Affirmation is a wonderful thing. The 5/28/10 edition of the New York Times, in which Stephen Sadove, chairman and CEO of Saks Inc. (yes, the Saks), is interviewed, did just that for all of us who understand that culture is the foundation of business success.
Mr. Sadove cites the need to build relationships with a diverse set of people as a guiding principle in his philosophy of running Saks. Further, he says he now spends more time working on people issues than on any other part of the business. He says: “I tend to care a lot about the people and the relationships that they have, how the team is operating, the culture.”
CEOs, leaders, and managers, ask yourselves: How much time am I working on the business (cultural and other non-billable matters) rather than in the business (billable work)?
Sadove says: “Culture drives innovation and whatever else you’re trying to drive within a company — innovation, execution, whatever it’s going to be. And that then drives results.” He notes that Wall Street never asks him about the culture of Saks, about leadership, about the ideas that drive the numbers and the results. He’s working hard to teach people that, while numbers are certainly important, they’re not the critical success factor. Only culture serves that role over the long term.
Now, ask yourselves another question: What do I spend most of the time discussing with my partners and colleagues: quarterly revenue or corporate culture?
When asked about Saks’ hiring practices, Sadove stays with the cultural theme when he says”…you want somebody who has the intellectual capacity, strategic thinking and the skill sets. But I’m looking for a cultural fit with me. How collaborative are they? How inclusive are they? How willing are they to listen to lots of different points of view? Do they have diverse interests?”
And one more time, ask yourselves a question: “Which is more important in hiring: grade point average or attitude?”
It’s by asking questions like these – and acting on the answers – that sucessful corporate cultures are created.
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