What makes us different

Get the gears turning

<aside> <img src="/icons/star_blue.svg" alt="/icons/star_blue.svg" width="40px" /> You stumble across a binder labeled Company Descriptions. You open it and each page has a very comprehensive and very compelling description of a company; its aspirations, its values, its people, its norms, its traditions, and more. But, the company names have been redacted. Shucks! You skim through the pages and land on one that you know, with 100% certainty, is a description of your company.

Now ask yourself, what does it say? How did you know it was your company and no one else's?

Use this exercise to: explore what makes your company different

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Notes / Answers

What we’re not

Get the gears turning

<aside> <img src="/icons/star_blue.svg" alt="/icons/star_blue.svg" width="40px" /> Use this exercise to bring into focus what you are, by articulating what you aren't with the following guiding questions.

• It's reasonable for an employee to ask for (blank), but they are just to going to get it at our company.
• If (blank) annoys someone, they will be annoyed often at our company.
• When a candidate (blank) in an interview, it's an immediate "no hire" for me.
• I would proudly fire someone for (blank)
• This may be controversial or bum someone out, but it's just a fact that our company is not positioned to (blank) for employees right now.
• I wouldn't be comfortable putting someone in front of a high-priority user, recuit, or partner if they (blank).
• I would be okay with someone quitting if they (blank) </aside>

Notes / Answers

How we express our values

Brainstorm

<aside> <img src="/icons/star_blue.svg" alt="/icons/star_blue.svg" width="40px" /> There are a handful of qualities that many companies value. What makes your company different is how you express it.

Use this exercise to articulate the how by asking yourself, at our company when we talk about the value in the left column, we mean doing "more of this" and "less of that.”

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Making our existing working patterns and norms explicit

Brainstorm

<aside> <img src="/icons/star_blue.svg" alt="/icons/star_blue.svg" width="40px" /> Your team is already working a certain way. Some of these patterns and norms are probably contributing to the success of your team and company. Others may be holding you back, or might start holding you back some time soon.

Use this exercise to make those working patterns and norms explicit. Then, generate operating principles that will reinforce the ones you want to stick around and help steer away from the ones you don't.

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