World Class Organization

To achieve world-class status, an organization must stimulate creative thinking, encourage dialogue and introspection and promote understanding and new actions. Most important, it must give people - inside and outside the organization - something to care about.
When people think of "world-class" organizations, chances are widely admired companies such as General Electric, Microsoft, British Airways, Hewlett-Packard, Coca-Cola and Disney spring to mind. Yet what elevates these and other companies from merely "successful" to the more desired status of "world-class?"
A closer look at the "best of the best" reveals several shared characteristics. Besides being the premier organization in their industries, world-class companies have talented people, the latest technology, the best products and services, consistent high-quality, a high stock price, and a truckload of awards and accolades acknowledging their greatness. Dig deeper and you'll also find that communication is practiced as a strategic process within these companies that's woven into their business planning, decision-making and organization-wide priorities. It defines their cultures by encouraging dialogue, feedback, interpretation and understanding.
The Secret Behind World Class
Something else also distinguishes world-class companies from all the others. World-class companies give people - their customers, employees, suppliers, even the people in the communities in which they operate - something to care about. While it may sound simple, a closer look at some of the world's most respected and most successful companies indicates it's true.
Look at Disney, for example. Beginning with CEO Michael Eisner, everyone at Disney gives people a reason to care about the company because everyone there takes great pains to make their "guests" believe in make-believe. All new hires at Disney experience a multi-step training program where they quickly learn the language: Employees are "cast members," customers are