Strategy #1: Be clear about your identity

The more clear an organization is about what it stands for, the more likely it will be to attract and retain the type of people who stand for the same thing. Companies that achieve cult-like loyalty, such as Apple Computer or Harley-Davidson, have a crystal-clear sense of identity and a well-defined brand image. As a result, they tend to attract both customers and employees who are loyal for the long-term. In this regard, corporations are a lot like individual people: the more authentic they are, the more successful they are likely to be (Authenticity is Core Action Value #1 of The Twelve Core Action Values).

In the bestselling book Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies, Jim Collins and Jerry Porras state that the most successful companies have what they call “cult-like corporate cultures.”  The authors emphasize that these companies are not “cults,” but rather that they are very clear about who the company is, what it stands for, and what it expects of its people. They conclude that “cult-like tightness around an ideology actually enables a company to turn people loose to experiment, change, adapt, and – above all – to act” (emphasis in original).

In The Culting of Brands: When Customers Become True Believers, Douglas Atkin says that while the common perception is that people join cults to conform, in fact the opposite is true – people join cults because they want to be more individual. He points to Apple Computer as an example, which he says “has long had a large community of consumers who pride themselves on their nonconformism.”

It’s a real paradox, isn’t it? one of the surest ways to earn the loyalty of great people is to clearly and tightly define your culture and expectations, and to do so in such a way that people working within that culture feel a sense of uniqueness. By being clear about your values, vision, and mission, you make sure that you attract the kind of people who will resonate with that identity. The more effective you are at living the values, vision, and mission, the more effectively you will retain those people.

Exercise: Think about some of the organizations with which you are familiar.  Write down a one-sentence description of their identity, as you perceive it. Here are several examples of my perceptions:
Wal-Mart: Cheap prices, cheap products, and cheap employment practices.

Southwest Airlines: Cheap airline tickets, funny (and happy) employees, and passengers who have fun (even if they complain about no assigned seating).

McDonald’s: Cheap calories, (usually) delivered quickly by (usually) smiling teenagers or retired folks who needed to go back to work.
Lexus: Expensive cars, great service, high snob appeal.

These images may or may not be accurate, but if I’m looking for a job in the retail, airline, fast food, or auto industries, they will most certainly influence my decisions, won’t they? Now, having several examples to go by, write an identity statement for your organization. Actually, write three of them:

1. Your organization’s present identity as you perceive it.
2. Your organization’s present identity as you think others perceive it.
3. Your organization’s identity as you want others to perceive it.

What actions can you take to move the first two of your identity statements in the direction of the third identity statement?

“If you don’t know who you are, the stock market is an expensive place to find out [so, for that matter is the job market or the business market].”

Adam Smith: The Money Game

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