Townhalls are a tool that is frequently used in practice: Top Management regularly invites employees to compact (virtual) events in which the common direction (purpose and strategy) is discussed and debated. If these meetings are not a one-way street in terms of communication, they create transparency and clarity among employees regarding the “what for” and offer great opportunities to celebrate successes together and learn from failures.
The contribution chain is a good way of optimally utilizing and bundling the strengths within the company. Here, downstream organizational units discuss and formulate their respective contribution to the vision or strategy. This internal discussion provides employees with additional clarity and makes not only the contribution of the respective team but also the individual contributions tangible.
With the help of a “chopper analysis”, teams and divisions can visualize their environment, identify critical interfaces with others and broaden their horizons. As part of networking events, they can then meet with other divisions or teams, discuss the quality of their interfaces against the backdrop of the vision and strategy and improve their collaboration.
As part of Tech Safaris, key employees of the company are made fit for new technologies: Off-site through visits to interesting tech companies and start-ups, on-site through a tech exhibition. At the latter, key personnel or all are familiarized with new technologies such as artificial intelligence, robotics, brain-machine interfaces or conversational OS and can try them out at their leisure. This is followed by structured reflections and discussions on how these new technologies could be used in the company. Incidentally, this also works when dealing with economic, social and ecological developments! In the Digital Twin mentoring variant, digitally affine, mostly young employees accompany digitally inexperienced, mostly older leaders. They meet at regular intervals to better understand and apply new technologies and new (digital) solutions to problems.
Individual, collective and system-wide development doesn't have to cost a lot! Heinrich von Pierer, the former CEO of Siemens, once coined the phrase: “If Siemens knew what Siemens knows.” He was convinced that his employees had a huge wealth of knowledge at their disposal. Such knowledge can be incorporated into a know-how platform on the intranet, for example, and employees can share their insights and experiences with others at Spark Talks and open workshops. Magic Numbers can be used to sensitize people to figures, data and facts. Leaders and employees are presented with a number and encouraged to discuss what might be behind it. For example, if it becomes clear that the number 15 represents the current dissatisfaction of 15% of customers with the company's services, the causes can be researched together and potential solutions sought.
In customer meetings, satisfied and/or dissatisfied customers are invited to report on their experiences with the company's products and services. Employees get to know their customers personally and can ask further questions about criteria that are decisive for purchasing. If you know what (potential) customers are actually willing to pay for, you are more likely to positively influence their satisfaction.
At co-creation events, you work together with customers on topics and challenges over a longer period of time. Valuable impulses, opinions, experiences and knowledge flow into the development and/or improvement of products, services and processes.
When a team works together on a topic, one team member takes on the role of Advocatus Diaboli on an alternating basis. This person can be “uncomfortable” with impunity, take opposing positions, question and even contradict things. This challenges the team to think the issue through carefully to avoid elementary errors of reasoning, not to underestimate risks and not to overlook alternatives.
Systematic waste disposal also fuels discussions and offers the opportunity to learn how to argue constructively. The participants openly address the question: “What of everything we do today would we not start again if we weren't already doing it?” Now everything is put to the test: Tasks, processes, customers, rules, values, meetings, etc. In the end, the answer is: Either these things are still needed or you have to get rid of them. This clearing outcreates space and time for new things.
With Courage Kudos, employees reward desired behavior with Kudo cards that say, for example: “Thank you for being so honest in the today's meeting, that gave me a new perspective!” This provides positive reinforcement - quickly, directly and simply. Fuck-up events encourage openness and initiative. In this setting, leaders and employees admit their mistakes and report openly on their failures. Afterwards, the participants discuss what they can learn from this.
In our experience, these measures help traditional companies to overcome obstructive ways of thinking and behaving and to break new ground in culture development. Other companies have different cultural challenges that need to be overcome. At culture & company, we accompany and support organizations of all kinds on their culture journey. With us your culture is in good company!
