The Conductive Organization : Building Beyond Sustainability

268 Pages·2004·1.51 MB·English

by  Hubert Saint-Onge Charles Armstrong

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Further Praise for The Conductive Organization
“An evocative account ofwhy an organization must give more than lip service to
being customer-centered and how it can implement approaches to create authen-
tic interdependence and “generalized reciprocity” between customers, partners
and stakeholders to sustain its purpose.”
—Yvon Bastien,President and General Manager,Sanofi-Synthelabo Canada,Inc.
“Saint-Onge and Armstrong’s work couldn’t have come at a better time.In an era
of growing institutional failure and emphasis on transparency,The Conductive
Organizationprovides a blueprint for creating organizations that are truly cali-
brated to customer needs,reliant on value-based relationships with stakeholders,
and centered on knowledge capital.An accessible read,based on theory but long
on practice,this book challenges us all to rethink strategies for how organizations
can exceed expectations.”
—LeifEdvinsson,The world’s first director of Intellectual Capital,The world’s
first holder of a professorship on Intellectual Capital,Lund University,
Sweden,1998 “Brain of the Year”
“The Conductive Organization is that delightful rarity among management
books:a distillation of the wisdom of two obviously deeply self-reflective practi-
tioners crafted in large measure around the experiences of their own organiza-
tions but conveyed through the means of a powerful and pervasive conceptual
structure that will make academics and consultants blush with envy.And,yes,for
those managers who truly want to understand why knowledge is the ultimate
organizational asset and how to leverage it,this is the “must read”book.”
—Liam Fahey,Partner,Leadership Forum,Inc.and Adjunct Professor,
Strategic Management at Babson College
“As organizations struggle to find new ways to operate in turbulent times,Saint-
Onge and Armstrong provide us with a new way of thinking—of concentrating
on strategy-making not just strategies; on calibrating to the customer not just
becoming client-centric;on increasing knowledge flows not just gaining knowl-
edge.The Conductive Organization provides leaders at all levels with a frame-
work that is grounded in the authors’cumulative experiences with success and
shaped by their values.”
—Tom Jenkins,CEO,Open Text
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“The Conductive Organization presents compelling insight on organizational
and knowledge strategies that leaders can take to gain a competitive advantage.
The premise that a connected enterprise is empowered through conductivity puts
the customer at the center.Conductivity realizes the full potential of technology,
and goes way beyond it.Any leader who wants to succeed will want to put this
book on their list of must reads.”
—Mary Lee Kennedy,Director,Knowledge Network Group,
Microsoft Corporation
“Organizational success relies heavily on the capability to leverage both institu-
tional and personal knowledge.While our systems and approaches for managing
information are for the most part highly developed,we are just starting to under-
stand the complexities of how to best utilize our personal knowledge in pursuit
of organizational goals.S.A.Armstrong Limited has been at the forefront of this
journey ofdiscovery.This book provides insights coupled with practical applica-
tions that can guide any organization toward a more effective management and
use of its most valuable asset- the unique knowledge of its people.”
—Maseo Maekawa,Chairman of the Board,Mayekawa Mfg.Co.,Ltd.,Tokyo,
Japan;President,Mayekawa Holding AG,Zug,Switzerland;President,
Mycom Intertec AG,Zug,Switzerland
“This book is a personal and insightful guide for organizations wishing to better
engage with the knowledge economy.It is deeply grounded in the authors own
experiences, which makes their recommendations that much more cogent and
sensible.”
—Laurence Prusak,Distinguished Scholar in Residence,Babson College,USA
“My prediction is that The Conductive Organizationwill become the most con-
ductive new idea in management circles and business schools around the world.
The central idea that all organizational structures in processes must become cus-
tomer dictated is currently being written about by other authors, but only as a
theory.Where the authors differentiate themselves is in providing the actual orga-
nizational blue print for making customers permanent creative partners in the
innovation, manufacturing, and delivery processes. The Conductive Organiza-
tionbook is a platform that will generate thousands offruitful management prac-
tices and methods.”
—Dan Sullivan,President,The Strategic Coach
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The Conductive Organization
Building Beyond Sustainability
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The Conductive Organization
Building Beyond Sustainability
Hubert Saint-Onge and Charles Armstrong
AMSTERDAM • BOSTON • HEIDELBERG • LONDON
NEW YORK • OXFORD • PARIS • SAN DIEGO
SAN FRANCISCO • SINGAPORE • SYDNEY • TOKYO
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Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann
200 Wheeler Road,Burlington,MA 01803,USA
Linacre House,Jordan Hill,Oxford OX2 8DP,UK
Copyright © 2004,Elsevier Inc.All rights reserved.
No part ofthis publication may be reproduced,stored in a retrieval system,or
transmitted in any form or by any means,electronic,mechanical,photocopying,
recording,or otherwise,without the prior written permission ofthe publisher.
Permissions may be sought directly from Elsevier’s Science & Technology Rights
Department in Oxford,UK:phone:[phone],fax:[phone],e-mail:
[email protected] may also complete your request on-line via the
Elsevier homepage (http://elsevier.com),by selecting “Customer Support”and then
“Obtaining Permissions.”
Recognizing the importance ofpreserving what has been written,Elsevier prints its
books on acid-free paper whenever possible.
Library ofCongress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Saint-Onge,Hubert.
The conductive organization :building beyond sustainability / Hubert Saint-Onge
and Charles Armstrong.
p. cm.
ISBN 0-7506-7735-X (alk.paper)
1. Knowledge management. 2. Organizational learning. I. Armstrong,Charles.
II. Title.
HD30.2.S234 2004
658.4¢038–dc22
2004005149
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN:0-7506-7735-X
For information on all Butterworth-Heinemann publications
visit our website at www.bh.com
03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Printed in the United States ofAmerica
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A mes parents,Roland et Cécile,qui
m’ont inspiré à poursuivre mes rêves avec
courage—HSO
To Sarah and David and to three
generations ofthe Armstrong community
who have discovered,developed,and
lived our core values—CAA
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Contents
Preface xi
Acknowledgements xvii
1 The Conductive Organization 1
2 The Customer Imperative 23
3 The Knowledge Capital Model 35
4 Customer Calibration 53
5 The Strategy-Making Perspective of the Conductive Organization 75
6 Internal and External Branding:The Character of the Conductive
Organization 97
7 Culture:The Collective Mindsets of the Conductive Organization 113
8 Structure:The Custodians of Conductivity 137
9 Systems:Generating Capabilities 155
10 A New Leadership Agenda for the Conductive Organization 183
11 From Conductive to Highly Conductive—The Evolving
Organization 207
Glossary 231
About the Authors 235
Index 239
ix