given their daily business reality. “Are you serious?” “Is that consistent with our values?” (see Chapter 4) and “Is that realistic?” Both the macro level (vision) and micro level (daily interactions) have to work and complement each other.
This also means that, as long as a business is still working on a vision that is not ready to be published, much can still be gained by chipping away at the micro level to secure engagement and cooperation from the workforce. What can help are the core questions which the Gallup Institute uses to measure the emotional attachment and loyalty of employees to a business. How many of the following questions would your colleagues or subordinates say “yes” to? The more questions are answered in the affirmative, the higher the motivation and engagement of those concerned. A closer look at the twelve criteria used by Gallup reveals a combination of appreciative management style, efficient organization, opportunities for self-development, and a fair and positive working environment. That’s hardly rocket science, is it?
The Twelve Elements of Great Managing
—The Gallup Questions
1.Do you know what is expected of you at work?
2.Do you have the materials and equipment to do your work right?
3.At work, do you have the opportunity to do what you do best every day?
4.In the last seven days, have you received recognition or praise for doing good work?
5.Does your supervisor, or someone at work, seem to care about you as a person?
6.Is there someone at work who encourages your development?
7.At work, do your opinions seem to count?
8.Does the mission/purpose of your company make you feel your job is important?
9.Are your associates (fellow employees) committed to doing quality work?
10.Do you have a best friend at work?
11.In the last six months, has someone at work talked with you about your progress?
12.In the last year, have you had opportunities to learn and grow?
Before a business uses empty statements, interchangeable platitudes, or just the blindingly obvious to create a vision—in short, before it indulges in bullshit bingo—it would be better to forgo all forms of so-called visionary statements. And that applies to start-ups too. However gripping the success stories of Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Page, and Sergey Brin may be, not one of them was a first mover, not one of them started out as a gifted visionary with a great new idea. Writing in the magazine Brand eins, Thomas Range is blunt: “Amazon’s founder Jeff Bezos didn’t invent online retail. Ebay’s founders didn’t invent the online auction. Google’s founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin didn’t invent the search engine. Mark Zuckerberg did not invent social media with Facebook. And the founders of AirBnB didn’t invent private online room rental.” What is common to these and other successful entrepreneurs is a sense for what the market is looking for and systematic and disciplined development and implementation of their business model. If you have been a customer of the one-time online bookseller Amazon for more than ten years, then you will have witnessed firsthand the company’s constantly expanding range of products and digital services.
Conclusion: It takes lots of small steps to set up a business and hold it steady on the long road to success. The best moment to accelerate this process with an appealing vision, for customers and the workforce alike, is probably not in the first tentative phase, but when the business is already well underway and the signs are multiplying that “there’s something in this.” Indeed, that something then becomes the script for an inspiring yet realistic vision. And only then does a vision become an engine of progress and a motivator of people, rather than just a naïve, potentially embarrassing, and, worst of all, distracting delusion of grandeur.
Who is actually responsible for the “vision” of a business? For the Incas, it was clear. The Inca himself, anointed by the Sun God, determined the path, and it is not that much different in modern organizations. A vision statement can only be effective if the leadership team is fully on board and everyone in the business buys into it. Furthermore, it is top management that must have the courage to adopt Collins’s “Big Hairy Audacious Goal” idea and then appoint and work with a competent team on creating a sustainable vision. Not only large businesses benefit from well-documented and ambitious long-term goals, but also small companies and family businesses, non-profit organizations, clubs, departments, teams, and every single one of us, as we work out what we want to achieve in our lives. Regular reflection on the question “Where are we actually going?” generally leads to greater success and satisfaction, provided that the vision properly embodies the concept of a motivating and meaningful way forward described in this chapter. Let’s find out.
| Your Vision Test | |
| 1.Now is a good moment for a (new) vision. (Unfavorable times are, for example, during a serious crisis or a start-up period.) |  |
| 2.The vision can be captured in one sentence. It does not need any further explanation and is crystal clear to everyone inside and outside the business. |  |
| 3.The vision is distinct and unique; it could not be applicable to any other organization. | |
| 4.The vision is emotionally compelling. It goes beyond purely economic targets or milestones. | |
| 5.The vision fully reflects the culture and values of the organization. | |
| 6.The vision unleashes the desired behavioral responses. | |
| 7.The vision is relevant and meaningful for everyone. | |
| 8.The vision answers the question: Why does the world need this business/organization? | |
| 9.The vision reinforces a positive image of the organization (external perception). | |
| 10.The vision is both ambitious and credible (a realistic long-term objective). | |
Inca Insights
•Set yourself big targets.
•Appeal to the hearts and minds of everyone in your organization.
•Keep a close and constant eye on whether your vision is still taking you where you really want to go, and nowhere else.
“You can’t train someone to be smart. That’s something they just have to bring with them!”
—Dr. Timm Volmer, CEO Smartstep Consulting
2 Talent before Seniority (or the Creeping Danger of Mediocrity?)
