What Is a “Healthy, High Performance” Company?

Several years ago, as global competition intensified, many boards brought new CEOs into their companies and tasked them with driving performance to significantly higher levels. Many of these CEOs immediately proceeded to “raise the bar” and bulldozed forward with little regard to the human element. One such leader was “Chainsaw Al” of Scott Paper and Sunbeam. He was a master at slashing payrolls and had a reputation for being hot-tempered and brutal. Initially hailed as a hero by Wall Street, he was later despised and viewed by most as a failure. Granted,  “Chainsaw Al” was initially successful at driving up financial performance, but he bred fear and destroyed teamwork, which later took its toll on the culture, as well as the numbers.

“Healthy, High Performance” Organizations take a different approach. While these companies are just as committed to strong financial performance, they take a longer/ holistic view and realize that it is their people who make the difference. They understand that their employees need to grow in parallel with their companies. If they fail to adequately invest in their people, they either get “burned out” or bored.

We have had the opportunity to support many leaders in their quest to create healthy, higher performing companies. Their successes can be attributed to effectively addressing a handful of business and people strategies. These “secrets” will be shared over the next few weeks …stay tuned!

Tagged as: Balanced Scorecard, Board of Advisors, Business Basics, Communications, Compensation, Culture, Employees, Entrepreneur, Exit Strategy, Family Business, Goal-Sharing, Growth, Human Resources, Incentive Program, Mergers and Acquisitions, Mission, One-Page Business Plan, Open Book Management, Operational Excellence, Outsourcing, Performance, Salary Management, Sales Compensation, Surveys, Teamwork, Training, Vision