Who Cares If Your Company Is a "Champion Organization?"

Eight weeks into working with one of my clients to help lay the foundation of a Champion Organization at his company he asked me a very provocative and interesting question as I was leaving a recent leadership team session.

He said, “Skip, does anyone really care if we have a champion organization here. You know, our employees, our vendors or customers, is this really worth the effort beyond lowering my own stress level?”

There is only one answer to that question.

The question kind of put me on the spot, what am I supposed to say to that, “no, all the time, money and energy you’ve invested doesn’t really matter at the end of the day.” The only ethical answer I could give “yes.”

But, I can see why he asked the question. When you are in the beginning stages of transforming a negative workplace culture to a Champion culture there are growing pains/ At times when some people respond and others don’t. Everyone is different and gaining buy-in has to be done on an individualized basis. It can see like a daunting task as we move through the process. 

I explained that there are a number of stages that will take time to sink in that have to worked through for various constituencies. Each will have to have a reason to get excited about the initiative, we have to continue to reach deep and tap into the WII-FM (What’s In It For Me) for each individual on the team. It will be more important for some than for others. For the ones that don’t jump on board some time in the not too distant future there will be the equivalent of a major league sports’s trading deadline. 

There is a very low threshold for what is expected in the industry in which this company operates. Over the years the entire industry has developed an approach and a culture in which confrontation and conflict is the norm and expectation. It’s going to take time to change the impression that this company is just like the rest but eventually and not too far into the future, the customers and clients will begin to notice.

Here’s what will make it happen quicker:
1) Company leadership team must be the exemplars of the attitudes, behaviors and communication style we’ve decided are consistent with the image the company wants to put forth;

2) The expectation must be set with all employees and team members that moving forward the new Values/Behaviors are the new culture;

3) Any deviation from the expected behavior from among leadership team members or other employees must be addressed and adjusted immediately (all team members will be held accountable to the same expectations and in the same manner);

4) Training and coaching of individuals to bring their interpersonal skills up to the expected standard may have to be provided.

5) Client, customer, sub-contractors and referral sources should be communicated with at the beginning of each project to set the tone and expectations on the new terms with the new approach, so that they know what to expect regarding the interactions with the company moving forward.  Setting the expectation on the front end and then fulfilling them will go a long way towards building the new belief as to what’s possible in this industry.

By following the five steps outlined above, my client will be setting a new tone and become a leader in its industry for changing the entire culture of that industry, one client and one employee at a time.

I’m working on a very exciting project.