At its heart, Competitive Immunity means having significant differentiation from your competitors. This level of differentiation is difficult to achieve from products and services alone, as they are easily (and often rapidly) replicated.
“I came to see, in my time at IBM, that Culture isn’t just one aspect of the game – it is the game.” — Lou V. Gerstner Jr.
Former CEO, IBM
Significant — and lasting — differentiation is created by People. It is the individual and collective insight, resourcefulness, creativity, and innovation of people that can provide your organization with Competitive Immunity.
And that’s where Culture comes in.
The Nature of Culture
Culture can be thought of as your organization’s personality: the way Customers, Employees, Suppliers, and the Community experience your organization.
It reflects the Values and Norms of your organization: what’s important, what gets rewarded or punished, the rules (both written and unwritten).
Your Culture is the environment in which your people work, and it permeates and influences how they think, act, and make decisions.
Culture is the bedrock of Competitive Immunity because it is extremely difficult to replicate and can provide significant differentiation from the competition.
When the Culture is strong and aligned with the mission, goals, and strategies of the organization, Competitive Immunity can be achieved. That kind of Culture is one that:
- Has alignment between espoused/desired Values and those evident to employees and customers.
- Informs the identification, hiring, and development of people for alignment with the Culture.
- Engages everyone in living and strengthening the Culture.
Leading Culture
Culture is created by individuals, not organizations. It doesn’t exist “out there”; it’s how each employee shows up and how they create an environment for others to show up.
That said, as with most things, Leaders Go First. That means:
- Being a Role Model for the Values, Mission, and Goals that support Competitive Immunity.
- Fostering an environment that supports Innovation, Creativity, and Employee Development.
The first step is to clearly understand the Culture you currently have. When I conduct Cultural Audits, I look for the Operational Values that guide people in their behaviors, decision-making, and outcomes. Through interviews and observation, I identify:
- Differences between espoused/desired Values and Operational Values.
- “Thermal layers” where Values are diffused or altered.
- Inconsistences in Values between groups/locations.
I conduct these Audits with the mindset that Values aren’t good or bad, they just are. What matters is if an organization’s Values support what they are trying to achieve.
Once you understand the Culture you have, you can take action to strengthen those parts that will enhance the achievement of your goals, and change those parts that don’t.
Simple…but not easy. But if Competitive Immunity is your goal, the effort is well worth it. In fact, it’s imperative.
Pitfalls and Possibilities
Though important, Culture is often ignored, or at least not given the attention it requires. Some results of Corporate Culture Surveys:
- 93% of executives see Culture as a critical competitive differentiator.
- At the same time, 72% of executives said that their organization’s Culture is not what they desire in the future.
- Only 25% to 33% of major change initiatives achieve their performance targets. Root cause? Failure to address Culture.
Research results also provide strong financial incentives for addressing Culture:
| Increase in Revenue | Increase in Stock Price | Increase in Net Income | |
| Organizations that pay attention to Culture: | 682% | 901% | 756% |
| Organizations that don’t pay attention to Culture: | 166% | 74% | 1% |
Culture is Crucial
Being attentive and intentional toward your Culture is vital, particularly if your goal is Competitive Immunity. Left unattended, Cultures never get better. With each new challenge, with each new effort, with each new employee, the Culture can be challenged.
Therefore, it pays to invest your time, energy, and resources to ensure that the Culture you have is the Culture you really want.
When your Values are clear, consistent, and evident to everyone who works in and encounters your organization, you have a significant edge over competitors. And that’s an edge that they simply can’t overcome.
The result: Competitive Immunity.
“If you don’t understand the Culture of the company, even your most brilliant strategies will fail. Your vision will be resisted, plans won’t get executed properly, and all kinds of things will start going wrong.” — Isadore Sharp
CEO Four Seasons Hotels
Want to really understand your Culture? Contact Success Authorities for a one-on-one meeting with Ronn Lehmann to learn how a Cultural Audit can provide insight into your culture.