After 25 years of learning and growing in different work cultures, I made a pretty hard pivot and decided to start my own business – built on the vision of culture I developed through all of these experiences: Kuma’s Culture. 10 years and one pandemic later, I know that many of the lessons I’ve learned, and experiences I’ve gained, have shaped some very concrete steps I’d like to share regarding what it takes to build the best business possible, starting with the most important piece of the whole endeavor: the people.
Have Strong Leadership in Place
One of the key differences between highly effective organizations and slower, less empowering organizations is dictated by the role the Middle Manager plays in an organization. The conventional 9-5 central-office-based model is growing obsolete, and this means we need to rethink how to engage with direct reports. Why not loosen the grip on the flow of information, embracing a “default-to-open” culture that doesn’t burden communication between employees and upper management with having to go through someone else? Organizations need to focus on results rather than simply tracking and reactively monitoring employee and organization activities, and to inspire those results they need a strong leader who is adaptable, trusted, and mission-focused.
There doesn’t need to be someone monitoring productivity and tracking others’ workloads, when you. . .
Hire the Right People
Contrary to what you might read in the media these days, I personally believe it’s now easier than ever to hire quality people. Setting up, or transitioning, your organization to operate remotely – without borders – allows you to move away from location-based hiring, and broadens your talent pool. You no longer need to hire people that live around the office, or hire someone great and then have them move away. You’re meeting the employee where they are, and not the other way around.
Let’s pause for a second and read that statement again since it’s the crux of why companies continue to struggle with remote and virtual work. It’s not organization first. . . it’s employee first. You’re meeting the employee where they are, and not the other way around. This theme will come up again.
This now opens your pool to not only other regions in the US, but also globally.
Additionally, by broadening the talent pool, you’re also increasing the opportunity to build more diverse teams. You’re not limited to the same geographic area, to the same general income levels, to the same backgrounds, to the same language. You’re not hiring for the London office or the Washington DC office, you’re hiring to create the best solutions, period. You can now bring in diversity of people and thought to your organization, and build more well-rounded and innovative products and services.
Now that you’ve removed some of the barriers to hiring and can tap into quality talent, I’d like to share some of the common traits I look for in employees – not just the ones that are obvious on resumes. By the way, it’s actually extremely rare that I look at a resume when hiring. I focus on people that show three important qualities:
- Innovative Problem Solving
- Resiliency
- Willingness to Learn
Everyone can solve a problem, but I’m looking to see that they aren’t simply addressing problems in the same old way, but are solving them in innovative or more effective ways. How can we improve upon the old ways? Is there a better way?
I’m also looking for people that don’t have all of the answers, aren’t afraid to admit it, and always have a willingness to learn and take on new challenges. I can’t name a field that isn’t changing or growing, so nobody ever has all of the answers. If you’re not willing to learn and grow, eventually you’ll be left behind.
And finally, I’m looking for people that are resilient. That have been tested and have failed and have pushed forward. It’s easy to win when things are going well and everything is perfect, but show me someone that has been through the grind and won. Those are the leaders I want to work with.
Once you’ve got the best people on board, how do you build the structure to help them personally thrive and deliver results that consistently wow your clients?