Having the right corporate DNA is not enough!
Blog by Dave Moran, Our President and Founder.
As a Chemical Engineer and mathematician, I have always been heavily influenced by logic and process and in my career have worked in many different countries and cultures and it was whilst working in Eastern Europe in the early 90s that I developed a fascination with performance versus that of what you would expect.
As I travelled the World, I experienced many initiatives from Quality Circles and TQM through lean manufacturing and six sigma all of which offer benefits. A lesser-known proponent of management theory, Stafford Beer, postulated the theory of management cybernetics and the Viable System Model which has stood the test of time and equates any organization to that of a living system complete with feedback mechanisms and many argue is the basis for many efficiency/productivity drives we see today.
I also have another passion in life, sport, and competed in my younger years but mostly do so now as a spectator. Now with sport you get instant feedback on performance, and it is fascinating to see how often lesser teams can experience more success and out-perform. Why is that?
Well let’s look at the DNA of a business or organisation and following traditional methods you will come up with innovation, productivity, diversity, morale, leadership, accountability, personal development and maybe more as being the core DNA, just as skill, speed, power, vision, stamina etc. would be the individual DNA make up of a top sports team.
The missing component that is often underdeveloped is that of teamwork and whilst companies will often provide the environment to build and create that magic and necessary ingredient with perhaps classroom theory or family days etc. its importance is often misunderstood or understated. The theory can be taught but the reality is that true teamwork only develops through experiential activities but can spread exponentially through an organisation as once individuals become part of a high performing team, they quickly adopt traits and habits that allow new members to fit in more easily and quicker.
Our mission is to help organisations build and strengthen that complex multi-chain link that will enable their DNA to fulfil its potential. The UK Challenge is an event I competed in and experienced first-hand with 3 different companies throughout my career and was proud to take on the mantle in 2016 – since when I believe it has become even more important with the increase in hybrid working.
Developing “true” teamwork is not easy but is worth the effort and is a force multiplier for all the other initiatives you have.