Is the Bhutanese corporate world missing out the vital element in its effort to embrace change?

Finally customers are having their say in Bhutanese companies. Some business dinosaurs are dead. Others are sick. Rest are either evolving or transforming. That has apparently become the only strategy to survive and succeed. Change and keep changing has become the mantra which the Bhutanese corporate world is beginning to recite. But is our Bhutanese corporate world missing out the vital aspect of change?

We see changes in our corporate world in different shapes, sizes, colors and pace. Bank of Bhutan changes its Logo. RICBL introduces new products and lays off people. Kuensel will go daily. BNB introduced the ATM. Many tour operators are specializing. Tashi Cell knocks off call charges. RIM rewrites its vision statement. Bhutan Times revamps the look of its paper. National Pension and Provident Fund recreates its service delivery system. NRDCL undertakes organizational development exercise. The BBS has come live. Even the government is changing its organogram. Changes - all in pursuit of success.

But where lies the secret to sustainable success? The most worshipped success factors of the olden days are no more relevant. Great technology, efficient manufacturing processes, best practices in customer services are no more sources of competitive advantages. Technology can be shared. Processes can be copied. And best practices are easily adapted. Advancement in information technology and globalization are real and here to stay. They have evened out the playing field and will always do. Tangible and easily discernable sources of competitive advantages do not last long as sources of success.

Increasingly, the most reliable and sustainable success mantra is in the intangible and in what is not easily discernable. It is in the way organizations treat its people and in the ways that people behave and interact amongst themselves and with the customers. For want of better word to describe, it may loosely be termed as corporate culture. And because corporate culture is elusive and takes a long time to nurture, it establishes itself as a unique feature of the company. Almost like a DNA of the company. It is therefore almost impossible to replicate and very difficult to change.

The success of Toyota is not attributed to its engineering marvels. It is the “Toyota way” of doing things that outperforms all other automobile makers. And surely the Toyota way is much more complex than the engineering feat that Toyota achieved. It is the corporate culture at Toyota that helped it excel in technology, sales and marketing.

What then is corporate culture? Simply put, corporate culture is the values that organizations subscribe to. It is the in the way that organizations treat its employees. It is in the way decisions are made. It is in the way people in the organizations interact with each other. It is in the way employees interact with customers. It is in the way employees see their organizations. It is in these ways that organizations make it or break it. It is so very powerful that new technology, new systems and structure and new marketing strategies would crumble without its support.

Most Bhutanese companies are driven by the “hard” talents of the CEOs. Too often, the CEOs focus on changing the tangible and more visible aspects of their organizations such as technology, organization structure, products, systems and processes. Creating and nurturing corporate culture either is absent or stands at the bottom of their agenda. Hence whether in the corporate sector or the government agencies we find that organizations are at a lost when the CEOs leave. The organizations have become too dependent on the CEOs. The new CEO has to start all over again. Bhutanese corporate culture is too weak to sustain continuity.

Strong corporate culture outlasts the strongest leaders. The best leader is one who creates an organization that can achieve success even in his absence. Sound corporate culture is the best substitute for strong leadership. In fact, in today’s environment, the core duty of a CEO should be creating and nurturing a corporate culture that supports organizational success.

As with anything worthwhile, culture is an investment. It must be consciously and deliberately nurtured. Organization’s identity, its values and norms cannot be formed over a short period of time. Just as a child would need long term supportive environment and constant positive value reinforcements to inculcate healthy values and principles, so is with organizations.

Leadership is critical in identifying and maintaining an organizational culture that supports sustainable success. These values should form an integral part of the decision making process involving hiring, firing, HR development, dealing with customers and engaging in the general business promotion. Leaders must set the example by living the elements of culture such as the values, behaviors, actions and standards of performance. Other employees will gradually notice and imbibe the culture.

Because competition and globalization are real. Because Bhutanese customers now have the final say. Because other tangible sources of competitive advantages are easily duplicated. Because CEOs come and go. Sound corporate culture is the new mantra for sustainable survival and success. It is the only unique edge that companies can create and nurture which cannot be copied and transferred from one organization to the other. Corporate culture therefore is the vital element that must be attended to when organizations adapt to changes. It must feature as the core duty of the CEO of any company.