Organizational Culture Lessons from Undercover Boss
After reading Steve Tobak’s take on the reality television show, Undercover Boss, I got to thinking about what I observed. Larry O’Donnell is the president and COO of Waste Management and is clearly committed to making the corporate policies that match his value system. This topic comes up with every client I coach no matter if the client is a sole proprietor or the leader of a larger organization. There is a strong desire to match personal value systems with the vision and mission statements in their executive summaries. There has been a lot of discussion over the last few years about people seeking meaning and purpose in their work whether or not they found a business.
Throughout the episode, O’Donnell met people who challenged his perspective on what policies were supposed to support both the people and productivity. He discovered that tardiness was dealt in an unfair manner and that how people were monitored in the field felt more like spying. He also discovered that cost-cutting measures took its toll on employees who did their jobs very well nonetheless.
When was the last time you examined the policies that are supposed to make your business more effective? Even if you are a sole proprietor, it may be time to check any rules you have set up for yourself. Sometimes trying to get systems in place in an organization can have unintended effects which can undermine a leader’s value message of what’s important about he business.
I worked for a small agency several years ago that grew quickly due,, in no small part, to the welcoming and trusting natures of the two founders. When they found highly competent clinicians, they would invite them to join the staff and then trusted them to remain highly competent and ethical in the delivery of services. (Not all human service organizations treat their employees as intelligent, caring, or dedicated.) Finally they grew so big, they had to create an employee handbook to communicate their expectations clearly. For the “old-timers,” this felt a bit like a slap in the face because there was a written code of conduct and you had to sign that you had read the handbook. At the same time, new policies were put in place to make the paperwork easier on both the clinicians and the administrative staff. There was a lot of grumbling!
To explain why things had changed from an intimate, collegial group to a less intimate but still collegial group, the founders held staff meetings and answered questions and concerns. People left the meeting with the message that the founders were 1) running a business, 2) had to comply with state and federal laws and regulations, and 3) it was still important to them to communicate that they still cared and trusted their employees to maintain the high standards that were set from the beginning.
Like the two founders of the small agency I worked for and O’Donnell, it is easy to set up policies and expectations that sound good on paper but have different effects in real life. This is where scheduled evaluations support the growth and effectiveness of your business. Underlying these evaluations is the value that you and your employees are desirable parts of the business.
Try a little exercise: Write down your top 3 values on a sticky note and post it somewhere visible.
How are they the same as when you started your business?
What role do they play as you evaluate and set policies for the forward growth of your organization?
2 Comments
The two primary values when I founded my company 15 years ago have not changed. (They are related to respect for employees and clients, and to the development of people, generally in entrepreneurial directions.)
But over the years, I have discovered that I can add a few other values to the list, and it appears that the additions do not undercut the first, nor do they overburden our operations and compromise the viability of the company. In fact, they may be strengthening it, by giving our employees a reason to stick with us in lean times, and even to recruit their friends to us.
J.M.
Your comment illustrates how businesses evolve over time. The basic framework remains and yet you get to use your wisdom as leader! Thanks for explaining how your primary values have produced results.