Magnets: From a Business perspective

The major component of a magnet is magnetic dipoles which are randomly aligned in a magnet. Once a force is applied, they get aligned in a particular direction and show magnetism.

But our learning from magnets is constrained to above learning only?

Do magnets tell us something about business, If yes then How?

Let’s explore the behavior of magnet and try to realize it in organization structures.

Businesses and organizations have core values, mission & vision to achieve a particular goal. Often, businesses go lopsided and fall short of their goal. This is because of people in the organization trying to move in different directions.

Management thinks they are moving in the same direction as the employees to achieve a goal and in the action waste time, money & resources in yielding unfruitful results.

With time, employees begin to lose focus and the organization looks more like an amoeba and it is too late before the organization realizes it is too late to be realigned.

Organisations try to have a structure that keeps the people , process, practices aligned to the goals, vision & mission. The stronger or more the alignment the better the functioning of the business or organisation. This alignment is created by Management By Objective(MBO).  The essence of MBO is participative goal setting, choosing course of actions and decision making. An important part of the MBO is the measurement and the comparison of the employee’s actual performance with the standards set. Ideally, when employees themselves have been involved with the goal setting and choosing the course of action to be followed by them, they are more likely to fulfill their responsibilities.

Organisational alignment is a process of achieving alignment in two domains : alignment of values & alignment of goals.

Goal Alignment

Goal alignment is clearly demarcating and defining the purpose i.e .mission and strategic goals of the organization. It is about framing the context, ensuring all employees clearly understand the strategic goals and initiatives within the organization.

Alignment of Values

Alignment of values is the process of understanding how we work together, and changing the way we understand and interpret the values of the organization.  As a right-brain activity, we need to explore the emotions and non-rational processes that have an impact on our behavior and actions.