“What kind of company are we?” The answers range from: a) sales driven, b) customer driven, c) employee driven, d) technology driven, e) investor driven, or f) all of the above.
The person asking the question typically thinks the answer is anything but their role in the company. It is a matter of “you are not paying enough attention to my area of the business, so we must be driven by some other area.” Think about the various options as points on a radar chart (or spider web chart). How far each point sticks out is a measure of how focused we are on that driver. If we are technology driven, then that point would dominate the chart and the other points would be much smaller.
Some personality tests measure an individual’s dominant behavior across different types of personality, and then draw a radar chart like I described above. What is interesting is when the test also compares how an individual will react normally versus how they will react in stressful situations. Under stress, individuals shift their behavior toward something that is more natural to them, or where they feel they have strength. An engineer may be collaborative under normal circumstances, but under stress they might spike toward individual problem solving relying upon technical solutions rather than interpersonal solutions.
The same thing occurs in company behavior. There is typical behavior during normal circumstances, but behaviors shift under stress. ’What kind of company are we?’ is often voiced during challenging situations, and the answer reflects how we react to the stress. What are our priorities when we have to make hard choices. When resources are stretched and need to be rationed or reduced, or when there is a conflict between departments and we have to choose the goals of one over the other? What drives the decision?
When pressed by a stressful situation, we have to decide to spike in the direction of one of the business drivers. Are we driven by a sales culture and more apt to make decisions driven by sales priorities, or are we going to focus on existing customers, even at the expense of the next big deal? Are we driven by customer satisfaction, or revenue growth. Are we going to make decisions based on what is best for our employees, or will the bottom line win out and we will favor investors over employees. What about technology debt versus innovation? Do we pour resources into building the next new thing, or do we focus on existing customers and devote our tech staff to fixing bugs and correcting usability? The answers ‘a’ through ‘e’ are not all mutually inconsistent. In fact, they are often mutually dependent and linked together or balanced. If we have strong values and a solid business culture, it will guide our response. In a given situation, we may need to be fluid in our response. Episodes of stress may shift our behavior temporarily, but on balance we will return to our values and core.
However, fundamental or strategic changes in the business may cause us to completely rethink what drives us. One example is when our investors decide it is time to move toward a sale of the business. We may shift from investing in the future, to eliminating anything that will not create a positive return within the timeframe of the exit. While it may not be the best thing in the long-term for the business, it may increase the immediate value for the shareholders. In other words, we need to spike in the direction of an investor driven company, perhaps at the expense of being balanced.
I am an advocate of ‘f—all of the above.’ It acknowledges that the various parts of the company are like an orchestra with each instrument playing an important part. On some occasions, one section will take the lead, and on other occasions a different part will take the lead. When we focus on building a new product, we may become primarily technology driven to stave off competitors. If we are facing churn and customer dissatisfaction, we may shift our focus to become more customer driven. While ‘all of the above’ should be the dominant behavior, we need to recognize that at any given moment, we may have to spike in the direction that moves the company forward the most. The important thing is to live by our core values and ensure that we maintain the character of our culture.