AICC Boxscore 2013

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Building a Culture of Cooperation and Shared Trust Together
continued from page 13
to feel that I have not yet effectively
figured out how to get owners and
senior managers to realize that it’s
not just the people they manage
who act with a bias toward self-
interest at the expense of overall
company interest. They too are
affected by this conflict and that,
because everyone who works for
them sees it, their bias towards self-
interest at the expense of company
interest may be the greatest obstacle
to achieving a highly motivated
staff and a company culture based
on trust and cooperation. In other
words, if the culture is a reflection
of leadership and the overall culture
seems mired in individuals choosing
their own, short term interests over
the needs of the company then it
follows that this dynamic is at least
perceived to be at play at the highest
levels of the company as well.
There are several people I have met
in our industry who have found
effective ways to address this issue
and have developed strong, working
organizational cultures that are built
on principles of team cooperation
and shared and reciprocal trust.
Many other people I’ve spoken with,
while acknowledging that they are
struggling with internal conflicts
and cultural dysfunction within
their plants, have some very good
ideas that, if shared with a larger
audience, could begin to spark a
drive to working through this thorny
problem.
Here is a short list of examples
of this dynamic conflict:
• Stemming from a need/interest
to be the one in charge, when the
owner mico-manages situations/
departments when what is needed
for greater company efficiency is
effective delegation.
• An employee who is a friend of
an executive is excused for behavior
that would end in disciplinary action
for any other employee who is not a
friend of that executive.
• Generally, a common trap is for
an owner to think that, relating
to himself/herself, there is no
difference between self-interest
and company interest. From the
owner’s perspective, there is logic
to this view. If there is shared
ownership, however, this percetion
will lead to major conflict between
the principles when each sees the
bias in the other but not in himself.
Additionally, when an owner acts
on such an assumption, a great
detachment occurs between the
owner and everyone else in the
company, deeply undermining the
goal of achieving a high level of
cooperation and shared trust.
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15
BOXSCORE
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