by Therese Johansson

There is a lot of talk about leadership and its importance for a functional and successful organization. Parallels to the world of sports are always interesting and the question is; do we get successful teams just by developing the team's coach or do we also need to focus on the team's individuals; 1+1=2? When we develop companies/organizations and focus on creating added value and creating a positive change, it is important to go from words to action. Change can be a challenge and it requires great patience, commitment and competence from leaders, as well as the employees to achieve success with the change.

Spine culture

When the employees have the goal of becoming WORLD CLASS instead of GOOD, what does the company get for the result? We create an employee responsibility that strives for and contributes to a good working environment, where there is room to be innovative, efficient and productive. Now some of you probably think that we only need to make an effort when things don't work, and then I want to say the opposite. We should create a culture where it is in the backbone to think about continuous improvement. To have a focus on cost efficiency by removing what does not create any value in the organization. It is important to create a culture where we do the Right activity with the Right value at the Right time with the Right person. It sounds simple but requires a long-term effort. Here there is always room to create ADDED VALUE and that includes development of the human capital.

In interaction, magic occurs

In order for us to be a top-performing employee, we want to feel meaning in what we do, to be involved in decisions and to feel that our voice is heard. Unfortunately, a management that runs its race and pumps down orders and decisions by email does not motivate top performance. We can say that democracy in companies "tingles" me a little more than dictatorship does. By that I mean that we create good employee responsibility by showing respect for the individual and letting the employee participate in the dialogue and decision-making. The manager or the employee does not always know best, but in a working interaction, magic occurs. Another thing that doesn't make me "tingle" is the spoiled employee. Here, it doesn't matter how good and well-developed leadership we have, but we see the constantly dissatisfied employee. She wants all the benefits imaginable, without taking into account or responsibility for the company's other resources and finances. When I run into these cases, I compare them to a child, in a family, who constantly demands new branded things just because all the schoolmates have them. Here, there is no consideration or responsibility for other family members (parents/siblings) or the distribution of the family finances. The solution to this problem is to develop understanding, work with attitudes, values and create common rules of the game - simply get to grips with the matter.

Do all employees have the conditions to become top performers?

I am of the strong conviction that EVERYONE can be moved in a positive development. Maybe not everyone can be "Zlatan", but that doesn't mean we can strive for everyone to reach their own level of peak performance. A developed leadership and collaboration increases the interaction and becomes; 1+1=2.