January 22, 2011. There are two kinds of organizations in the world. Those organizations that are trying to delight you – and those that are trying to make money off you.
Those that help customers solve their problems – and those that are making money for their shareholders. Those that focus on making customers happy – and those that focus on making their quarterly targets. Those that are steadily innovating – and those that are doggedly tweaking their value chain. Those that are continuously adding real value for the customer – and those that are pursuing economies of scale. Those that have relationships with their customers – and those that manipulate their customers as things. Those are responsive and agile – and those that are busy doing their own thing.
Those that care about their employees – and those that treat their employees as “human resources” to be exploited. Those whose employees love working there – and those where work is just a job. Those that are good citizens of the communities where they operate – and those that just don’t care. Those that have mastered the power of pull – and those that are pushing products at you. Those that are working from the outside-in – and those are working from the inside-out.
Those that are easy and fun to do business with – and those that make you feel queasy. Those that surprise you with unexpected extra value – and those who surprise you with unexpected extra charges.
Those that treat people like people – and those that treat people like things. Which is your organization. Reinventing management. To learn more about the former kind of organization and how your organization can become one of them, read my series:.