Cultivating Culture That Counts: Lessons from Mark Demchak
Welcome back to the Five Door Media blog, where we unpack the best insights from our recent podcast episodes in the home services world and beyond. This time, we’re diving into one of the most foundational, and often least tangible, aspects of organizational success: company culture.
We were thrilled to host Mark Demchak, long‑standing leader at the Miami County YMCA (Peru, Indiana), to explore how culture shapes business health, staff retention, and customer experience. Mark brings a unique lens: though his experience is rooted in the nonprofit sector, his strategies translate powerfully for home service businesses. With over 40 years in various YMCA roles, including leading a transformational capital project and earning credentials as a 360‑coach and leadership instructor, Mark offers a wealth of expertise.
His take? Culture isn’t a policy manual - it’s the living, breathing vibe of your organization, shaped through leadership, communication, and intention. If you're wondering how to strengthen your culture, especially in the challenging world of home services, grab a cup of coffee and keep reading. This blog is your culture playbook.
1. Culture Is the Unwritten Vibe And Leadership Sets the Tone
Mark defines company culture as “all the unwritten rules,” evident the moment you walk into a workplace; the way employees treat each other, how managers talk to staff, how customers are greeted. He says it’s something you feel in the air, not something you can find in the company handbook.
This holds in home services, too: the morale of your crew or the warmth of your techs when they knock on a customer’s door reflects the culture at your company. Mark emphasizes that culture most powerfully echoes from the top: “Most impactfully led by the CEO, the owner… that signs all the paychecks.” Yet it’s not always the official leader - sometimes it’s those whom people listen to day in and day out that shape the culture fastest.
Takeaway: If you want a supportive, thriving culture, it starts with how you show up as a leader, and who you let speak your company’s values daily.
2. Culture Drives Both Staff and Customer Retention
Why does culture matter so much? Mark gives us a simple but potent analogy: imagine two grocery stores, one where the cashier asks sincerely, “How’s your day going?” and actually listens. The other is emotionally checked-out, talking only to coworkers while you wonder why you didn’t just use self-checkout. You feel welcome in one. You feel like… well, overlooked in the other.
That feeling directly impacts whether customers come back, and just as critically, whether your employees stick around. Mark puts it bluntly: “If you don’t feed your staff, they’ll eat your members.” In other words, neglect your team's experience, even unintentionally, and your retention suffers across the board.
Why it matters in home services: In the home service industry, staff turnover can derail service, momentum, and profitability. A strong culture keeps your team engaged and your customers satisfied.
3. Culture in the Trenches: Building a New Facility
Some of the most telling insights came from a case study in Mark’s own YMCA: a nine-year, $16.7 million capital campaign culminating in a brand‑new 65,000 sq ft facility in 2022. The project started with more skeptics than believers but culture carried the plan forward.
During restructuring phases, longtime staff were let go (structurally but always respectfully). Mark and his team prioritized dignified exits that signaled: “People matter here even when decisions are hard.” That built trust.
Then came an intense opening timeline; promised eight weeks between occupancy and launch turned into only four. Instead of leaning on policies or micromanaging every detail (e.g., pool temps, entrance flow), Mark invested in skills that are culture glue: leadership competencies, emotional/social development, helping people manage uncertainty. That decision created something far more powerful than a list of procedures: a team that trusted one another and felt confident solving chaos - and thrived.
Why this matters: Home service companies often juggle big transitions (like tech onboarding, new service expansions, recession pushes, peak seasons). If your team has leadership muscle, emotional resilience, and trust built through culture, they won’t break - they’ll step up.
4. Hiring for Culture: Autonomy, Mastery, and Purpose
Mark shared a recruiting rubric inspired by Dan Pink’s Drive: candidates are evaluated on Autonomy, Mastery, and Purpose (A‑M‑P). Can they work independently? Do they have ambition to excel? Do they connect to something bigger than themselves (e.g. volunteerism, mission)?
These aren't just nice‑to‑haves, they cultivate self‑motivated teams. “If you have staff with those capacities, you don’t have to motivate them. They’ll improve themselves,” Mark says.
He also integrates team chemistry early: instead of purely formal interviews, final candidates go to a team meal with the leadership team. It’s not an interrogation. It’s about showing the candidate the people they’ll collaborate with, and giving both sides a genuine feel for fit. Some even choose not to take the job after that insight.
Mark recognizes the value of a strong culture that counteracts wage competition. Nonprofit salary constraints can’t win against factories or big services but if staff feel supported, challenged, and purpose-driven, they stay. That’s a cultural advantage outfits with deep pockets can’t match.
Takeaway: Your hiring process shouldn’t just assess skills. It should reveal your culture and candidates should self‑select based on how they feel around your team.
5. Fixing Cultural Breakdowns: Communication, Curiosity, Compassion
Every workplace faces communication breakdowns, whether they are arguments, attitude clashes, or awkward energy. Mark says culture is tested most in how you recover and resolve, not just avoid.
He coaches using “beginner’s mind”: open-ended questions like “Tell me what happened… what happened before… what happened after?” These momentarily quiet emotion centers and invite clarity, allowing logic to re‑enter. Look for signs like:
Feelings of regret: they indicate emotional hijack is subsiding.
Framing root causes: the “five why’s” method helps identify what triggered the breakdown buried beneath the surface.
An emotional pause helps too. Take a break, encourage a walk outside, but don’t force resolution while adrenaline is high. Trust that regret and curiosity will follow. That’s how healing and understanding happen.
Leadership trust is critical: Mark gives an example of stepping in to back your team while they’re under pressure (say, dealing with a difficult parent angry about a referee call at their child’s sport game). Those leadership “shields” show staff they’re supported, and when leadership consistently demonstrates that, staff internalize it and protect others themselves. That’s culture rippling outward.
Why it matters: In service businesses, friction is constant - customer complaints, scheduling stress, equipment breakdowns. A culture that processes conflict thoughtfully, stays anchored in trust, and empowers self-reflection keeps businesses resilient rather than reactive.
6. Cultivating Self‑Leadership and Continuous Growth
Being the leader or sole owner can be isolating. You can’t depend just on yourself to keep culture alive. Mark’s advice: bring others into your growth.
He practices this by sending staff to conferences and peer networks. Yes, it’s an investment, but it:
Shows staff they’re valued.
Builds their confidence (“They realize they’re good, not just surviving.”)
Transforms timid contributors into confident leaders.
Staff return more empowered and invested in your shared mission.
You can start by simply sharing your learning mindset: talk about the book you read, the podcast you listened to, the ways you’re growing, and invite others to grow alongside.
This builds self-leadership: people develop the habit of leading themselves by anticipating needs, asking deeper questions, and pursuing better outcomes rather than waiting to be told what to do.
Relevance for home services: When owners lead by example, growing publicly, they create a culture where improvement is everyone’s responsibility. That matters more than just filling seats; it builds an autonomous, motivated workforce naturally aligned with your vision.
7. Culture Dies When Gossip Is Allowed
Mark’s fill-in-the-blank hit deep: “Culture dies when… gossip happens, especially when the CEO participates in it.” Gossip sows distrust and distraction faster than you can stop them.
Vent vs. gossip: there’s a difference and leaders must notice. If staff vent in private or ask for empathy, that’s humanity. If gossip spreads about someone behind their back, especially openly or by leadership, that’s toxic.
If you let it happen in front of customers or members, it’s almost as egregious as on-duty misconduct. Leadership must address it swiftly with respect, but with decisiveness.
Takeaway: Audit how your team handles tension. Are people gossiping? Are leaders avoiding it or inadvertently fueling it? Culture health begins by showing up, not gossiping, and speaking out.
8. Final Thought: Loyalty Over Performance, Every Time
We wrapped the episode with a fun twist on a serious point: Would you rather work with a fully loyal team or a highly performing one that’s deeply divided? Mark didn’t hesitate: “Fully loyal.”
He knows from experience: loyalty is grounded in trust, respect, and shared vision. A loyal team working together is more powerful than a fractured one at top output. Because even if they buckle, they’ll do so together, and they’ll pick each other up. That’s the essence of culture-led performance.
Why This Matters to You
Mark’s insights remind us that culture isn’t a fluffy add-on. It’s the air your team breathes, the emotional undercurrent that determines whether your people and your customers want to stay, serve, and celebrate your company.
To our peers in the home services world: take these lessons to heart. You can start small by asking one more question in your hiring process, creating space to de-escalate conflict, investing in someone’s growth, and speaking up against gossip. Culture is not built by grand policy - it's built by daily choices.
