Organizations and companies grow steadily; rarely do they grow overnight. This "silent growth" is usually imperceptible to onlookers, except for a few key crucible moments. Crucible moments are the inflection points that define the trajectory of the future. Over the long term, your growth is steady.
A key contributor to growth lies in the seamless transmission and transfer of knowledge. Today, I write this "read" to hand off and contribute my knowledge to those who come after me. Here are key learnings from my experiences thus far.
Who am I, and why should I speak on matters of organizational growth and success? As of the time of writing, this is tailored towards younger organizations, such as Student-Led University/Academic Organizations and those embarking on their professional careers, seeking a solid foundation.
I've been in the world of organizational development for almost six years. In the early stages, I worked with five different organizations. During my university years, I extended my involvement to various levels, culminating in my role as the Vice President of CougarCS. Additionally, I founded businesses that reached nearly 40,000 unique users, leading a team of 15+ individuals.
Throughout this period, I also collaborated with or secured sponsorships from companies such as Chevron, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, JPMorgan Chase, Google, Microsoft, Electronic Arts, IBM, ConocoPhillips, as well as various startups and smaller companies.
Age goes hand in hand with experience, which is true, making my younger age an aspect to consider. However, I've been especially privileged to work and learn from industry leaders, ranging from technical managers to CEOs of companies.
Without wasting any more time, let’s get started.
To grow yourself, you must know yourself.
- John C. Maxwell, Author of "The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership"
Know your competition, and know your customers. While this may sound like advice tailored for businesses and startups, its relevance extends to organizations of all kinds.
Are you an incumbent or a newcomer? Do you face competition, and, ultimately, what do your customers desire? Though these questions may seem obvious, their answers have significant impact. Examine your organization, and what are the pros and cons?
Incumbents enjoy advantages of expertise, resources, personnel, and established relationships. However, the weight of responsibility, tradition, and obligations can impede agility and adaptability.
In my experience, overcoming these challenges involves establishing lean and flexible segments within your organization, encouraged to experiment and explore. Use your resources and expertise to provide a edge to these segments, enabling them to try new initiatives without disrupting your core operations.
A notable illustration is The Garage @ Microsoft, a commitment to innovation backed by robust support. You can implement a similar approach in your organization by establishing new branches or teams and supporting them with your available resources.
Startups, as I perceive them, are the newcomers—playing at a disadvantage compared to incumbents. Despite this, startups possess agility and the capacity to implement new ideas and techniques.
Identify problems within larger players that aren't easily solvable. Offer solutions to these challenges. Obsess over your customers, gather feedback, and continually iterate and implement improvements.
While any startup serves as an example, consider my own experience, emphasizing the resolution of problems for a niche group or operation—areas where larger players may struggle due to their size. Rather than competing directly with them, focus your time and energy on smaller, more intricate problems that their size hinders them from solving easily.
Additionally, marketing holds immense importance. Position yourself as anything but a large behemoth. Cultivate a sense of engagement and familiarity for your customers. People enjoy supporting someone they feel connected to. Make sure you know your people and they know you.
If you find yourself in the middle ground. Scrutinize your position and leverage your strengths. If you’re larger than the startups but not as established as incumbents, take advantage of what you’ve created. Whether that be the network effect, a friendly image, inclusivity, or any other attribute. Look at your competition and take advantage of their weaknesses.
A rule of thumb for any student-led organization: Understand your student base. Different types of students have varying tolerances for cost and commitment. Be obsessed with finding solutions to their problems. Use your resources like money as a tool to solve their problems not as a profit engine. Charge fees when necessary, but keep in mind that people attribute value to your problem-solving abilities. All the “member benefits” in the world won’t matter unless you can solve a problem.
I receive the question of how do we obtain sponsors (Student-led organizations) often. The answer is in three questions.
What is the company searching for? Are they seeking emerging talent, such as students? Are they aiming to raise awareness of their company? Are they targeting specific groups? There are many goals they may be interested in. The crucial step is to identify their needs and fill the gap. If you can address a problem for them, they, in turn, can solve a problem for you—resources.
One common pitfall I observe in external affairs and corporate relations officers is hesitation in simply asking. Many fear requesting funds, worried about potential inability to deliver or are afraid of rejection. It's completely okay. Getting a 'no' is far better than missing an opportunity. To simplify the process, have a sponsorship document ready in advance. Prepare a pitch and tailor it to each company and its goals. If you discover you can't fulfill their needs, reevaluate your purpose, and consider whether sponsorship remains a viable means of funding.
Remember, not all companies have the budget for funding, and that's perfectly fine. However, don't dismiss them outright. Work with them and align with their goals; they might offer something more valuable than money.
Leadership is difficult.
Often it is a skill that is forged through fire. Good leaders can be learned from and here are the traits that I find important in myself and have been passed down to me.
These are things that I try to implement when possible and have learned throughout the years.
I live by the saying "Good Leaders Eat Last," where I care about my team and make sure they are well taken care of before me. You should trust and care for them the same.
Depending on the scale of your team, you can or cannot be involved in everything.
If you have a large team, then you should delegate. The essence of delegation is trusting your people and trust that the day-to-day decisions are handled. They will come to you when they’re unsure, and you’re entrusted with the difficult decisions. You should strive to cultivate this environment. This quote from RJ Scaringe encapsulates this well.
Millions of decisions that need to be taken that by definition I should be involved in a small fraction of them. It’s the really key foundational decisions or the really hard subjective decisions.
- RJ Scaringe, CEO of Rivian Automotive
Anyone who has ever created a startup will know. The first 5 people on your team will make or break your company, and the first 10 people will decide the culture of it forever.
While in student-led organizations, it is not as extreme, but it is equally important. If given the opportunity, pick people that strengthen your team and reduce risks. While bringing in friends may be tempting, it is often not the best idea. Consider someone who has the skills to solve a problem and yet has a diverse background, providing you with new experiences and ideas that reduce your risks.
Remember, the attitude of your people plays an equal part as the skill they can provide.
What if you can’t pick your team? What if you inherited a team? Take advantage of this opportunity. Work with them and figure out their strengths and weaknesses. Then, work with those strengths and weaknesses. This is the essence of being a leader. Communicate often and be open-minded to the people you have. Removing or firing someone is almost always the last resort.
With everything I've said, don't focus too heavily on the details. Things work out; resilience and determination will triumph over anything. Work hard on what you believe in, do the best you can, and care about the people.
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