5 Habits of Highly Effective Organizations

Highly effective organizations are fearless in their pursuit of greatness. They engage in self-examination and promote crucial conversations with their employees and clients. Perfection is not their goal – in fact, they share stories of their failures and mistakes so that everyone can learn and grow.

Through my coaching and leadership development work I have the opportunity to work with many different organizations. Those that strive to be highly effective are transparent, “clear” in just about everything they do. Here are the habits I see these organizations embracing:

1. Clear in their Vision and Mission – everyone who works in the organization understands why the organization exists, why what they do is important and how their jobs support the mission. Employees “speak” the mission in what they do. The leaders “walk the walk and talk the talk.”
2. Clear in Articulating their Message – these organizations put effort into communicating with everyone – employees, potential employees, clients, vendors and the community at large. They believe there is no such thing as “over communicating.” From senior management all through the ranks of the employees, people are open to questions and work to ensure that their messages are consistent with their mission.
3. Clear in their Relationships with their Clients – they view themselves as true partners with their clients. They invest the time to explore client needs, work to adapt to meet those needs, as possible. Over time, there seems to be a strong exchange of energy and ideas, leading to further growth in the organization’s business as well as many of their clients.
4. Clear in their Commitment to their Employees – employees act as if they are stake holders in the organization. Senior management makes it a priority to be inclusive in sharing information that is critical for employees to not just perform but to excel. Even during tight economic times, these organizations find ways to develop their employees, provide training and coaching support, and encourage creative ways to learn new skills. They respect, honor and celebrate their employees, both for their accomplishments in the workplace as well as their personal milestones in life.
5. Clear in their Involvement with their Community – these highly effective organizations encourage volunteerism and their leaders are active in both small and large ways in the community. These organizations provide for paid time for employees to volunteer and often do group projects.

Highly effective organizations are active, engaging and sometimes puzzling to new employees as they adapt to a culture that is open and committed to discussing what really matters both in the organization as well as in life.

Please share your experiences, as either an employee or a client, of what you would consider to be a highly effective organization. What else would you add?

Mary Ann Gontin is Managing Partner of OI Global Partners – Cunis & Gontin, Inc. in Connecticut. Her firm has been providing human resources consulting services since 1974. Mary Ann has become recognized by clients for her ability to identify organizational and individual performance issues and propose creative and practical solutions. She can be reached at mgontin@oipartners.net or 800-473-4507.