Our obsession with relationships
We believe that organisations should be the product of their relationships rather than the sum of their transactions.
If an organisation seeks to endure over time, it will only do so through developing quality relationships with the people important to its ongoing success. Transactions undertaken should result not only in short term impact but also contribute to stronger relationships with stakeholders. It will also only endure if it continuously learns and improves with each transaction it undertakes.
Our obsession with relationships impacts on the way we operate. We seek to work with people over time and invest in understanding them, the context in which they operate and their view of their success. Our goal is to help them to succeed. We know that this approach is unusual and can be viewed with scepticism so initial stages of our work can, and do, take time and patience. It is our choice to invest in developing lasting relationships rather than respond to requests for proposals.
We choose to work with people key to the success of each organisation. There will be one person, often the chief executive, who will identify with the long-term ambition of the organisation and will occupy the centre of what we have called ‘the swirl’, the seven elements of sustainable success. There will be others in the organisation essential to the success of that single person and therefore the overall success of the organisation.
Our focus on the success of individuals means that we follow them through their careers and often work with them multiple times. We are there when their context requires external support.
We position ourselves as business advisors and this is essential in establishing the context in which individuals seek their success. We work with the organisation as a whole and this requires the development of our understanding of their strategy and business model for its achievement. We have invested in a broader understanding of the principles of long-term success and have developed models, based on practical experience, to help to establish the business context for our ongoing involvement.
We ask questions to help us to understand what they are trying to achieve within their business context. Without this we cannot establish how we can help them and the business to achieve and sustain their success.
The success over time for an organisation, and the people within it, is the driver for our success and governs our operating model, the people who join the business, and the decisions we make.
Peter Ward is Chairman and Co-Founder of Telos Partners, an advisory business focused on long term business success
