A while ago I got to know a close relative of the CEO of Waffle House and also interacted with one of their store managers. Of course, I was familiar with their restaurants, but through these discussions really came to appreciate the company and became fascinated with its culture. An example of a noteworthy aspect of this culture is the perspective on “constraints,” especially as it applies to its employees.

Many employees come to Waffle House from difficult backgrounds – constrained resources, challenging relational circumstances, transitional phases of career, limited access to transportation, etc. Rather than trying to change these realities, or resenting them, the company has accepted and even embraced these constraints. This comes to life in fascinating ways – examples…managers prepared to “jump-in” in case of absences, teaching classes on how to “create a budget on a Waffle House income,” providing transportation for employees in need (…example: bikes for those who live close by and may not have a driver’s license, pick up of employees during inclement weather, etc.).

Unfortunately, in my practice of coaching leaders I often find a lopsided amount of management-energy spent doing exactly the opposite – instead of embracing constraints…trying to avoid or fight them. While “constraint-busting” definitely has its place as a management-responsibility, what would it look like to identify those we can’t change…and not only accept them, but decide to use them to our advantage?

Here are a few principles I’d propose:

1. Identify them – what are things you perceive as “limitations”?… perhaps chafe under? … “genetically” hard-wired in your reality? – location, job, finances, customers, employees…
2. Mentally embrace them – instead of fighting them…”welcome them.” This change of mindset from “rejection” to “acceptance” is a necessary and vital turning point. It changes your perspective from negativity & “resentment” to positivity and an open mind. Could you imagine thinking of constraints as a “pleasure”?
3. Get creative – how might you turn these constraints to your advantage…not despite them…but because of them? Chances are that many of your peers or competitors face similar challenges but have written them off, so an opportunity for competitive-advantage may be in plain view, though invisible to others. Remember…”necessity is the mother of invention!”

As you turn the page on 2019, take a step back and look at the constraints you consider “fixed.” Rather than resent or ignore them, why don’t you begin the process of thinking about how they can go from a “threat to fear” to a “reason to thrive” in the new year?

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One of the challenges I find facing rapidly scaling teams & organizations is the speed at which they outgrow their current approach, and the subsequent need to constantly overhaul their strategy and processes to fit the next stage of growth –  ex more volume, new offers, changing customer expectations, new locations, clearer policies, higher level of accountability, new metrics & targets, new organizational roles and structure, etc…

How do you overcome this challenge? How do you come up with the right model for an “unknown journey ahead?…not to mention doing it fast enough to keep pace with an ever-changing business environment & needs. It certainly seems daunting and the risk of paralysis is high – either because leaders don’t know what to do (continuing the status quo), or get lost in a painstaking quest to create the “perfectly tailored solution” because they think “their situation is so unique” (trust me, it’s not!).

One of my professors at Stanford University, Dr. Huggy Roa, coauthored a book (“Scaling Up Excellence”) with Dr. Robert Sutton in which they share their learnings from studying and working with high-growth companies. In reference to the question above, they give the following valuable advice:

Finding the right blend of “standard” and “custom” when you are scaling up an organization often requires a messy, time-consuming, and costly process of trial and error. But some strategies speed such learning. If you aren’t sure, a good general rule is to start with a complete model or template that works elsewhere and watch for signs that certain aspects of the model aren’t working and need to be rebuilt, replaced, or removed. We recommend resisting the temptation to roll out an unproven mishmash of best practices if you can avoid it.

I love this guidance and think it’s extremely powerful. Why? First, using “someone else’s model” gives teams a place to start with a certain level of confidence, based on real-life references and examples. Second, it allows for intentional adaptation “as you go,” based on your own learnings and unique needs of your business model. Third, and most importantly, it’s a shortcut to action, creating momentum to keep the organization moving forward.

So where are you stuck? Who else is doing something similar? What’s a possible “starter model” you can begin to adapt and move forward?

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Nate Hamblen is founder and CEO of Red Elm (www.red-elm.com), a company dedicated to delivering “over-the-top residential services” to premium home owners and being a “force for good” in the lives of both customers and employees. From “one guy and a truck”, Nate rapidly grew the company to a multi-million dollar operation through a relentless focus on culture and people. As I’ve had the privilege of accompanying Nate on this amazing journey, we’ve had deep discussions on “how to find people that fit.” Together we developed a framework that has guided our thinking and is described in the post below.

Over the last few years we’ve done significant work growing and scaling processes, teams and organizations. Although there are various things to get right on this arduous journey, one of the most important is finding and growing the right people that are both capable and a good fit for your culture. No matter the challenge, whether expanding operations, leadership-horsepower, technical expertise, or all the above….people are the lifeblood of growth and change.

Recently Nate and I were discussing the roles and profiles of people to be part of the company’s next phase of rapid expansion. As we discussed each person, it seemed we would frequently circle back to the same high-level categories that drove our perspective on good (or bad) fit.

While there are many specific attributes, regrouping them into four macro families/categories helped simplify the conversation and gave a common language & lens for discussion and assessment.

Here are the “4 C’s” we determined to be most helpful in determining “people fit”:

1. Character – the foundation of someone’s personality and values that drive them (ex integrity, work ethic, drive, commitment, relationships with people…)
2. Capability – fundamental skill-sets that make them effective in a given role in a generic sense (ex detail vs macro, communication, individual contributor vs leader, tolerance for ambiguity, etc.)
3. Capacity – ability to carry “weight”, whether psychologically, physically or emotionally (ex work hours, travel, hi-pressure environments, complexity, isolation, etc.)
4. Content – industry-/trade-/function- knowledge, know-how and specific expertise that makes the above relevant in a specific fields or function (ex from sectors like medical, automotive, construction… to functional skills like nursing, engineering, carpentry…etc.)

You may be wondering…”how do these contribute to ‘culture fit’?” Great question!…and something we considered. In fact, we believe that defining the right mix of attributes within each of the families in your specific context (as highlighted with examples in parentheses) allow the families to become the “macro-ingredients” that “dial-in” culture-fit at a personal level. In this metaphorical sense, the overall culture-fit of a person is “the cake” i.e the outcome, that is composed of a tailored recipe of 4C’s i.e “the ingredients.”

So as you consider the next stage of growth for your team, what about using the “4 C’s” as a framework to define and evaluate critical attributes required in your people? We believe it’ll help focus your thinking, and give you a common lens/language to communicate/identify what it takes to succeed in your culture and the journey ahead.

Nate Hamblen & Johannes Mutzke

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