Microsoft

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/12/business/the7challenge7of7creating7a7unified7organizational7strategy.html?src=recg&pagewanted=printBNew$York$Times$$July$11,$2013$The$Challenge$of$Creating$a$Unified$Organizational$Strategy$By$ADAM$BRYANT$IN$announcing$its$reorganization$on$Thursday,$Microsoft$provided$a$stark$reminder$of$a$leadership$challenge$that$all$chief$executives$face:$How$do$you$get$everyone$to$think$in$terms$of$“Us”$—$we’re$all$on$the$same$team$—$rather$than$thinking$of$colleagues$in$other$divisions$as$“Them”?$$To$be$clear,$it$is$hard$to$do.$The$default$behavior$for$human$beings$is$to$think$in$terms$of$tribes.$If$you$work$in$a$small$department$in$a$big$company,$you’re$naturally$going$to$identify$most$closely$with$your$immediate$colleagues.$You’ll$have$lunch$or$coffee$together,$and$maybe$even$socialize$with$them$outside$the$office.$$Other$colleagues$you$see$in$the$hallway$and$on$the$elevator$can$seem$like$total$strangers,$even$though$you$work$for$the$same$company.$Divisions$fighting$for$resources$and$attention$can$exacerbate$the$problem.$$It’s$a$theme$that$has$come$up$often$in$my$interviews$with$more$than$200$leaders$for$my$column,$Corner$Office,$and$smart$leaders$recognize$that$usTversusTthem$behavior$can$ultimately$destroy$companies.$$So$what$should$leaders$do?$A$few$tips$have$emerged$from$my$interviews.$$Create$a$‘One$Company’$Culture$$Symbolism$is$important,$in$both$the$language$that$leaders$use$and$the$organizational$chart$they$create.$$Here’s$how$Kathleen$L.$Flanagan,$the$chief$executive$of$Abt$Associates,$tackled$the$issue.$$“We’ve$grown$from$$180$million$in$annual$revenue$a$few$years$ago$to$$425$million$today.$As$the$company$grew,$more$business$units$were$created,$and$so$we$had$more$silos$in$the$organization.$My$objective$two$years$ago$in$coming$into$this$job$was$to$take$down$the$silos.$So$I$reorganized$the$company.$It$used$to$be$organized$around$lines$of$business$—$international,$U.S.Tbased,$data$collection$—$and$there$used$to$be$senior$vice$presidents$who$led$each$of$those$big$businesses.$I$took$those$senior$V.P.$positions$away$and$hired$one$executive$vice$president$for$global$business$who$shared$my$vision$for$what$I$call$One$Global$Abt.$$At$the$heart$of$that$is$taking$down$the$walls$so$people$can$collaborate$more$freely,$so$that$we$can$leverage$all$of$Abt.$We$now$ask$people$to$pick$their$heads$up$out$of$their$project$work$or$their$division$focus$and$look$across$the$whole$company.$So$I$now$ask$my$managers$to$wear$two$hats.$Everybody’s$got$their$job$in$the$big$picture$of$the$company,$but$they$all$have$to$wear$an$Abt$hat.$It’s$really$easy,$given$the$time$pressures$and$the$pace$of$our$work,$to$put$blinders$on$and$be$very$projectTfocused.$It’s$harder$to$take$a$step$back$and$ask,$“How$does$this$apply$to$the$whole$company?”$$Simplify$the$Scoreboard$$A$big$part$of$a$leader’s$job$is$to$establish$a$simple$set$of$performance$metrics$so$that$everyone$in$the$company$can$feel$as$if$they’re$part$of$a$broader$team,$and$can$understand$how$the$work$they$do$contributes$to$the$broader$goals.$Chief$executives$have$to$choose$those$metrics$carefully$because,$as$the$saying$goes,$what$gets$measured$gets$managed.$$A$powerful$example$of$this$came$from$Shivan$S.$Subramaniam,$the$chief$executive$of$FM$Global,$a$commercial$and$industrial$property$insurer,$who$shared$with$me$how$his$team$worked$hard$to$develop$very$simple$goals.$$“We$call$them$key$result$areas,$or$K.R.A.’s.$We’re$multinational$—$we’ve$got$5,100$people,$1,800$of$whom$are$engineers.$We’re$very$analytical.$But$we$have$three$K.R.A.’s,$nothing$terribly$fancy.$And$everybody$focuses$on$them.$One$is$on$profitability.$One$is$on$retention$of$existing$clients.$And$one$is$on$attracting$new$clients.$That’s$it.$$ You$can$talk$to$people$in$San$Francisco,$Sydney$or$Singapore,$and$they’ll$know$what$the$three$K.R.A.’s$are.$All$of$our$incentive$plans$are$designed$around$our$K.R.A.’s,$and$every$one$of$those$K.R.A.’s$is$very$transparent.$Our$employees$know$how$we’re$doing.$And,$most$importantly,$they$understand$them,$whether$they’re$the$most$senior$manager$or$a$file$clerk,$so$they$know$that$‘If$I$do$this,$it$helps$this$K.R.A.$in$this$manner.’”$$Communicate$Relentlessly$to$the$Entire$Staff$$There’s$a$reason$that$so$many$companies$hold$regular$allThands$meetings$(and$with$technology,$it’s$possible$to$do$them$in$large$and$sprawling$companies$now).$Again,$it’s$about$tribal$behavior.$You$have$to$bring$everybody$together$and$speak$to$everyone$as$a$group$for$people$to$identify$themselves$with$the$broadest$group.$Leaders$then$have$to$take$their$simple$plan$and$hammer$it$home,$again$and$again,$even$if$they$feel$like$everybody$has$heard$it$before$a$hundred$times.$$It’s$a$lesson$that$Christopher$J.$Nassetta,$the$Hilton$Worldwide$chief,$told$me$that$he$learned$over$time.$$“You$have$to$be$careful$as$a$leader,$particularly$of$a$big$organization.$You$can$find$yourself$communicating$the$same$thing$so$many$times$that$you$get$tired$of$hearing$it.$And$so$you$might$alter$how$you$say$it,$or$shorthand$it,$because$you$have$literally$said$it$so$many$times$that$you$think$nobody$else$on$earth$could$want$to$hear$this.$But$you$can’t$stop.$In$my$case,$there$are$300,000$people$who$need$to$hear$it,$and$I$can’t$say$it$enough.$So$what$might$sound$mundane$and$like$old$news$to$me$isn’t$for$a$lot$of$other$people.$That$is$an$important$lesson$I$learned$as$I$worked$in$bigger$organizations.”$$Steve$Ballmer’s$challenge$as$the$chief$executive$of$Microsoft$is$not$unlike$the$challenge$that$it$faces$with$technology:$how$to$take$something$very$complicated$—$be$it$a$software$program$or$a$sprawling$organizational$chart$—$and$make$it$simple$to$operate.$This$may$be$the$toughest$task$of$his$career.$$AdamBBryantBwritesBtheBCornerBOfficeBcolumn,BwhichBappearsBonBFridaysBandBSundays.B$