I like to think of it as the description of the perfect employee…

When this photo was taken — July 3, 1998 — a beautiful Friday afternoon at ISMI in downtown Howell — I had an excellent idea of what characteristics the perfect employee would have…

I just never made the time document it.

In one of my favorite books, The E-Myth Revisited:Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What To Do About It, Michael Gerber has a section specifically dedicated to making the time to “work on your business, rather than in it” and how the results will pay off in dividends.

After making that time (over two years ago now) – and creating our Culture Statement – I couldn’t agree more.

He goes on to explain how important it is to establish a ‘frame of reference’ for any new employees you hire (especially as you transcend from the ‘Technician’ to the ‘Manager’ in your business).

In looking back at some of the frustrations we had with ISMI growing so quickly — I can think of dozens of instances where having a printed Culture Statement to reference would have saved a lot of frustration, unmet expectations, and made ISMI a better place to work overall.

In retrospect, I think it would have helped tremendously during the hiring process as well.

Here is ISG’s Culture Statement, feel free to copy part or all of it for your use as well!

Commitment:

• You are committed to our Vision, Mission and Culture statements, our success, our current and future team and our customers at all times.
• You always recommend our products and services prior to going outside of the company.
• You keep the ‘big picture’ in mind as you create, develop and make recommendations to our team and to our customers.

Ownership:

• You accept that you are responsible for your own actions and the outcomes those actions produce.
• You take ownership in everything that happens in your work and your life.
• You keep an eye for detail to assure nothing is overlooked.

Fun:

• You view life as a journey to be enjoyed and appreciated.
• You help create an atmosphere of fun and happiness so all around you will enjoy it as well.

Integrity:

• You always speak the truth and deliver what you promise.
• You only make agreements you are willing to keep.
• You communicate any potential broken agreements at the first opportunity.
• You clear up all broken agreements immediately.

Balance:

• You have a balanced approach to life remembering that your physical, social, spiritual and family aspects are just as important as your financial and intellectual ones.
• You do your best to have ownership in everything you do, be accountable for your actions and responsible for their outcomes (good or bad) as well.
• You have a positive attitude both personally, and professionally while working with our team, and our potential, new and existing customers.

Education:

• You commit to constantly educating our customers on our technology & techniques for generating results.
• You assure that you are constantly educating yourself on the latest in technology, technological enhancements & efficient methods of implementation.
• You communicate your findings with our team in our weekly team meetings.

Communication:

• You are consistent in communication with our team and our clients.
• If you are in doubt regarding the status of a project, customer, a team member or customer feelings – you communicate.
• You assure any correspondence written, including e-mails, faxes, and written documentation have proper spelling and punctuation.

Passion:

• You realize that our focus is to find your passions in both your personal and business life and match them as closely as possible to your responsibilities at ISGFL.
• If you find that you’ve discovered a new potential passion — you review your findings in our next team meeting.