The secrets of the world’s most progressive organizations

Only two years into our corporate jobs, we had become frustrated with the way our organizations were run. Like most people (85% of employees are disengaged!), we worked in uninspiring workplaces characterized by inertia, bureaucracy, and a lack of motivation. We believe these organizations, which are mostly based on outdated structures, are doomed to fail in today’s rapidly changing environment.

Born out of personal frustration, we quit our jobs, started Corporate Rebels and set out to find the world’s most progressive organizations. We listed them on our “Bucket List” – a list of inspiring workplace pioneers. It includes well-known examples such as Spotify, Google, and Patagonia to lesser-known organizations that organize work in radically different ways. By visiting these pioneers we learn about many alternative ways of working that fully unleash the potential of employees.

By doing this, we have created a movement of like-minded individuals and organizations who are ready to make a positive change in the way they work. Our main activities include: the Corporate Rebels blog, our upcoming book, consulting work with organizations, and presentations and workshops around the world.

So, what do progressive organizations do differently?

Based on our global visits to workplace pioneers, we’ve identified 8 main trends of highly progressive workplaces. Here they are listed, but for more information check out this blog post that describes them in more detail.

#1 From PROFIT to PURPOSE & VALUES

#2 From HIERARCHICAL PYRAMIDS to A NETWORK OF TEAMS

#3 From DIRECTIVE LEADERSHIP to SUPPORTIVE LEADERSHIP

#4 From PREDICT & PLAN to EXPERIMENT & ADAPT

#5 From RULES & CONTROL to FREEDOM & TRUST

#6 From CENTRALIZED AUTHORITY to DISTRIBUTED AUTHORITY

#7 From SECRECY to RADICAL TRANSPARENCY

#8 From JOB DESCRIPTIONS to TALENTS & MASTERY

To move towards these trends companies should start listening to what it is that employees want. Stop treating them like children, and start seeing them as responsible adults. Listen to their frustrations, hopes, and dreams and give them the opportunity to work on that. Once you have listened to them you should give them the freedom to experiment with new approaches to work. Don’t force them to change, but listen and then inspire them to change. Only by listening, inspiring, and experimenting organizations can create a truly inspiring workplace.

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The video included in this post was recorded during a session in Madrid organised by Future for Work Institute for the members of its learning community on the future of work and organizations.