Attitude is a two-way street.

In every organization that I've been involved with (schools, churches, companies, voluntary organizations, even local and national governments), the people at the top set the tone.

If the people at the top are dedicated to providing a superior product or service at a fair price and with a sense of courtesy and responsibility, and if they share both the rewards of success and the pain of failure with the rank-and-file, you'll have good morale and eager, competent workers.

There's a family-owned manufacturing business in my father's hometown, now owned and managed by the children of the original founder. A few years ago, when times were bad, the owners announced that instead of laying people off, they were going to cut everyone's wages 10% AND they, the owners, were going to forego their entire salaries for the following year. That kind of attitude engenders employee loyalty and support.

If the people at the top are greedy, grasping a-holes, then that attitude of "I don't care about anything but what's in it for me" filters down into the lower ranks. For example, taking big bonuses while cutting everyone else's salaries and benefits models "What's in it for me" behavior. Consciously or unconsciously, the lower-ranking employees adopt the same attitude.