24 September, 2007

Plug and Play Employees

Once employees become individuals too, they can no longer be regarded as „plug and play“ parts in an ongoing exercise of producing goods and services. True to the observations of fractal geometry, their individuality now matters. Indeed, it is essential to all outcomes, because through the medium of that individuality, they learn to produce the intangibles that are the critical inputs to competitive success. Work cannot be a question of managing false emotional displays in the service of some kind of “customer satisfaction”. The work of nourishing relationships with individuals cannot be cynical. The I-You relationship requires two individuals, each imperfect but committed to honestly doing their best. These things simply cannot be faked.