Too many businesses suffer from lack of consensus regarding who they are as an organization, why they do what they do, and how they create value — their Organizational DNA. At Granada Advisors, we have created a model and process for creating stakeholder alignment around these very important questions. Indeed, identifying a company’s Organizational DNA is a precursor to any effective strategy development process.

We believe a company’s Organizational DNA can be determined by artfully exploring the questions “Who?”, “Why?”, and “How?” Specifically, we start by answering the question “Who are we as an organization?” as well as by creating collective self-awareness around the current state of affairs at the organization. We then broach the subject of “Why do we do what we do?” — the underlying emotional, pyschological, or conceptual impetus for action — we look to discover the unlimited source of passion and energy that drives the organization to do what it does. We then follow with “How do we do what we do?” — in other words, what are the unique set of characteristics or activities that enable the organization to create value. This drives to the core of a company’s value proposition and brings it front and center into the minds of stakeholders. We approach these topics through activities focused on bringing some the raw subconscious of the collective to the surface — our approach is not dissimilar to the creative / visual approach a design firm would take to a design problem.

The last question, “What should we do?” is part of a follow-on process and gets into the realm of strategy. We precede answering this question with industry research, financial analysis, and review of the current business plan and strategy. We then answer the question by following with a process to create stakeholder alignment and commitment in the context of a strategic plan, resulting in KPI’s, milestones, deliverables, etc.

There are some noticeably parallel concepts between what we do and some of Simon Sinek’s ideas — I’ve actually borrowed some of his language as it is more concise than previous iterations I had explored. He definitely has more of a marketing flavor to his presentation, but I like many of his ideas. Enjoy!

Simon Sinek: How great leaders inspire action