Walking the Talk Blog

Do you know why you measure Engagement?

At our recent culture clinic, we asked a room of 50 professionals “How many measure Engagement?” nearly all hands were raised.  Then we asked “Who here measures Culture?”, only ten hands remained.  Our final question sealed the deal, “Who measures both Engagement and Culture?” more hands went down.  Of all the people in the room, only three people measured both Engagement and Culture.   

There are many fundamental differences between the opinions and actions of Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen, the two final candidates in the latest French presidential elections, which saw Mr. Macron win and become the youngest president of the Fifth Republic. One difference that struck me was how they both approach the cultural debate.

Every merger or acquisition is undertaken to enhance business value, yet many fail to achieve expected outcomes because of a failure to effectively manage cultural risks and harness cultural opportunities. Data shows that up to 50% - 70% of mergers and acquisitions fail to achieve expected returns. In most of these underperforming deals, culture clash is at the top on the list of reasons for failure.

 
I recently had coffee with a close friend who’s just resigned from a senior position in a key department of a large company. Answering the puzzled look on my face, he explained that he’d had enough of his boss – the manager of a specific department who took the role a year earlier.

 "Simple has been one of my mantras. You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it's worth it in the end, because once you get there you can move mountains."

– Steve Jobs