There are three kinds of organisations operating in today’s world. Some are making the new rules for work. They may be in new media, technology or doing pioneering work in another field. Some organisations are trying to squeeze what they can from the old rules. They may be in finance, retail or other process-driven businesses. Some are trying to follow both the old and new rules. They may be running the majority of their organisation in an established way - but also aiming to be inventive in certain areas. Let’s look at these three kinds of organisations.

1) Some organisations are making the new rules.

Some are doing pacesetting work. They are going into new lands, making new rules. People are energetic, self-motivated and working hard towards a specific goal. Their spirit is entrepreneurial. They emanate a sense of purpose – to build a new venture, launch a fresh product or win a pot of gold. Some have a sense of hubris – believe their know it all. Many are hungry to learn from any field, however, in order to gain the slightest advantage. Virtually all are goal-centred. They focus on: a) The purpose; b) The principles; c) The people who will enable them to reach the goal.

“The biggest challenge is getting the right people,” said one leader. “Being in a fast-moving industry, we want people who can take responsibility, make decisions and enjoy working in a team. They must also be ‘street-wise’ – doing their best for customers, but not ‘selling the farm’. We don’t offer the best wages, but everybody is a shareholder. Selling the business will mean everybody makes money – but for some it will be £25k, rather than a million. We are honest about that with people when they join. The upside is they will have been part of a successful company that already has a huge reputation. People will move-on to other exciting jobs in the industry.”

Can you think of an organisation that is making the rules? How are they putting this into practice? What kinds of people thrive in this organisation? What are the pluses and minuses of working in such a place? Try completing the following sentences.

An organisation that I believe
is making the new rules is:

*

The specific principles they are
following for making this happen are:

*

*

*

2) Some organisations are trying to squeeze what they can from the old rules.

Some are doing everything possible to make the old system work – with varying results. Some are succeeding. They are recording profits but, at the same time, may be upsetting their customers or staff. The spirit is ‘engineering’. They believe in their system and urge their people to make it work better. Many banks, insurance companies, retailers and even some software firms are taking this approach. Some organisations are failing. They are overloading their staff with targets, internally-focused activities and ‘painting by numbers’ procedures. There is little joy in such places. People turn-up for work and go through the motions. There is little vision higher up the chain. Senior managers produce many initiatives, but few communicate a compelling company ‘story’. Such senior managers are in ‘Stalin’s country’ – where occasionally one or two get taken out and shot. They may have failed to deliver; other times it can be because new leaders shoot a few people on ‘whim’.

Can you think of an organisation that is trying to squeeze the most from the old rules? How are they putting this into practice? What kinds of people thrive – or survive - in this organisation? What are the pluses and minuses of working in such a place? Try completing the following sentences.

An organisation that I believe is trying to
squeeze the most from the old rules is:

*

The specific principles they are
following for making this happen are:

*

*

*

3) Some organisations are trying to follow both the old and new rules.

Some are trying to get the best of both worlds. Building on the principles that work, they want to maintain their core offering. At the same time, however, they see the world is changing. This poses a fundamental challenge: How to keep the best of the past – yet also shape a successful future? Some organisations are taking the following steps.

* They are maintaining and improving their core business.

* They are developing future business by building ‘successful prototypes’.

* They are keeping these two activities separate – which allows both types of businesses to practice the principles in their own ways to deliver success.

This final point is crucial. Good organisations follow their time-honoured principles. But the ways these core principles are practiced must continue to evolve. Customer service in the 21^st century, for example, calls for different approaches than in the 1980s. Some organisations fail to understand such implications. So they hire enthusiastic people to build new types of businesses – then ask them to follow ancient internal procedures. Good organisations give people the accountability, autonomy and authority required to deliver successful prototypes. Such new ventures then develop the future income streams. Only a few organisations manage this balancing act. They maintain their core offerings – whilst also developing successful new businesses.

Can you think of an organisation that is managing to follow both the old and new rules? How are they putting this into practice? What kinds of people thrive in this organisation? What are the pluses and minuses of working in such a place? Try completing the following sentences.

An organisation that I believe is successfully
following both the old and new rules is:

*

The specific principles they are
following for making this happen are:

*

*

*

There are three kinds of organisation operating in today’s world. It is useful to know which kind of organisation you prefer. Each type does, of course, contain both pluses and minuses. Bearing these factors in mind, you can consciously accept the whole package. You can then perform fine work and deliver success.

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