Compiled by Thu Trà

HÀ NỘI — Corporate culture is increasingly seen as a decisive factor in Việt ’s economic competitiveness as businesses navigate rapid technological change, deeper global integration and intensifying competition.

Once viewed as a supporting element, corporate culture is now being treated by policymakers and industry leaders as a core driver shaping how companies manage operations, compete in markets and build long-term value.

The Resolution No 80-NQ/TW, issued by the Politburo in January, calls for building business and corporate culture as a pillar of sustainable development, reflecting a broader shift in development strategy.

The resolution frames culture not only as a spiritual foundation but also as a key endogenous driver of socio-economic growth, placing people and cultural values at the centre of policymaking.

Under this approach, corporate culture is expected to function as an internal resource influencing governance, business conduct and engagement with society, while helping regulate market behaviour and improve competition standards.

The policy also calls for building a business community grounded in ethical standards and aligned with both national identity and international practices, signalling a shift away from reliance on low-cost labour towards competitiveness based on governance, branding and cultural capital.

Mạc Quốc Anh, vice president and general secretary of the Hanoi Small and Medium Enterprise Association, said corporate culture is a true competitive advantage in the innovation era.

“Technology, processes and capital can be replicated, but organisational spirit, internal trust and the way people collaborate to create value cannot be copied,” he said.

He noted that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Hà Nội have begun to show a clearer shift in perception, with more firms recognising that a strong cultural foundation is essential to retain employees, maintain credibility and foster innovation.

Young entrepreneurs in sectors such as services, technology and retail increasingly view culture as a soft operating system, prioritising employee experience, continuous learning, critical thinking and transparency, he said, adding that such conditions are essential for innovation to thrive.

However, the transition remains uneven, with short-term management thinking posing the biggest barrier.

“Under pressure from cash flow and orders, many businesses prioritise immediate gains, treating culture as decoration or slogans rather than substance,” he said.

Leadership gaps also persist, he added, noting that executives who promote transparency but manage based on personal discretion risk undermining corporate culture.

SMEs need to redefine culture as a long-term, profit-generating asset that helps reduce hidden costs such as staff turnover, internal conflict and customer loss, and serves as a genuine driver of growth in the new economic environment, he said.

Other analysts and industry representatives said some companies still treat corporate culture as a symbolic exercise rather than embedding it into operations, with values such as transparency and social responsibility not consistently reflected in management practices.

Cases of unfair competition, tax violations and labour rights breaches continue to undermine market confidence, they said.

Lê Quang Vũ, CEO of consulting firm Blue C, said awareness of corporate culture is rising among Vietnamese businesses, but execution often lacks depth.

Many companies focus on superficial elements or follow trends without long-term consistency, he said, adding that resources allocated to culture, including leadership attention and budgets, remain limited.

Embedding values into strategy

Từ Thị Loan, vice president of the Vietnam Association for the Development of Corporate Culture, said businesses need to define core values aligned with common standards such as respect for the rule of law, integrity, trustworthiness, fair competition and social responsibility.

She said these values should be translated into codes of conduct and professional ethics applied consistently across operations, while being embedded into long-term strategies linked to modern governance, human resource development and workplace culture.

When employees internalise shared values, corporate culture can naturally permeate production and business activities, she said.

Lê Quang Vũ from Blue C echoed this view, saying companies should first systematically reassess their corporate culture by identifying core principles and the factors behind past success.

From there, businesses should leverage these elements and transform them into soft power to build resilience and overcome challenges, he said.

Vũ said he believed that the internal strength of most Vietnamese businesses is immense and highly potential.

“If we can unlock the cultural key, cultivate people’s love for the company and unlock the potential within each individual, then the organisation they cherish and are proud of will also grow,” he said. 

Meanwhile, Mạc Quốc Anh of the Hanoi Small and Medium Enterprise Association, said the essence of corporate culture lies not in words on the wall, but in the behaviours repeated every day.

He said companies should translate values into concrete actions, starting with a small set of clear principles. For example, 'integrity' should mean accurate reporting and transparency in mistakes, while 'on time' should translate into responding to customers within 24 hours.

He also said culture must be embedded across the employee lifecycle, including recruitment, evaluation, rewards and dismissal, adding that firms must be willing to remove employees who undermine core values regardless of technical skills.

Culture, he said, can be quantified through indicators such as staff turnover, employee engagement, customer satisfaction, internal innovation activity and complaint resolution speed.

He added that companies should also focus on brand touchpoints, where culture is experienced directly by customers through everyday interactions such as phone responses, quotations, delivery commitments and complaint handling.

“Consistency in every small detail will shape brand identity,” he said, adding that values must be transformed into behaviour, and behaviour into habit for culture to become a company’s 'brand DNA'. — VNS