The Hidden Indicator of a Company’s Culture: Do You Trust Verbal Promises?
A strong predictor of company culture is whether people feel the need to document things to cover their ass - or whether verbal agreements are genuinely trusted.
In high-trust environments, verbal commitments hold weight. People don’t need to document every promise or decision because accountability is embedded in the culture. When someone says they’ll do something, it happens. When leadership makes a commitment, employees trust it will be honored. In these companies, documentation is a tool for clarity and continuity, not a shield against blame.
In low-trust environments, everything needs to be put in writing - not for efficiency, but for protection. People document agreements, email confirmations, and meeting summaries not because they value transparency, but because they know verbal commitments can be denied, ignored, or twisted later. The culture encourages covering your tracks, ensuring there’s a record in case things go sideways.
The real test? If employees routinely feel the need to CC their manager “just in case,” if meetings require extensive follow-up emails to confirm what was actually agreed upon, or if people hesitate to rely on verbal commitments alone, the company likely operates in a low-trust, high-politics environment.
At its core, this comes down to integrity. When verbal promises mean something, documentation is about efficiency. When they don’t, documentation becomes a survival tactic.