In Albert Hirschman’s book “Exit, Voice, and Loyalty: Responses to Decline in Firms, Organizations, and States” he mentions that there are four different options for handling a dissatisfying situation. Decades of research show that you have a choice between exit, voice, persistence, and neglect. Exit means removing yourself from the situation altogether. Voice involves actively…
Tag: company culture
Who’s the most valuable member of the company?
Since it was the founder/co-founders’ idea that led to the company’s start, is she/he/them the Most Valuable Member (MVM)? Sales team brings in clients and revenue. Are they more valuable then? How about the technology team that made the software which the sales team sold? And the human resource team who found and hired the…
The creative narrative
“She is so creative.” “He is really creative.” “That’s the creative team.” Creativity is hard to define. Each one of us is creative – that creativity can be seen at our homes, workplaces, the hobbies we have, the activities we do, and it can be anywhere and everywhere. What type of environment helps in facilitating…
What’s your dominant question?
Jim Kwik, author of Limitless says a dominant question is the thing we keep asking ourselves, over and over throughout our day. It’s what drives our decisions in the moment and focuses our obsessions when we’re alone. He says the dominant question feels permanent but it is not. “The questions you ask yourself will shape…
Useful resources on curiosity and questions
Articles/blogs: The DNA of the World’s Most Innovative Companies Curiosity is a Must-have Skill The Business Case for Curiosity Forget Brainstorming. Try Questionstorming Why must businesses step back in order to move forward? Videos: How to Ask Better Questions | Tim Ferriss The Truth about Being the “Stupidest” in the Room | Simon Sinek Podcasts:…
Feedback for growth
Growing up in a household or being in an environment where you get mostly or only positive feedback, you will expect that type of feedback in all areas of your personal and professional life. How helpful is the (mostly or only) positive feedback for the person receiving it in the long run? Is that positive…
Asking questions to understand better
Simon Sinek, author of Start With Why and other books says that “asking questions doesn’t mean you’re the stupidest person in the room; it usually means you’re the only one brave enough to speak up.” Some of the reasons why we aren’t asking enough questions even when we don’t understand the topic of discussion are…
Organizations that grow
In Carol S. Dweck’s groundbreaking book, Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, she talks about the research that Jim Collins and his team did on what made companies move from being good to being great. The five-year study showed that there were several factors that distinguished the thriving companies from the others. In Jim Collins’…
Who sets the company culture?
The people who care. The people who care think of an idea, an initiative and pursue an action. In a startup, people who care make or break the company culture. The values or ideals that the caring person or the caring group have will carryover and reflect in their initiatives and activities within the company….
Take care of your employees.
We’ve heard the phrase many times “Employees are a company’s greatest asset.” Do you think most companies actually believe that phrase in their core and behave accordingly? That’s a profound statement that companies have to visit and revisit all the time. Some well established companies tout all the benefits they provide to their employees but…
Company culture
What is company culture? Do we want to have a certain company culture? If we do, what values should we aspire to have? Who will be responsible to uphold those values? What if those values are not followed then what happens? It’s important to ask the right questions before setting out to “build” company culture.
How do you teach culture?
Can you actually teach culture at your company? How about putting the company’s core values in places where everyone can see? And what exactly is culture? These questions are not that easy to answer. But starting out with the right set of questions can help build a strong foundation for company culture: What culture do…
Keeping the bar high
Each company has an opportunity to set the culture right from the start. We’ve heard the term “Culture eats strategy for lunch.” Culture is everything. The culture should promote excellence and always keep the bar very high. Mediocrity will try to sneak in here and there but you have to be quick to take care…
Culture as USP
Many technology companies in Kathmandu offer similar benefits to their employees. The benefits are as follows: 5 working days, 2 day weekends, subsidized lunch/dinner, transportation, accidental and medical health insurance among others. For potential employees considering whether to join one technology company over another, it could be best to look into the work that the…
Growth challenges
Once upon a time there is an idea. An idea inside someone’s head. Then it begins to take shape. The name of the company gets registered and the web domain/social media handles are taken. It’s a constant evolution from inception to execution. As a startup, it’s about survival. The founder(s) and the team is looking…
Building a company culture
Leaders build culture. In any organization or group, the leader sets the tone or creates its culture. It’s up to you to decide what direction the organization should take. As a leader, I believe its important for them to set the culture (guidelines, best practices and values) of the organization. The leader should set the…