Growth in the technology sector is often measured in product launches, new markets and revenue milestones. But behind those visible markers lies another challenge that is harder to quantify: building a global company without losing the culture that made it successful in the first place.
For companies expanding rapidly across continents, maintaining that sense of shared identity can become increasingly complex. New offices bring new teams, different working practices and local market realities, all of which must be balanced with the need for cohesion.
At Akur8, the past year has brought exactly that challenge. The actuarial platform provider has continued to expand its international footprint, including the opening of a new office in Madrid and further growth across North America and Europe.
For Delphine Marsh, Chief Talent Officer at Akur8, the defining achievement of 2025 was not simply growth itself, but the ability to scale while preserving the company’s cultural foundations.
“When I look back on 2025, what stands out most is that we kept the Akur8 culture strong and consistent while scaling internationally,” she said.
Rather than focusing on one particular milestone, Marsh points to the collective experience of employees across the organisation.
“What I’m proudest of isn’t a single event, but the fact that our people, wherever they are, feel part of the same story, with shared expectations, shared rituals and the same level of support.”
Turning culture into something tangible
Maintaining a consistent culture across multiple countries requires more than simply defining company values. For Marsh, the key lies in translating those principles into everyday behaviours.
“We made very intentional choices to keep our culture tangible,” she explained. “That includes how we onboard, how we bring teams together, how we support managers and how we create moments for cross-team collaboration.”
As Akur8 expanded, leadership resisted the temptation to impose rigid standardisation across offices.
“As we grew, we didn’t want to standardise for the sake of standardising,” Marsh said. “We wanted to protect what makes Akur8 special: humility, excellence, empathy and the ambition to keep pushing further.”
This balance between consistency and flexibility has become central to the company’s approach to global expansion.
Defining the non-negotiables
Opening new offices inevitably raises questions about how much of a company’s operating culture should remain fixed and where adaptation is necessary.
For Akur8, Marsh says the starting point is clearly defining the principles that should remain consistent everywhere.
“Scaling globally forces you to be very deliberate about what you consider core,” she said. “For us, the non-negotiables are our values and the way we translate them into everyday behaviours.”
When establishing new locations such as the Madrid office this year, the company focuses on creating a shared foundation across teams.
“We create a strong onboarding path, early connections with teams across the company and moments that immerse people in Akur8’s ways of working.”
At the same time, regional teams are encouraged to shape their own working environment.
“We leave room for local ownership,” Marsh explained. “The rhythms of the office, the team rituals and the initiatives that make sense culturally and operationally in the country.”
The objective is not identical offices, but a recognisable culture.
“What matters is consistency of experience and expectations, not uniformity,” she said. “If someone moves from Paris to Montreal to Madrid, they should recognise Akur8 immediately.”
Integrating new teams
Alongside organic growth, Akur8 has also expanded through acquisitions, including the integration of Arius and Matrisk.
For the people teams responsible for those integrations, the challenge lies in combining operational planning with cultural sensitivity.
“Success comes from balancing structure with humanity,” Marsh said.
While a structured integration plan remains essential, she emphasises the importance of building trust with incoming teams.
“Our playbook starts with understanding the team we’re welcoming,” she explained. “Their culture, what makes them proud and what they may be worried about.”
Open communication forms a central part of the integration process.
“We prioritise early, transparent communication and a strong cadence of touchpoints,” Marsh said.
Practical measures also help teams integrate more smoothly into the broader organisation.
“We focus on aligning ways of working, giving managers the tools to support their teams and creating opportunities for cross-team collaboration.”
Building a global company
As Akur8 continues to grow internationally, maintaining that balance between global alignment and local autonomy will remain a key priority.
For Marsh, the ultimate measure of success is whether employees feel part of a shared organisation regardless of where they are based.
The goal, she says, is simple: ensuring that wherever someone joins Akur8, they encounter the same spirit that has guided the company’s growth so far.
Read the full blog from Akur8 here.
Copyright © 2026 FinTech Global
