Given the global addiction to or obsession with money, it could be argued that the first rule is ‘become sustainably profitable’.
To me that is an outcome dependent upon other rules.
I argue that the following are the three primary rules:
- Shared Core Values – they are the agreements we make about how we think, speak and behave – towards ourselves, each other, others and towards everything. They are what’s needed by us to thrive, not merely exist. They must be lived, not just posted on the wall. They are not imposed by the few, but aspired to by all.
The authentic core values set the culture and reputation of the enterprise, key factors in sustainable success.
The shared values also determine the setting of the vision and the hiring of the right people – which are the second two rules as per below. - Shared Vision – the vision is the expression of the values in the form of a compelling purpose for all the effort of the people in the enterprise. Abraham Lincoln said that a critical part of leadership is to preach a vison then continuously reaffirm it.
When too few people in an enterprise have shared clarity about the vision, or mission or goals, can they be expected to act in the same direction? - Hire the Right People the First Time – Too often enterprises are playing catch-up, trying to find suitable people after realising that too many people have been placed inappropriately – for example Gallup says 82% of managers are the wrong fit.
Until artificial intelligence and robots significantly replace humans, we are the driving force that make things happen in the organisation.
Investing in the choosing the right people for the right places for the right time is an absolute, yet too often we give in to our emotions when selecting and retaining people, and don’t do the right investigation, measurement, placement and onboarding.
What do you think?
