition as a Strategy and a Skill That Ignites Performance and Results,” RecogNation’s Andrew Bishop dismantled the myths that keep recognition undervalued in many organizations. Far from being a “nice to have,” Andrew reframed recognition as a fundamental human need and a powerful leadership tool that can drive culture, connection, and measurable business results. Drawing from Recognition Professionals International’s Seven Best Practice Standards®, he showed how intentional, timely recognition not only celebrates achievement but also clarifies expectations, reinforces values, and boosts both confidence and engagement. Attendees left with practical strategies and tools to embed authentic, consistent recognition into their daily leadership practices.

Key takeaway: Recognition, when delivered with intention and consistency, is one of the most impactful ways to strengthen culture, inspire performance, and align teams with organizational values.

5. Culture as a Catalyst for Success

In “New Beginnings: How We Redefined Our Company Culture,” GE HealthCare’s Chief Culture & Belonging Officer Abigail Epane-Osuala shared how the organization seized the moment to reshape its culture after becoming an independent company in 2023. She emphasized that when culture is intentionally designed and nurtured, it fuels business growth, strengthens execution, and sustains long term performance. Drawing from GE HealthCare’s own transformation, Abigail outlined actionable steps for embedding cultural principles into everyday operations, measuring progress through engagement and retention, and fostering inclusive environments where all employees can thrive.

Key takeaway: An intentional, healthy culture is more than an HR priority, it is a strategic advantage that drives innovation, accelerates execution, and sustains business success.

Bonus CultureCon 2025 Takeaway: Answering the Big Employee Experience Question for 2025

In “WorkPossible: Answering the Big Employee Experience Question for 2025,” Fauna’s Hattie Roche brought attendees inside the annual WorkPossible research initiative. Built on one bold idea, stop researching for employees and start researching with them, WorkPossible explores what it truly takes to make work work for people. Drawing on insights from over 5,400 participants across five continents, Hattie revealed what people want from their “dream day at work” and the micro moments that shape their experiences, both good and bad.

Through an interactive co-design exercise, attendees explored three potential research paths:

The Journey Map: From first hellos to fond farewells
The Human Trail: Humanizing the work experience and
The Leadership Road: What leaders really need to thrive

In an extremely close vote, the audience chose The Human Trail: Humanizing the Work Experience as the path forward, signaling a clear desire to create workplaces that see people as humans first, workers second. Hattie challenged organizations to move from problem focused design, which limits potential, to possibility focused design, which builds on strengths and creates experiences people crave. The session highlighted how moments as small as a warm welcome, a name pronounced correctly, or a supportive check in during a tough project can have lasting impact.

Key takeaway: By focusing on possibility, human connection, and employee led design, organizations can transform the everyday moments of work into experiences that inspire, engage, and help people do their best work.

CultureCon 2025 proved once again that workplace culture is more than a buzzword, it is a strategic imperative. From building future ready workforces to fostering belonging across hybrid teams, the insights shared this year offer a clear roadmap for leaders committed to making work better for everyone. Visit our Upcoming Events page to get engaged and join our movement towards building more uplifting and productive workspaces.

About CultureCon®:

CultureCon®, a Certified B Corporation®, is on a mission to inspire positive change around organizational culture. Through large conferences, online courses, consulting services, and certification programs, we deliver experiences that provide practical tools and motivation for our customers to become cultural change agents within their organizations. Our customers include business owners, CxOs, HR leaders, senior management, individual contributors, and anyone who wants to build more uplifting, inspiring, and healthy workplaces.

Learn more about our upcoming events.