Practice What You Preach by David H. Maister

Author:David H. Maister
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Simon-Free Press
Published: 2001-07-15T00:00:00+00:00

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Here’s Arthur Orbach’s side of the story:

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What Colin was proposing to me was fine in theory, but I needed to feel this job would have commercial teeth. Colin is not the sentimental sort; if he doesn’t think an idea has business logic, he trashes it. This was reassuring, as I knew he wouldn’t try to sell me something he thought was tree-hugging, hippie nonsense.

If my mandate was to make the place great, there were no limits. Everything I did would be good because it would be something that other firms were probably not getting around to doing. We spent a long time agreeing what results would prove the commercial viability of the role.

In the end, I decided to take on the role because I trusted Colin. I also thought the riskiness of it made it exciting. The war for talent is every firm’s biggest challenge, and I know very few that are good at it. Whoever could crack this would be, well, famous or something. All I had to do then was figure out how.

As you grow, you have to work harder and harder to keep the original sparkle that made you great in the first place. I think all of the senior team here live in mortal fear that we’ll start looking like any other two-hundred-person firm. That would be a disaster for us, and fear of failure is very motivating!

In an ideal world, if all of senior management really concentrated on the important things, you wouldn’t need my role. I think you lose it in a fast-growing firm unless you have someone whose job is to ensure that the style you want is communicated clearly around the firm.

The problem, of course, is that it’s like trying to nail jelly to the ceiling. You can’t plant electrodes on everyone and test how happy they are when they go home each evening. You have to form a plan you intuitively believe is right, implement it, and then regularly check whether it’s working.

People always agree that culture is important, but no one is really sure just what culture is. We call it culture, because that sounds sexy, but actually, it’s the things that make great people stay. This bundle of things is different for each person, which is why it can’t be reduced to a staff satisfaction form, or a mission statement for that matter.

I report to both the creative director and the chief executive to ensure that the two main areas of the firm are properly represented. There are no departments that report to me, but I am at the center of all strategic discussions that have a potential impact on firm culture. I work out a “cultural calendar” each year, which is costed and must be approved by the board. It helps to make sure that there is a coherent plan for cultural initiatives and processes.

Each week I e-mail a summary of my activities to the board so they know on what areas I am concentrating.

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