requinn

In all organizations performance is based on altruism, trust and pursuit of the common good. Yet many actors are unaware of this fact. Trust and altruism are very fragile. People do things that destroy trust and people withdraw. They become unengaged and the organization suffers. With Reddit or any kind of organization leaders need to be constantly monitoring and building purpose and commitment. This is such a difficult task that most leaders avoid it and the organization decays. Reddit needs to look carefully at their relationships with their volunteers and continually renew the sense of commitment.

Yes.

I love your question. I recently talked to a CEO who shared the history of his company. In the first phase they were a financial company that did not care about employees or customers. Their business model was allowing them to make money with a single focus. After a few years, they began losing customers. It was a crisis. The employees treated customers like they were treated. Changing the culture took years and eventually brought increased success. A company with just the right model, at just the right time, can make money no matter how they treat people. But the narrow focus is not sustainable over time.
The truth is that many organizations are miserable places to work. In fact, this is so common, that we accept miserable work settings. It is a norm. One of my students said, “I had an abusive boss, I thought that is the way business was supposed to be.” 70% of the global workforce is disengaged. 52% of the management workforce is disengaged. We can even find a CEO now and then, as shocking as it may sound, who has actually checked out. What these facts suggest is that we do not know how to design and lead positive organizations. People who are trained in management are often not leaders. Leaders are people who turn bad or good organizations into great ones. Holding a position at the top of some hierarchy makes you an authority figure, not a leader. The same student went on to say, “After taking this class, I will never again have an abusive leader.” She has a different set of expectations for herself and for others. She is now an empowered person who can empower others. She is a person who can lead with or without a position. She can bring people to purpose and engagement.

An organization is a living system. It is a system of dynamic tensions in which conflicts continually arise. Most people, including managers, tend to avoid conflict. The conflicts become elephants under the table. Since people know the conversations in such contexts are not authentic, they engage in political posturing. This means they are not fully engaged. One of the prime purposes of a leader is to scan for, recognize, surface and transform conflict into creative collaboration. Creative collaboration is positive confrontation or positive conflict. In a positive organization conflict is continually converted into collaboration.

A positive organization is a system in which people flourish and exceed expectations. Flourish means they are engaged and growing. Exceed expectations means they are doing very well in accomplishing goals. The organization is productive and it is a place of human well-being. Creating a positive organization is difficult because conventional thinking tends to be one dimensional. Some people focus on profits others focus on other things such as people. To create a positive organization a leader must see and nurture the whole.
To create a positive organization a leader has to clarify the highest, collective purpose, articulate it, and continually reclarify it. Most importantly they must live by the purpose even when it is politically difficult. When the message is authentic and lasting it matters. Constancy of purpose gives rise to a unified culture. It is also key that every aspect of the culture, leadership, physical symbols, strategies, and so on must be aligned with the purpose and values. When the purpose is authentic, and often it is not, a new culture will emerge.