A colleague and I recently had a conversation about her work in the international business arena. These are Sandra’s words:
As the environment continues to change and as we look to free our organization in order to deliver on our promise to our customers, it is also important to free the individual expertise of each one of us in order to support that promise.
With that in mind, Sandra helped launch her company’s Simple Rules:
- Be clear about what you can and can’t do and when
- Suggest a solution with every problem
- Celebrate success and excellence
- Invite others’ opinions and ideas
These represent how our organization will operate from now on, at all levels of the organization. Our simple rules make up the code that informs people how to act. To further support the effort, every employee will be invited by their managers to take part in discussions on what these ‘simple rules’ mean to each of us, as individuals and members of a team, and how they can truly bring the simple rules into our everyday way of operating.
In the meantime, the rules will serve to empower each member of the organization. Just imagine if everyone is committed and encouraged to challenge the status quo; respectfully push back on actions that no longer support the future direction of our group; and instead embrace our full potential by applying these simple rules.