What does a leadership team do to initiate getting the culture in shape?

Three suggestions follow. They apply to a new business and its culture or to a new look at the culture of an older business.

In either case, the leadership team needs to:

Weigh the culture.
In a series of meetings, your leaders should examine the culture's intent and meaning. They need to explore its specifics and integration. And they want to express the culture in concrete, "this is what it looks like" terms. Recommendation: hold at least one facilitated session for these leaders to do exercises to help them build a variety of images of your culture at work. If leaders "see" how clerks express and demonstrate true care for the customer, they more ably build the shape and structure in which that will occur.

Exercise a plan.
Every leader designs the processes, procedures, structures for her specific part of the business. All leaders must communicate continually with one another during this design phase. We're really talking about a communication plan. Here's an abbreviated example:

• Weekly, each leader submits updated outline of design for his area of responsibility.
• In regular meeting, team shares feedback on submitted design outlines.
• Questions are shared and answered via an e-mail thread or online forum.

Stretch communications.
Leaders shape the culture in order to actualize the culture. To expedite success, leaders must constantly communicate with executives or senior leaders who first articulated the culture. This clarifies and verifies that plans fit desires.
Leaders must communicate consistently with managers and employees. These are who make the culture work. They will have valuable input and feedback. Better for leaders to receive this during design and development.

The leader is very much the culture's personal trainer: determining how the culture "looks", how it performs  and what it can achieve.