By Leah Quesada, VP of Marketing, Xerox Enterprise Business Group
This is the second post in a series of “Back to Basics” blogs, based from the original blog “What the Best Run Companies Do: Apply the Basics.”
In a nutshell, great companies are made up of great people who believe in a higher purpose for their business. They also acknowledge and work within the bigger ecosystem of the company they serve, which in return makes their company stronger. This blog explores the first point around people in an organization. The basic unit of a company are the individual folks in it. This blog is about you – you are one that makes your company great.
Have you ever participated in a discussion where the issue was about resolving issue x and instead of exploring possibilities to resolve issue x in a pragmatic way, people lay out processes a, b, c that convolute the original problem, add layers of unnecessary work, or seek to widen the circle of unnecessary approvers?
Take the case of John, whose team is responsible for sales content strategy, creation, and delivery. Through the years, the process of content review has moved from a small group of stakeholders to a wild web of “checkers” and string of meetings with diminishing value.
Time to believe in what you know. What you know could be the inherent knowledge you have about a topic, but more so, it’s about stepping up to reset and reframe the situation. Avoid being part of what is now a dysfunctional process. Step up and break this process loose. In the example above, it’s about being the observer, not the mindless participant. Pragmatically think of how things should be.
Believing in what you know requires a passion to succeed for the common good and the courage to express your belief. Believing in what you know is not a “me” thing; it’s a “we” thing. It’s not about self-promotion of a good idea. Quite the opposite. Assuming everyone recognizes the dysfunction, it’s about sharing the idea that benefits everyone and everyone embracing this new idea. Who wouldn’t be happy with good riddance of wasted time?
Time to believe in what you know. Be contagiously passionate and courageous. Be one of the first great basic units that will make up a great company. Nothing is stopping you. What can you do?
It´s very nice when we get to read an concise, but humanized text written from one living person to another… and not just an bunch of pages filled with a alphabet and lines soup. I belive this text is about keep the issues in perspective and call to himself the property of the problem. As (then) an brazilian Xerox employee, back in 1996, I´ve learned the term “empowerment” . Now I see it again permeating from this very inspiring text. Summarizing … ” KEEP PERSPECTIVE, AND ENPOWER YOURSELF ! “
Jose Claudio,
I am glad that you can relate to this topic in a personal way. I would say that Eko Footprint, as a company, is an example of this tenet. Eko Footprint exists as business because it believes in what it knows – that printing can be done in a sustainable, cost effective way with solid ink printers. This makes good environment sense, good business sense, and more importantly good community building towards a common cause to be kinder to the environment.
I will be posting more Back to Basics blogs that explore the essence of human nature and how that can be harnessed to build great companies. Thanks for reading!
Best regards, Leah
This article came at the most appropriate time for me. I sit here trying to mesh my intuitive instincts toward problem resolution inside a culture that does not embrace empowerment and creative thinking outside the norm. I needed a reminder of what I do best, what I know best. Thanks Leah!
Thanks also Debi. I am glad it helped. Key is trusting your inner true north and finding that common space where the conversation becomes a “we” thing. It is from that common space where great things are launched.
Best regards,
Leah
Keeping it simple. So refreshing. Believe in what you and always expand what you know about your customers, and it’s even more enlightening. Customers will remind you of that every day…. Good stuff Leah!
Thanks Anne. I am glad you resonated to these messages. What you have done at Cisco is a good example of marketing leadership guided by keen listening to customers and believing in what you know to take your service to the next level. You are right, the formula is simple but it takes passion and courage to apply it.
Best regards,
Leah