A Letter from Concentrus President Amy Malmquist
You would be surprised what an organization can do when it’s fully aligned.
Side chatter.
Complaining in small groups about compensation changes.
Frustration with someone not pulling their weight on the team and at your wits end.
Unfair management.
Gossip.
If you’ve seen one or more of these things happening in your organization, then your success is being threatened and your business could be on the verge of a downward spiral.
I believe that culture will define results. The age old question in building a sustainable business and achieving the highest level of success is, “How do we achieve results while putting a focus on people?”
Years ago people who worked for me would call me a “driver, hatchet, arrogant, uncaring, only cares about numbers”. I drove results at the cost of employees. I didn’t mind employees working 70 hours a week, heck I was working 80. I had one thing only in mind and that was making the most money possible, beating everyone and winning at all cost. And while the organizations I worked for did “well” on the surface, there was carnage. The employees were just a means to an end. People suffered loss of relationships, high levels of stress, low productivity during working hours, resentment long term, you name it. Of course my organizations could drive short term success. That was easy.
Before you say to yourself this isn’t me, take a quick examination. Have you ever said:
- “Eh, they’ll figure it out, they are adults.”
- “They know this industry is volatile, they signed up for this.”
- “Well, they just need to suck it up.”
- “Figure out a way to work together.”
These are all statements that lead to unhappy employees, low productivity and misalignment.
I challenged myself and I would challenge you to think differently. Because a solid culture will change results. Having a fully aligned organization will produce higher results and happier employees. No more gossip. Confronting issues in a direct, but kind manner will lead to higher results at a faster pace as well as more fulfilled and heard employees.
In our organization, we strive for people and results. We do not lower the bar to do this. In fact, the bar is high. AND we achieve because our organization is fully aligned starting with me.
It started with defining our culture:
- No Gossip
- Direct and Kind Communication
- People
- Results
With these 4 simple ideas we have transformed our organization and many others from the inside out. We begin with a servant mentality and we are fiercely curious about both our employees and our clients. We do not waste time gossiping. We confront problems in a direct and kind manner at any level. We take and receive feedback no matter where in the hierarchy the person lands. We set clear agreements on achieving goals, and we drive to it.
Imagine swimming in a pool and you’re in your own lane. There are a few ways to hit the result of getting to the other side. You can do straight down the lane, you can swerve and hit the markers on each side, or you can get tangled with other swimmers. But the fastest way to the finish line is a straight line with no obstacles.
When you drive out gossip, you’re avoiding the other swimmers that are trying to get in your way. When you confront problems at all levels you’re not allowing the lane markers to interfere with the end goal. You too can drive straight to the finish line, hard and fast. All it takes is courage to stand up to what’s getting in your way.
Dream big. Imagine the possibility of a workplace with no gossip, happy employees all while achieving unbelievable results, and then make it happen.
It. Can. Happen.
