Throughout human history, people have developed strong loyalties to traditions, rituals, and symbols. In the most effective organizations, they are not only respected but celebrated. It is no coincidence that the most highly admired corporations are also among the most profitable.
Interpretation
Traditions and symbols foster loyalty and success within organizations.
This quote highlights the importance of traditions, rituals, and symbols in organizations, suggesting that those who honor and celebrate these aspects create a strong sense of loyalty among members. Moreover, it emphasizes that organizations that effectively leverage these cultural elements tend to achieve higher levels of admiration and profitability, indicating a correlation between a positive organizational culture and successful outcomes.
In practice
In a business presentation discussing the importance of organizational culture.
Tribalism reflects strong ethnic or cultural identities that separate members of one group from another, making them loyal to people like them and suspicious of outsiders, which undermines efforts to forge common cause across groups.
Organizational structures that allow divisions and departments to own their turf and people with long tenure to take root creates the same hardened group distinctions as Congressional redistricting to produce homogeneous voting blocs - all of which makes it easier to resist compromise, let alone collaboration.
The way innovating companies are designed leaves ambiguities, overlaps, decision conflicts or decision vacuums in some parts of the organisation. People rail at this, curse it-and invent innovative ways to overcome it.
The boomers' biggest impact will be on eliminating the term 'retirement' and inventing a new stage of life... the new career arc.
The middle of every successful project looks like a disaster.
I've found that small wins, small projects, small differences often make huge differences.
The ideal is to build a culture of healthy discussion, where everyone's ideas are valued. At KIND, we want everyone to be comfortable challenging my or anyone else's ideas without ever feeling or making someone else feel that the questioning is a personal attack.
The action we take and the decisions we make in this decade will have consequences far into this century. If America shows weakness and uncertainty, the world will drift toward tragedy. That will not happen on my watch.
I took an oath of office to the Constitution, I didn't take an oath of office to my party or my president.
I don't mind how much my Ministers talk, so long as they do what I say.
If the sage wants to stand above people, he must speak to them from below. If he wants to lead people, he must follow them from behind.
Owners never paid my salary. I always recognized that it was the people in the seats who did. I always wanted to give my best.
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