Several studies show that overcompensating an employee will not make up for a bad work environment. Companies who think they can engage and retain their employees by simply throwing money at them are wrong. Employers who grab their employees’ hearts through creating a Magnetic Culture and wisely utilizing their resources will get ahead of the pack.
POWERFUL ATTRACTION
A magnet is an object that creates a force field; an invisible force that pulls other items to it. In the same way, when a company has a Magnetic Culture, people are drawn to that company. In fact, people line up to apply for jobs with the company. It is generally not because the magnetic company pays more. It is because it has something special of which people want to be a part.
With a lot of people wanting to work for the company, it can select the best and brightest in the group. This gives the magnetic company competitive advantage because it gets the pick of the litter.
Richard Branson explains it like this:
Create the kind of workplace and company culture that will attract great talent. If you hire brilliant people, they will make work feel more like play.
(ROBERTS, 2015)
For examples of companies with a Magnetic Culture, check out the “Best Places to Work” lists. These companies are intentional about creating an environment where people want to work.
HOLDING POWER
Companies with a Magnetic Culture have highly-engaged workforces who are committed to the company. Therefore, magnetic companies hold people. Not literally, but they do hold the employees’ hearts and commitment. This lowers the high cost of employee turnover, which boosts profits.
PULLS TOGETHER
A Magnetic Culture pulls people together instead of pushing them apart. This culture encourages teamwork and expels those who hurt the team.
WHAT DOES A MAGNETIC CULTURE LOOK LIKE?
A Magnetic Culture makes employees feel like they are part of a family, and their work place is like a second home where they work hard, but that work is appreciated. They are recognized for their contributions to their company. There is also some fun involved, and friendships develop.
The employees at a magnetic company worry less about their families and other responsibilities outside of work because they are given the freedom to produce great work while taking care of those they love. They also have resources like employee assistance plans and stress reduction education to help them better manage these responsibilities.
Bosses in a magnetic company provide clear and effective communications. They establish goals and help employees achieve them. They care about their people.
You can tell a company with a Magnetic Culture because it is apparent in their business. The customer service is better, and employees are simply happier. After all, employees treat customers the way they are treated, no matter what kind of training they have had and what kind of incentives are in place. Steven Covey said, “Always treat your employees exactly as you want them to treat your best customers.” (Hakobyan, 2016) If a person is miserable in his or her job, it will reflect in his or her performance.
Zappos is a company that is known for its good culture. Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos, says,
Our number-one priority is company culture. Our belief is that if you get the culture right, most of the other stuff like delivering great customer service or building a great long-term brand will happen naturally on its own.
(BULYGO, 2013)
MY EXPERIENCE
I personally learned about working for a magnetic company in my early twenties. At Scandipharm, our visionary founder, Charlie Wingett, implemented the principles of the book Built to Last in our company. Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies is a book by Jim Collins and Jerry Porras. The book is based on the results of a six-year research project at the Stanford University Graduate School of Business. They studied 18 companies that had an average age of 100 years and outperformed the stock market by a factor of 15 since 1926. The authors researched what made those companies different from other companies. The results of the study were placed into this book, and thanks to Charlie, the success factors were implemented into our company.
Charlie started by giving every employee a copy of the Built to Last book. In fact, I still have the memo from 1996 he wrote that accompanied the book. (For young folks, “memos” are how we communicated in offices before email.) Charlie brought in a consultant to lead the effort. We had off-site meetings where everyone participated in building our mission, vision, purpose, and core values statements. Thus, I felt ownership of those values.
Experiencing the creation of our company’s guiding principles had a huge impact on me personally. When I talk about creating a Magnetic Culture, this is not just something that I’ve read in a book. I’ve lived it!
CHAPTER 7
How to Create a Magnetic Culture
There’s no magic formula for great company culture. The key is just to treat your staff how you would like to be treated.
— RICHARD BRANSON (VIRGIN.COM)
TO CREATE A MAGNETIC CULTURE, you first have to determine what the company stands for and where it is going. Zig Ziglar said, “All of us perform better and more willingly when we know why we’re doing what we have been told or asked to do.” (Ziglar Z. , 1990)
The starting point is creating your guiding principles: vision statement, mission statement and core values. These guiding principles are the building blocks of a Magnetic Culture. Each statement serves a different purpose in developing the company’s unique culture.
All of us perform better and more willingly when we know why we’re doing what we have been told or asked to do.
— ZIG ZIGLAR
VISION STATEMENT
Where there is no vision, the people perish.
— PROVERBS 29:18
The vision statement is the desired future state of the company. It provides direction, inspiration, and hope. The vision statement should create a mental picture of the desired state of the company.
Proverbs 29:18 says, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.” To create a Magnetic Culture, your people need a vision. As stated in the section on Employee Engagement, the Dale Carnegie study found that Inspired is one of the four traits of an engaged employee.
In Howard Partridge’s book The 5 Secrets of a Phenomenal Business, he states that his business slogan is “Inspiration to Implementation.” Howard is one of my coaches, and I can tell you that he is one of the most inspirational people I know! He says that the most successful business owners are those who are excited about the future. These people are not inspired because they are growing. They are growing because they are inspired.
The ability to effectively share the company’s vision is one of the most important leadership skills a person needs to possess to lead a company. This does not mean that the leader has to have charisma. Charlie Wingett was not a charismatic leader. Charlie was soft-spoken, but he was able to share his vision and motivate people to achieve that vision. Charlie also made sure that the core values were woven into the fabric of our company, which I will address later in this book.
Here are some examples of vision statements:
Disney—To make people happy.
Ikea—To create a better everyday life for the many people.
Microsoft—Empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.
Ford—People working together as a lean, global enterprise to make people’s lives better through automotive and mobility leadership.
A vision statement can evolve over time as your company and the environment changes. Zig Ziglar said, “The basic goal-reaching principle is to understand that you go as far as you can see, and when you get there you will always be able to see farther.” (Ziglar Z. , 1990) Don’t allow fear of not being able to predict the future prevent you from creati
ng a vision statement. Based on what you know at this time, create a vision statement that will provide direction and inspiration to your company.
MISSION STATEMENT
A mission statement describes why a company exists. It supports the vision statement. It also helps you stay focused on what your company is about. When business opportunities become available, you should measure them against your mission statement. If you get too spread out, you won’t be as effective.
A mission statement is key to creating a Magnetic Culture in that it defines the purpose of the company. Employees need to understand the company’s purpose in order to be committed to achieving it. Jack Welch, the legendary CEO of General Electric, sees having a mission statement as key to long-term success. He said,
There are only three measurements that tell you nearly everything you need to know about your organization’s overall performance: employee engagement, customer satisfaction, and cash flow. It goes without saying that no company, small or large, can win over the long run without energized employees who believe in the mission and understand how to achieve it.
(WINDUST, 2015)
A Dale Carnegie Training study identified three key drivers for employee engagement.
Relationship with direct manager
Belief in senior leadership
Pride in working for the company
Today’s workforce wants to know that they are working for more than a paycheck. They want to have lives of significance. They want to make a difference in their communities and the world. A company’s mission statement helps give employees a sense of purpose.
TOMS shoe company is a great example of a company that was built with a clear purpose. The initial business model was buy a pair of shoes, and one would be given to a child in need. The company’s founder, Blake Mycoskie, started the company to fund his giving to children in South America. Mycoskie says that TOMS was not a company with a mission. It was a mission that turned into a company.
When people are financially invested, they want a return. When people are emotionally invested, they want to contribute.
—SIMON SINEK
Simon Sinek said, “When people are financially invested, they want a return. When people are emotionally invested, they want to contribute.” (Windust, 2015) This is the power of the mission statement. It helps rally people around a common cause.
Scandipharm’s mission was to improve the quality of care and treatment of patients suffering from gastrointestinal diseases and related disorders by providing effective therapies, products, and specialized programs that meet the needs of these patients and their caregivers.
Now, this mission statement was a bit long and not easily understood (it was originally created in the 1990s), so I’m not promoting it as a great example of a mission statement. I think that a mission statement should be easy for anyone to read and understand. However, I wanted you to see this mission statement so I can share an important part of the culture developed around this statement. At Scandipharm, we had a huge “Why We Work” corkboard that held pictures of patients and their thank-you letters. This board was placed where everyone could see it, and it helped drive the mission statement home. It gave the employees the feeling that what they did at work every day mattered.
Also, in line with our mission statement, Scandipharm and its employees were involved in efforts to raise money for the Cystic Fibrosis (CF) Foundation. The company’s primary focus was providing medications and services for CF patients. Our employees participated annually in the CF Great Strides walk to raise money to cure CF and improve the lives of those with the disease. Being involved in the CF community was an important part of our culture that was tied to the mission statement.
Here are some examples of other companies’ mission statements:
Amazon—We strive to offer our customers the lowest possible prices, the best available selection, and the utmost convenience.
Google—To organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.
Jet Blue—JetBlue’s mission is to inspire humanity – both in the air and on the ground. We are committed to giving back in meaningful ways in the communities we serve and to inspire others to do the same.
Publix Super Markets—Our mission at Publix is to be the premier quality food retailer in the world.
If you do not have a mission statement already, I encourage you to create one. Write it down, and share it with your people. Better yet, get your people involved in creating a mission statement.
Once you have a mission statement, I encourage you to bring it to life. Make it more than words on a page. If you serve customers, share with your employees how they make a difference in people’s lives. Your employees need this! They need to know that their work matters.
CORE VALUES
Core Values are the company’s deeply-held beliefs. They serve as the company’s guiding principles and basis for decision-making. Core Values are simple, clear, straightforward statements. They are internal drivers and are not affected by changes in the outside environment. Core Values are a solid foundation for the company and do not sway with the trends of the day. In fact, they help companies through change.
Typically, a company has only three to six Core Values. These values are so deeply held and unchanging that only a small number are needed. To develop Core Values, you can get ideas from other companies; however, you should never copy another company’s Core Values. They have to be unique to your company and your beliefs. Developing Core Values is not a calculated process and should not be influenced by what the outside world thinks they should be.
When we developed our Core Values and other guiding principles at Scandipharm, we went to an off-site conference center in the woods. We had an outside consultant facilitate the process (although, this is not necessary). Scandipharm was tight on money at this time, so the fact that money was being spent on an off-site meeting and a consultant sent a message to me that this was serious business.
The entire company was involved for one day in the creation process of our guiding principles. Management stayed for an additional day to finalize the statements. Because I was involved in this process, the company’s guiding principles were very personal to me. It was the same for others who were part of the process. Dale Carnegie said, “People help support a world they helped create” (dalecarneggie.com), and I have found that to be true.
I think that involving a lot of people in the creation process of those values created a kind of virus effect as the company grew. As new employees were hired, the originators of those values spread the enthusiasm and passion they felt about the values. I had many people tell me that they could see my passion about those values, and it made them feel passionate about them as well.
I highly recommend involving as many employees as you can in the development process of your Core Values and other guiding statements. Warren G. Bennis, who was known as the Father of Leadership, said:
Good leaders make people feel that they’re at the very heart of things, not at the periphery. Everyone feels that he or she makes a difference to the success of the organization. When that happens, people feel centered, and that gives their work meaning.
(WINDUST, 2015)
Sadly, in 1997, we lost Charlie (age 55) to a heart attack. Our company went through many changes after that time. We had some good leaders and some bad leaders; mergers and acquisitions; and wins and losses. However, I always felt that the core values gave us roots to withstand the many challenges that we faced later. Charlie left a rich legacy and an indelible mark on my life as a leader.
CHAPTER 8
Integration into Fabric of the Company
FOR THESE GUIDING STATEMENTS TO be effective, they have to be woven into the fabric of the company. This requires taking the Vision, Mission, Core Values, and any other guiding principles, and translating them
into action. In Built to Last, this is described as follows:
...visionary companies translate their ideologies into tangible mechanisms aligned to send a consistent set of reinforcing signals. They indoctrinate people, impose tightness of fit, and create a sense of belonging to something special through practical concrete items.
(COLLINS, 1994)
Lack of integration is where many companies are missing the mark. After the corporate scandals of the early 2000s, there was a rush for companies to make themselves look trustworthy. This usually involved leaders creating Core Values and other guiding principles in a meeting, or having an outside consultant create the “appropriate” statements for them. Leaders would announce to the employees and the world that they had created these wonderful guiding statements, and that they were committed to them.
This is all well and good, but for some companies, it was just putting paint on a dilapidated building. Due to the sense of urgency around making companies look trustworthy, many leaders created guiding principles from a sense of necessity, not from their core beliefs. For leaders who didn’t understand the importance of having guiding principles or were just lacking in character, they simply met the PR obligations and went on their way. That’s it! The principles were not implemented in the company.
LEADERS: If you create a set of values and do not demonstrate them, you are doing more harm than good. Do not create Core Values and other guiding principles if you are not going to model them.
While I’ve seen great leaders create and demonstrate Core Values, I’ve also seen leaders who give lip-service to the company’s values, then turn around and do something completely contrary to those values. Do you trust someone who is two-faced? Neither do employees. They won’t follow, respect, nor stay with a leader who says one thing and does another. Also, word gets around to potential employees, and they don’t want to work there either.
The Magnetic Advantage Page 4