What guides your business decisions?

Starbucks, Zappos, Southwest Airlines, and Disney are examples of companies that make decisions based on what makes their customers successful and they prepare their people and their operations to follow through.  This decision making is due to clarity of purpose, “everything we do, we do to make our customers successful.”

This clarity of purpose gives the entire company the motivation to go beyond merely executing scripted tasks and demonstrating behaviors from a checklist to delivering interactions that connect with their customers.  This purpose moves their work from selling a product to helping customers do what they do better and perhaps changing their lives just a little.  When companies have a clear, customer-focused purpose, they make different decisions; they make decisions that are more selfless than selfish.  When companies have a clear, unified purpose they can overcome the problems of silos going their own way to satisfy their own needs; rather, a unified purpose gets the entire organization moving in one direction where decisions are connected and are guided by a common goal.

Regardless of the type of business, when purpose steers decision making, employees have a guide for what to do and what to provide.   This unity and congruence gives customers confidence in the business.  They develop loyalty and become advocates who want others to experience what you deliver.  Stories of the great experience with your business become what define you and customers become your most powerful marketing force.  This results in growth and profitability.

It’s a simple formula, make customer success your purpose, make decisions based on that purpose, customers love it and help the business be successful.  Everyone wins.  It makes me wonder, why is this such an anomaly?

QUESTION: What purpose guides your decision-making?