INSPIRED IMPACT is an ongoing blog series that gives voice to purpose-driven brands and passionate business leaders and entrepreneurs who are making an impact in their communities and industries.
Chuck Blakeman is the Founder/Chief Transformation Officer of Crankset Group. Follow him on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook and learn more about Crankset Group at cranksetgroup.com.
WHAT DO YOU DO?
We do Business Advisory based on principles of the emerging work of the Participation Age, and out of the desire to help small companies grow and mature. Along the way, we have developed proven success tools and processes, created working directly with business owners and leaders. Now these tools and resources are available to you.
We work with businesses who want:
- 100% fully engaged, self-managed people
- Managers who become leaders
- Longevity
- Lasting legacies
- Exponential growth
- More money in less time
- Higher profits
- The lowest possible staff turnover
WHY DO YOU DO IT?
Our company vision is To Live Well by Doing Good. Helping business leaders and their staff is missional work for us. We are not educational, but transformational. We also believe the emerging work world requires an entirely new approach to structuring organizations that rehumanizes the workplace and gives everyone their brain back. We want to be an integral part of that transformation.
WHAT IMPACT ARE YOU MAKING?
CEOs and business leaders tell us we help them stop micro-managing, and learn how to lead by training others and getting out of the way. The result is much faster growth, higher profits, more meaningful work for everyone, great business culture, and exponentially lower staff turnover.
WHAT (OR WHO) INSPIRES YOU TO MAKE THIS IMPACT?
Some of the Participation Age pioneers from the last 50 years that have inspired us include Douglas McGregor (The Human Side of Enterprise), Marvin Weisbord (Productive Workplaces) and W. L. Gore (Goretex), who led the way in developing self-managed workplaces. In more recent years Ricardo Semler (Maverick) and scores of CEOs who are rushing to build Participation Age companies.
WHAT IS (OR HAS BEEN) YOUR GREATEST CHALLENGE?
Myths about flatter hierarchies and self-management. Detractors have said a) it’s a fad (multiple billion dollar corporations have been doing it for 60+ years very successfully), b) it creates chaos and anarchy (self-managed co.’s are the most organized, efficient co.’s in the world), c) is devoid of management (teams take on the roles that managers used to have), and d) creates massive uncertainty and will result in a significant dip before things get better (simply not our experience – companies do better by all metrics as soon as they give everyone their brain back.)
WHAT WORDS OF ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR OTHER LEADERS WHO ARE LOOKING TO MAKE AN IMPACT?
Know what you believe and what you value, and make all your decisions based on that. You don’t create culture, you simply live out what you believe. If you don’t like what is going on in your business, take a look at what is going on in your head – your business is simply a reflection of that.
HOW CAN OTHERS SUPPORT YOU OR YOUR CAUSE?
Give everyone their brain back. Stop treating people at work like children, and get involved in the emerging work world. Companies that embrace the Participation Age will thrive, those that don’t will be left behind. Help us identify the myriad of companies moving in this direction and give us their contact info – we’ll add them to our website.