A couple of weeks ago I referred to the internal drive we all have for behavioral consistency. Some of you read that and thought “not me, I love change.” And my guess is you work very hard to stay consistent with that self-image.
In the same way we value consistency in ourselves and other people, we value consistency in organizations. I’m not talking about a quality product or dependable service; those are table stakes. What I am talking about is a consistency that starts with the founder and his or her vision and flows through the mission, core values, marketing message, and actions of the organization. When your customers and employees see that consistency, they trust you; and when they trust you, customers buy and employees buy-in.
Apparently, nobody told this to Philip Morris, the third largest tobacco producer in the world and the marketer of Marlboro brands, when they decided to invest nearly $2 billion in the healthcare industry in 2021. Logically, the investment made sense: the technology they developed to get high schoolers hooked on vaporized tobacco could also be used to develop inhaled medications. But logic rarely carries the day. The healthcare establishment looked at Philip Morris’s history and said, “I don’t trust you.” And my guess is their employees did the same. They joined the company to produce and sell tobacco, and now there was a big bet being made on the antithesis of tobacco. Philip Morris has suffered big losses on the investment and is now looking for a way to exit the business.
Contrast that to Atlantic Coast Consulting, a client of mine. They help municipalities and private companies build and manage solid waste facilities in the most eco-friendly manner possible. Their CEO got a vision for the company when he was in the Navy and saw the ship’s waste being dumped into the ocean. It hurt him, in a visceral sense, and he vowed to use his skills to protect the environment. The first thing you see on their website is “Our Work Helps Produce a Cleaner Environment for All” and they walk the talk. Their core values speak to service, communication, and accuracy as they help their clients produce a cleaner environment; their marketing targets people that not only need their service but also care about doing the best thing for the environment; their annual summer party is a campout. They don’t claim to be the best fit for everyone, but if you are a fit, you can count on them to consistently work to fulfill their mission. That consistency builds trust, and customers and employees tend to stick with people they trust.
What about you? Are you walking the talk, from your vision all the way through the actions of your business? If not, you get an “A+” for self-awareness and should call me, so we can get you on the path to consistency and getting everything you want from your business.
