I thought the author's list of behaviors of next generation companies vs traditional companies was spot on:
Next Generation
The next generation company is not seeking to return to the office but adapting to a more remote world. This form of remote working — in many cases enforced by the isolation economy — is now seen as the new norm. The company is driven by guiding principles which are often stated and enforced in both recruitment and promotion. Distribution of power to where it is needed matters. Teams will often swarm around problems, leadership is transient in nature and leaders will arise to fit the problem. In this world, hierarchy is unimportant and few care about the top floor office or the status symbols of power. What motivates people are customer and societal outcomes. Outcome not output matters. The projects undertaken always consider the wider community and sustainability is not a buzz word but a core belief. In support of this, a deep understanding of supply chains are essential, these tend to be modelled as the company views that it is responsible for its entire supply chain. Ethics also matter a lot, it drives external communication, it is not an add-on. Awareness of the market also matters, it is systemic (throughout the organisation) and not the function of a sole leader but instead everyone. To train people, the company used scenarios and gameplay, usually online. The idea of Eve online being a training tool is not an alien concept.
Traditional Company
The traditional company is currently seeking a return to the office. It may talk of hybrid models of working but it has a bias in one direction. It is a procedurally driven beast with executives that consider themselves in the role of heroic leaders (even if they don’t openly say so). Symbols of the powerful matter, the top floor office, the hierarchy, the stories of heroic leaders and top down direction. Principles are an idea that are rarely stated or enforced. What motivates people in this environment is money. Sustainability is a cost to operations but it has to be done for marketing reasons. Marketing research itself is used to justify executive decisions not to question them.
>The manager got up. He motioned for the young technician to follow. As they were walking the hallway the manager said, "You are far too smart for that job. We need to put you in a role better suited to your ability." And within that moment the technician's life changed.
I had one manager like this early in my career. Looking back, I credit a fair bit of my success to his early investment in me.
Next Generation
The next generation company is not seeking to return to the office but adapting to a more remote world. This form of remote working — in many cases enforced by the isolation economy — is now seen as the new norm. The company is driven by guiding principles which are often stated and enforced in both recruitment and promotion. Distribution of power to where it is needed matters. Teams will often swarm around problems, leadership is transient in nature and leaders will arise to fit the problem. In this world, hierarchy is unimportant and few care about the top floor office or the status symbols of power. What motivates people are customer and societal outcomes. Outcome not output matters. The projects undertaken always consider the wider community and sustainability is not a buzz word but a core belief. In support of this, a deep understanding of supply chains are essential, these tend to be modelled as the company views that it is responsible for its entire supply chain. Ethics also matter a lot, it drives external communication, it is not an add-on. Awareness of the market also matters, it is systemic (throughout the organisation) and not the function of a sole leader but instead everyone. To train people, the company used scenarios and gameplay, usually online. The idea of Eve online being a training tool is not an alien concept.
Traditional Company
The traditional company is currently seeking a return to the office. It may talk of hybrid models of working but it has a bias in one direction. It is a procedurally driven beast with executives that consider themselves in the role of heroic leaders (even if they don’t openly say so). Symbols of the powerful matter, the top floor office, the hierarchy, the stories of heroic leaders and top down direction. Principles are an idea that are rarely stated or enforced. What motivates people in this environment is money. Sustainability is a cost to operations but it has to be done for marketing reasons. Marketing research itself is used to justify executive decisions not to question them.