Building Resonance (1/2): Key musical concepts you need to understand to build a high-performing organization

I continue to learn. For years, I have tried to make sense of the different ways European entrepreneurs build organizations. What role does "organization" take for them? What does a planning process mean under total, early-stage ambiguity? Why "organize" at all?

This article is my sharing of ideas in the hope of stimulating a good discussion - and learn some more. I use musical imagery. It helps me find the words for concepts that I intuitively feel but have a hard time describing scientifically. I hope these analogies help you as well. Let me know which other analogies you find helpful!

This is the first chapter in a two-part series. Stay tuned for the second edition next week!

Concept #1 - Arranging the band.

Every good band is built on a strong understanding on how the individual parts make up the bigger picture. The foundation of this understanding is the relationship between the players. As you play, the bigger picture - music - will evolve.

How can we show our full self in the work place?

Building a company from the ground up requires a set of vastly different people. This is especially true once the team expands beyond the idea stage and needs to bring vital functions like product and distribution to life. In my work with growth companies, I often hear the visionary call for "new organizational models" such as Holacracy and Teal. The underlying assumption of homogeneity is a dangerous misconception:

Successful, high-performing organizations are built to serve the people and values of their worlds. They are not created for humans to serve them.

Implementing a new organizational paradigm does not imply the need for everyone to change their mindset. The fact that we bring our full selves into the workplace is the superpower that every organizational culture needs to unlock.

Music = Values + Audience

Every organization is built on an intuitive understanding of its audience. These are the founders, customers, employees, shareholders, relevant institutions and how they all interact. This understanding grows and evolves with the audience: it forms values that describe the bigger picture - the music. We have gone full circle.

Concept #2 - Building chords, building resonance.

I love the concept of resonance. Every element in your organization has its own fundamental frequency. Your metaphorical job is to identify these frequencies and build harmony. This work applies to teams (chords) and process (melodies or entire songs).

Aligning how individuals and groups operate is key. Falling out of key with a group's frequency results in structural dissonance. Here are the concrete steps to take into account:

1. Identify the base frequency: Frequency is made up from personal values, motivations and signature strengths. Be mindful to see beyond ego and fear: Building trust and vulnerability is the ground floor of creating harmony. Building psychological safety enables team members to come as their full self. They will no be trying to "fit in" or "protect themselves" from perceived social pressure.
2. Understand duos, trios and ensembles: I first learnt about this concept from Mark Magellan and his work at IDEO. Every team has its unique "vibe" resulting from the individuals frequencies and how they interact. Every relationship is unique: Every two-way (duo) or three-way (trio) relationship, every team.
3. Ensure continuously recalibration: Like a living organism, your organization has the capacity to heal itself. Create the time and space for alignment. This can come in the form of a facilitated offsite or regular retros. The concept of catastrophic resonance holds especially in hyper-growth situations. When everyone is "drinking from the fire hose", people grow out of touch with themselves, each other, and the collective mission.
4. Understand evolution: Your business evolves. Individuals evolve. This process is really a cycle. Read more about this in the next edition!

Do let me know how this connects to your own experience. What concepts help you understand organizational design for rapidly growing companies?

I am looking forward to the discussion and sharing two more concepts next week!

Julius