The secret to growth: Your company Operating System
The entrepreneurial journey is an exhilarating yet, let’s be real, often turbulent experience. The challenges inherent in growing a company can either serve as the driving force behind your success or become formidable stumbling blocks.
Whether you're a seasoned entrepreneur or on the verge of starting out, let’s take a moment to reflect on your journey so far with a bit of a check-in.
Have you ever experienced:
☑️ Missed milestones
☑️ Conflicting priorities
☑️ Lack of ownership
☑️ Low morale
☑️ Siloed working
☑️ Burnout
If you’re nodding vigourously at this list, you’re not alone. These are all symptoms of growing pains.
And they are experienced by anyone brave enough to undertake the complex, nuanced and exciting journey of building and scaling a company.
From the moment we start a business, the complexity of a company increases with the addition of people, processes, and products. It, therefore, becomes crucial to have a safeguard against the risks of these complexities. And this safeguard is your company Operating System (cOS).
Consider the technology we use every day - our computers have an operating system that consistently streamlines and organises our device’s operations, ensuring their security and optimal functionality. This seamless orchestration enhances the user experience and guarantees that the hardware operates efficiently. Every day, it enables the smooth execution of multiple applications, fulfilling the manufacturer's promise to empower us to perform our daily tasks effectively. And, just as our devices need well-designed operating systems that are regular updated to give them longevity and protection, so do our companies. To thrive as we grow, we need a systematic approach that enables us to maximise our potential whilst minimising mishaps - enabling true teamwork, and unlocking our biggest competitive advantage - our culture.
“A company operating system (cOS) refers to the rituals, frameworks, processes, and practices that guide how a company operates on a day-to-day basis. Just like an operating system in a computer manages hardware and software resources, a cOS directs the various elements that make up the organisation, including its culture, strategy, structure, processes, and ways of working. It serves as the foundation for aligning the efforts of employees, driving performance, and achieving the company’s goals.”
The importance of a cOS
To navigate the complexity of growth and safeguard against potential risks, a well-designed cOS becomes crucial. That’s why, at The Future Kind, we design company operating systems that provide the growth structure that unlocks your teamwork and turns chaotic cultures into coherent cultures.
These systems act as a secure scaffold for scaling, ensuring that as your company grows, it does so with a clear intention and a strong strategic foundation.
To give you an idea of some of the key components that make up a company Operating System, we’ve provided an outline below (and stay tuned for future blogs that will dive into each of these areas in more detail 👀):
Purpose and vision: The reason your company exists and the future you want to see. This serves as the guiding north star for your entrepreneurial journey, and your team.
Values: Clearly articulated beliefs and daily behaviours that form the foundation of your company's culture. This goes beyond just words on a page; it’s the way that your team show up on your good and your bad days.
Strategy and Metrics: Your execution plan for your vision, detailing what you want to achieved by when, how you will measure it and why you do it better than anyone else. This will support you and your team in making decisions and prioritisation.
Leadership: How your leaders show up, coach, and lead the way. Remember: your leadership sets the tone for the entire organisation and significantly influences its culture.
Behaviours, Rituals, Processes, Systems: From communication to decision-making, collaboration, and prioritisation, every aspect of your company's operations should bring the culture to life - empowering individuals, driving performance and encouraging accountability.
These elements, when combined, are your company’s super power. They are your scalability scaffold, consistency compass, and alignment aide, and when designed with intention, especially in the early stages of your business, they bring a huge number of benefits that are critical to the success of any scale-up, including:
Faster decision-making: Streamlining processes and prioritisation for quicker, more informed decisions.
Clarity and focus: Providing a clear roadmap that keeps the team focused on the overarching goals, how they are going to get there and by when.
Speed and efficiency: Enhancing operational efficiency to keep up with the demands of growth.
Creativity and collaboration: Fostering an environment that encourages innovation and collaboration among team members.
Alignment and accountability: Ensuring that everyone in the organisation is on the same page and accountable for their actions.
Emotional resilience: Building a culture that withstands challenges, promotes resilience and protects the well-being of it’s people.
Sounds pretty good, right? And the good news is that you’ve probably got some of this in place. However, if you’re starting to feel the creaks of company growth and are wondering where to start or understand the areas that might need some work, talk to your team, understand what’s working, what’s not and where there’s room for improvement. This should shine a light on the parts of your cOS that are thriving and others where there’s work to be done.
And if you need help? Well, that’s where we can support. At The Future Kind, our mission is to calm the chaos of growing a business, designing company operating systems that guide your team's everyday and support the growth of your company, your people and your value. Get in touch to find out more, we’d love to chat.
