You've acquired top talent. You're well positioned. Opportunities are all around.

So why do your most senior and creative people seem stuck in old paradigms?

It might be time to assess your organizational culture.

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A key mentor of mine, Mike Fasth, used to tell me that the best thing I could do as a leader was to hire excellent people, then clear a path for their success. As a co-founder of Kinkos, Mike is a highly successful senior executive and entrepreneur who has always believed in people. It’s this belief in people that has propelled him to build success wherever he goes.

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It’s probably safe to say that Mike believed in me as a young man more than I deserved.

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I didn't know myself very well back then, but around Mike I felt empowered.

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I wasn't the only one. The entire executive team respected him. I joined the senior staff with a fierce loyalty to Mike, his team, and the company.

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Then one day, after Kinkos was sold, Mike left.

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I will never forget my experience before and after Mike. Most of the company looked the same, except for a new CEO and a few key others.

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The culture had been built on the premise that everyone was a co-worker and that anyone could take an idea and run with it, regardless of role or seniority. In a matter of weeks, it became clear that such audacious thinking was no longer welcome. People fled in droves, and many others were pushed out. The company became a husk of its former self, an onramp for a global logistics company. Useful yet devoid of any growth.

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What happened? The company was turnkey set for rapid expansion. Yet when Mike and others left, a finely tuned machine with engaged and loyal co-workers began underperforming, again and again.

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When 95% of things stay the same, what was in the 5% that Mike “took with him” and has been able to recreate wherever he has gone?

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Mike was a believer. As a leader, Mike put himself in places where he had an aligned, WHOLE BODY YES to the organization and the mission. He loved his people, and when it was no longer of service to be there, he left.

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Mike kept things clean and uncomplicated. He didn't do BS. When you have someone at the top who is truly devoted to a win-for-all culture, you get a feeling of family working together.

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After all my practical and academic pursuits, I’ve realized that at the core, Mike’s formula for thriving culture is pretty simple (not to be confused with easy).

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Mike’s culture formula, as I see it: 

1. Your employees/staff/partners pay attention to how you show up.
2. They can smell BS.
3. Coming from peace makes all the difference.

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I'm sure Mike has more to say on it all, but don't listen to him. Just watch him. It's hard not to see the affection shared by the people who come into his orbit.

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Do you know your cultural formula? How is it working for you? Is it time to reassess?