.png){kind=logo}
How do you approach every scenario in your organization? How do you stay true to your purpose and shape your organizational culture?
Developing guiding principles is one of the most important steps an organization can take to build and sustain a strong and impactful culture. Setting the standard for the behaviours and practices in how you work can help teams align expectations and stay grounded in your organization’s ‘why’. Guiding principles, when set intentionally, can help attract the right people, inform decision-making, and most importantly, make sure you stay true to your purpose.
At Sidekick, we keep five guiding principles at the forefront that inform the way we work every day. They act as a filter for every new business challenge, market opportunity, and unanswered question that we encounter in our day-to-day. It’s ambitious and at the core of everything we do.
Here’s how we operate:
1. Intentional
Passionate. Purposeful. Effective.
We keep the “why” in the mind when solving problems in front of us, all the while thinking about long-term implications. We use passion, grit and divergent thinking to bring purpose off the page. We don't act impulsively. We take each step with deliberate intention, thought and focus.
2. Inclusive
Holistic. Respectful. Advocate. We put people at the centre of our conversations, appreciating their backgrounds, identities and abilities, and learning from their uniqueness. We recognize the interconnectedness of people and systems, as they are ever evolving, growing and adapting to the world around them.
We defend the full range of human diversity and make sure it’s in the design of all our tools, processes and solutions.
3. Iterative
Action-Oriented. Creative. Adaptive.
We love to think creatively about a problem, thinking outside, through and above the box – we may even make a new box! We like learning from experiences, and from customer, employee and stakeholder feedback, continually adjusting and stress-testing to make our collective work as effective and functional as possible. We make sure everything we do is actionable - you won't find a deck full of fluff from us. 4. Approachable
Hands-on. Unpretentious. Authentic.
We're open, direct and candid always. We avoid buzzword-loaded marketing spin and jargon-laden corporate language, opting instead for a bit of banter and a lot of fun.
We don’t see ourselves as “suits” and instead as a team of people helping you make your mark.
5. Empowering Motivating. Encouraging. Enabling. We help you do what you love. We provide actionable strategic support for entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs that are making an impact, whether that's moonshot visions or down-to-earth ambitions. We aren't the hero of the story - you are.
What informs the way you work?
I encourage every leader to think of your own guiding principles and how you can set them for your own organization or team.
What kind of culture do you want to create? What’s important to you? What will you hold you and your team accountable to navigating the good, bad, and - yes, even the ugly – moments you’ll encounter in your organization’s journey?
Let’s chat. We’d love to learn from each other!
(Image description: a person’s arm is in view, wearing a black shirt, a watch and holding an iPhone. The compass app is open, pointing west. The person is front of a scenery of boulders and a cloudy sky.)