LEADERSHIP STRATEGY: AT HOME
Like most business owners, Dan Martucci’s struggles with a faltering economy left him exhausted at the end of each day. Usually a positive, charitable, and fun loving father, he realized that if he wasn’t carefu, recession pressure could indirectly impact his family. He resolved to preserve his home as a safe and comforting sanctuary where family members supported each other.
Dan decided to adapt a values-directed leadership process that he and his business partners had used to shape a strong and productive culture. Employees at Specialized Services Group were navigating successfully, in spite of hardships that had decimated the industry. This Inspirational leadership process is explained in, The “I” of the Hurricane: How to Generate and Focus Corporate Energy
Dan began by gathering family members (wife and three children, ages 11, 7, and 5) around the dinner table each Sunday night. During the next six weeks, the Martucci Family Values and Mission Statement was developed.
Dan’s process:
- He began by using specific examples to explain why family meetings were necessary.
- Next, he defined culture as, “the collective habits that the Martucci family uses to get things done.”
- Each family member was asked to explain what was important to them.
- Not surprisingly the first response of his children included activities and stuff such as; playing soccer, a BMX bicycle, and water sports. Dan gently moved their thinking to a deeper level. Eventually, each family member clarified a set of personal beliefs. Dan called personal beliefs core-values.
- Next, he staged a “rite of passage” experience that helped each family member transform personal (or core) beliefs, into a set of shared cultural-values. The process helped his children understand that by living the family’s shared values they would be supporting each other’s core-values.
The family agreement that they all had helped develop, sets the standard for decision making. When a member departs from the family’s declared cultural-values, others refer to prominently displayed color prints of the Martucci Family Values and Mission Statement. It serves as a constant reminder of what the Martuicci’s believe in and helps them inspire and hold each other accountable.
This post sponsored by the, HOW TO SURVIVE AND POROSPER IN THE SHIFT- AGE WORKSHOP