Every organization has two stories. The one they get by default and the one they make happen.
Some organizations are good at reacting to what is served to them by market forces, the people they hire, and the resources at their disposal, all of which are transformed into products or services their audiences want or need. These organizations can be good employers, good citizens in the community, responsible to their shareholders, even profitable. These ventures are good at living their story has it happens and they mold their reactions to whatever happens on a particular day, month or year to make situations work for whatever the perceived mission of the venture may be.
Intentional organizations are different.
Intentional organizations make their stories happen. Intentional organizations not only intimately understand and relentlessly work towards fulfilling a well-articulated purpose, they know that the process of achieving their goals are at least as important as the goals themselves. They identify and measure the critical processes that must happen on a regular basis and communicate the results of their progress to insure both the quantity and quality of the product or service that they deliver.
Essential to the success of an intentional organization is that they share the measurements and the feedback on performance they get from clients and customers with their employee-stakeholders knowing that engaged employees want to make significant and ongoing contributions to make the organization’s intentional story happen. Their organization’s story is their story.
Make the story that is told about your organization, the story you want. Be intentional.
Michael Smith is co-founder of DecisionGrid.