Every employee should know how the business actually works

I came across a piece of practical advice this week that made me stop and think:

Simple idea. Powerful implications. Does it happen?

Most people are trained to become experts in their own role. They learn their responsibilities, build technical skills and focus on delivering their part of the work.

What they often don't learn is how the organisation creates value, generates revenue or funding, manages risk, serves customers or how the different parts of the organisation depend on one another. Reading the organisational chart doesn't explain this.

As a result, people can become highly capable in their individual roles while remaining disconnected from the bigger picture.

Imagine if every employee understood early on in their tenure:

• How the organisation succeeds;

• The key drivers of performance;

• How decisions in one area affect another; and

• Where change and improvement opportunities exist.

The benefits would be significant.

People would make better decisions. Teams would align more naturally around organisational priorities. Resources would be used more effectively. 

Change initiatives would gain greater traction because employees could see how their work contributes to the whole.

The possibility is created for every employee to use their business acumen.  Employees would benefit from opportunities to earn more and grow more.

In my leadership experience, organisations often struggle to grow or transform not because of a lack of talent, but because of a lack of shared understanding and a siloed mindset.

When people understand the system, they can contribute beyond the boundaries of their job description. When enough people do that, organisational capacity expands.

The question therefore is:

How much time do you invest helping people understand the organisation or business, not just their role within it?