Corporate Immune Systems Facing Cancer
Ok, so I am sick. I blame Las Vegas. Something about the Vegas schedule of little sleep and a lot of fun makes you pay at the end. Whatever, totally worth it.
I only bring this up because it got me thinking about corporate “immune systems” in values based organizations. If you are not familiar with the concept, here we go.
First, the values based organization. The concept is something that is attributed, I think, to Ken Blanchard who wrote the book Managing By Values. In a nutshell, all of your organization’s decisions are dictated by a strong set of core values that fit the personality of your company.
Now for the “corporate immune system.” Basically, your corporate immune system is the process that will naturally remove employees (meaning they quit) who do not fit into your values system. This happens because they do not feel a part of the corporate culture and they know that the organization is not a good fit.
So this makes sense to me. If I get a cold, I know that my body will almost always be able to fight off the illness, and after some bad days, things will be good and back to normal again. Similarly, I have witnessed companies that have employees that are “bad seeds” who leave because they do not fit well into a company’s values system.
So I am on board, sign me up for the values, and let the people who don’t fit fall out. Totally cool.
But then I started thinking a bit more…
Right now, I have a cold. It’s pretty easy to identify. I have a runny nose, sore through and I am congested. But what if, God forbid, I have cancer. I might not have any major symptoms at all and, without help, I am not going to be able to fight it off with my immune system.
Scary, eh?
Ok, so what if your company has cancer? What if there is someone in your company who is going to kill the whole operation and is immune to your immune system? What if you have a feeling that the cancer is there but you do nothing to stop it from spreading and taking over?
The longer you wait, the more you are screwed.
This is your fate unless you admit that your corporate immune system is not strong enough to deal with the cancer that is killing you. Oh yeah, it might take a few years, but there is a point of no return and once you pass it, no matter what you do, you will die.
So what would I do if I had cancer? Personally, I would get whatever treatment was necessary to try to live and beat the cancer. I don’t really care how painful the treatment might be for the short or medium term, I would want to live for the long term.
Now think of your company. If you have a hunch that there is a person in the organization who is cancerous, are you going to cross your fingers and hope that the cancer goes away? No, you are going to take action and do what is necessary to take care of the issue.
Ok, so you are a person who is in charge of the hiring/firing of employees in a company. Maybe you like the cancerous person even though they are bringing down the organization with their work performance. I understand if it is difficult to let a friend go. You still have to take the short term pain and choose life for your company. As a manager, it is your job to take the pain for the good of everyone else.
What if you are not the person who has any control over hiring and firing of the cancerous person? Sorry, you are not off the hook. You have a responsibility to everyone else in your organization to point out symptoms when you see them. And if the managers don’t listen and the symptoms are getting worse, tell them again. Managers may have the power to make the diagnosis, but it is easier to make a diagnosis when you have collected all of the facts.
Alright, I think I am done. Time to sip some Nyquil and go to bed.
Until next time…
