If an organization is narrow in the images that it directs toward its own actions, then when it examines what it has said, it will see only bland displays. This means in turn that the organization won’t be able to make much interesting sense of what’s going on or of its place in it. That’s not a trivial outcome, because the kind of sense that an organization makes of its thoughts and of itself has an effect on its ability to deal with change. An organization that continually sees itself in novel images, images that are permeated with diverse skills and sensitivities, thereby is equipped to deal with altered surroundings when they appear.
– Karl Weick
Category: Leadership
Leadership is an insanely important discipline. Here you’ll find the thought, tools and tricks of the trade of great leaders.
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The opposite of a correct statement is a false statement. But the opposite of a profound truth may well be another profound truth.
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Ethical balance sheet
Bank manager Hans Erik Brønserud explains the reasoning behind the ethical balance sheet his bank does in addition to the normal balance sheet:
First and foremost this has given us a tool, which gives us a unique opportunity to sense how our stakeholders view us and what we do. Every year we get specific feedback on whether we are in agreement with our customers, employees and community, and the tables and graphs instantly show us if we’re slacking in any area.
But all of this knowledge makes no difference if we in management don’t take in the signals and correct the things that aren’t working optimally, and this we’ve chosen to do since the very first ethical balance sheet.
BTW, I’m thrilled by their mission statement:
1) We must treat our customers in a way that keeps them coming back and makes them mention on favourably to people who aren’t yet customers with us.
2) We must treat our employees in a way that makes them look forward to coming to work every day and be proud to mention where they work.
3) We must make enough money to keep fulfilling the first 2
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In every substantive sense, employees of a company carry more risks than do the shareholders. Also, their contributions of knowledge, skills and entrepreneurship are typically more important than the contributions of capital by shareholders, a pure commodity that is perhaps in excess supply.
– Sumantra Ghoshal
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Pay by ethics
There’s a new trend in rewarding senior executives, namely to decide their pay based not only on financial performance but also on other “softer” measures. Here’s an example:
Calvert, the nation’s [USA’s] largest family of socially responsible mutual funds, is trying a new proxy tactic. It has filed resolutions pressing four companies to begin rewarding executives according to how well they meet the firm’s own social goals, as well as financial ones. This could mean pay hikes for executives who oversee a surge in employee satisfaction or a drop in toxic emissions, to name a couple of possibilities. Response has been encouraging, the mutual-fund company says. Dollar General and Xerox have agreed to link incentives to their firms’ social goals…
Very interesting. The Christian Science Monitor has an excellent article on new trends in executive pay, which also mentions Ben & Jerry’s policy of the average executive making no more than 5 times as much as the average factory worker. Cool!
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American Airlines make money – by listening to employees
American Airlines turned a profit last quarter, because of a new management style which works with employees to cut costs rather than treating employees and unions as its enemies. A few examples:
Two American Airlines mechanics didn’t like having to toss out $200 drill bits once they got dull. So they rigged up some old machine parts – a vacuum-cleaner belt and a motor from a science project – and built “Thumping Ralph.” It’s essentially a drill-bit sharpener that allows them to get more use out of each bit. The savings, according to the company: as much as $300,000 a year.
And it was a group of pilots who realized that they could taxi just as safely with one engine as with two. That was instituted as policy has helped cut American’s fuel consumption even as prices have continued to rise to record levels.
And now they’ve posted a profit (albeit a small one) for the first time in 5 years. Read the whole story.
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Chief Happiness Officer
Just as every company needs a CEO, CFO, COO, CIO, etc., I believe every company should have a CHO – a Chief Happiness Officer. Most businesses today are not competitive if they can’t keep their employees happy since happy people tend to:
- Work more efficiently
- Learn faster
- Give better service
- Produce better quality
- Take fewer sick days
- Function better in teams
In fact, I challenge you to name just one area in which unhappy employees outperform happy ones. One!
The economy is critical to the business, so the CFO is in charge of that. Information systems are too, hence the CIO. So put a CHO in charge of happiness. Somebody who cares for people and recognizes that work today is one of the most important factors contributing to (or detracting from) people’s happiness.
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WorldBlu Forum
The most interesting and cutting-edge business conferences of the year will be The WorldBlu Forum on organizational democracy.
It’s in DC on October 26-29, and the participants will all be leaders under 40. Organizational democracy is one of the most crucial concepts organizations must learn to suceed in the future. The current trend clearly shows, that organizations that get this live, thrive and develop. Not to mention the fact that the people who work there have a lot more fun :o)
Among the speakers are:
Mart Laar – former prime minister of Estonia and a man who knows intimately what democracy is about
Peter Block – author of two of my favourite business books
Mads Kjaer – CEO of Denmarks best workplace
Alexander Kjerulf – Hey, that’s meI just KNOW it will rock, and I can’t wait for october to come around. You can register for the conference here.
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Conference on change and happiness at work
We’re arranging another conference on happiness at work, and this time the focus is on how to be happy during changes. Read more about the conference.
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Storytelling
When even the Harvard Business School turns on to storytelling, you know its gone mainstream. Which is entirely a good thing. I’ve been using stories a lot in the work I do, and I really enjoy the way an audience will go quiet and lean forward in their chairs when you say “I’d like to tell you a story…”
“Here is our company’s biggest challenge, and here is what we need to do to prosper.” And you build your case by giving statistics and facts and quotes from authorities. But there are two problems with rhetoric. First, the people you’re talking to have their own set of authorities, statistics, and experiences. While you’re trying to persuade them, they are arguing with you in their heads. Second, if you do succeed in persuading them, you’ve done so only on an intellectual basis. That’s not good enough, because people are not inspired to act by reason alone.
And that’s where stories come in, with their ability to talk to the non-rational parts of our minds:
The other way to persuade people?and ultimately a much more powerful way?is by uniting an idea with an emotion. The best way to do that is by telling a compelling story. In a story, you not only weave a lot of information into the telling but you also arouse your listener’s emotions and energy.
For an excellent introduction to storytelling read The Springboard by Stephen Denning.
