Trusted Leader Blog

Jane leads a team of 30 software programmers for a large insurance company.  After months of slavishly working on a new sales tool to promote to car dealerships, the head of operations informs Jane that the company’s strategy has changed.  The new direction means months of rework.  Jane’s team feel deflated.  Rather than celebrate a successful launch, they’re stuck with renegotiating contracts, dealing with the frustration from other internal departments and various technical challenges. Scepticism abounds with the new strategy.  Jane urgently needs to restore trust and counteract the growing cynicism of her team.

One of the most common complaints from employees revolves around whether they believe their organisation can be trusted.  

On a regular basis, I conduct roundtables with CEOs and executives about how many of their employees understand the company vision.  A common theme among all the organisations is that their executives all “live and breathe the vision,” but they often stumble with extending the same enthusiasm to other employees throughout the company.  In particular, filtering the “why the company exists message” down to the lower levels of the company.   Some even question if it even matters and whether “the German backpackers packing boxes for six months, or the Chinese computer programmer or the forklift driver” even needs to know.

You know what it’s like.  You walk into a company for a meeting and something feels off. The receptionist is rude, staff seem flustered and the place is a mess.  When you meet your client or colleague, you feel an almost palpable detachment and annoyance towards the organisation.

Mediocre companies will often tell you they have a great culture, but when you question them on what makes it wonderful, they provide you with bland platitudes and flimsy proof.  

Despite the potential threat of the horrific death of their friend, and possible manslaughter charges, four unlikely accomplices worked tirelessly together to help create what is arguably the 20^th century’s most artistic and dangerous endeavour ever. In the process, the main leader demonstrated remarkable skill as a leader and CEO of the group.

Corporate culture might be an over-used terms these days, but what it really boils down to is what behaviours staff undertake when no-one is watching.