Performance and growth are related, but they're not synonymous.
You need performance to achieve Growth, but performance alone doesn't always lead to growth.
Take, for example, inbound marketing. You could invest in an effective program that performs as intended (Contacts willingly put themselves into your database). However, without buy-in and participation from Sales, it won't lead to growth.
The out-sized role of Culture in Growth
You don't want to get it wrong when it comes to culture.
70% of all business transformations fail, and the number one reason for failure is culture.
And, it didn't just eek out that number one spot. Changes in business fail because of culture more than every other reason combined.
So, you really don't want to get it wrong.
And you know exactly what I mean by culture. It's that gnawing feeling that sinks in before every team meeting... that breath you hold before you open that email from your boss.
It's the disconnect that occurs when processes are overly-democratized or when decision-makers in completely separate universes weigh-in non important decisions and become the bottlenecks of progress.
What is the difference between Growth and Performance culture?
Business culture is how people work together for the advancement of their organization. It's how a senior leader would describe "what's important" in maintaining a healthy business and what excites them about coming to work.
In growth, what's important is the North Star metric. All roads must lead to more of it.
Communication is transparent, open, and neutral. Collaboration is in-person, positive, and decisive. Leaders use scientific discovery to inform their vision, and their vision to direct scientific exploration.
The focus with Performance is less about a higher purpose and more about individualized contributions and outcomes.
The focus is on energy, being a team player, and hitting the numbers—leads, calls, deals, sales.
The Problems with Performance Culture
Most organizations promote a performance-driven culture strategy. But being performance-obsessed can have negative consequences.
A workplace culture strategy focused solely on performance often only values positive outcomes.
This is problematic for two reasons:
- It's susceptible to toxicity and high turnover
- There are no baked-in ingredients for dealing with change
From a toxicity standpoint, salespeople and marketers are at odds as they fight over who or what is responsible for the dipping or climbing numbers.
The benefits of Growth Culture
A true Growth Culture Strategy prioritizes humans.
It promotes balance and harmony and is organized around change management—ie, helping humans play their respective roles in growing a business.
Growth Culture strategy uses data and structured collaboration to translate your vision into functional marketing and sales campaigns. In other words, all of those dusty ideas you have rolling around finally have a platform.
The philosophical benefits
- Individual empowerment - people feel connected to winning no matter what their role is
- Compelling accountability - contributors and stakeholders feel responsible for their impact
- Collaborative ideation - great ideas come from sharing and helping
The practical benefits
When people are empowered, they perform better. When they perform better and share their success, others emulate it. When others emulate successful behaviors, your business grows.
Interested in adopting a Growth Culture for your company? Check out our free lesson:
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