On the boardroom table fifty years ago, were two small brass knobs, each on a separate base. One was engraved OB and other engraved NOB. At a brief glance they looked nothing more than small paperweights to keep key papers from sliding away.
However, during meetings the Chairman's hand would invariably begin to hover over one, or the other. This was his unique way, whilst not interrupting the flow of conversation, to reflect on what was being presented and indicate to those at the table if they were focusing correctly, or possibly not, on what mattered most.
The OB engraving stood for Our Business and the NOB for Not Our Business.
If you were a regular visitor to the boardroom, you would learn to watch out for those signals very carefully and respond swiftly! One of his favourite lines was ‘know your knitting’, in other words, be very clear on what we do. This philosophy and the simple OB / NOB system was used to balance the choices and decisions being made.
This didn’t mean the table wasn’t open to new ideas or didn’t adjust how the business operated – in fact this balanced approach to decision making created agility, helping diversify the product and evolve the brand. Indeed, this was the Board table that introduced natural fibres to the High Street and then developed a totally fresh approach to selling foods which not only changed the entire industry model, but later greatly enabled M&S to survive, succeed and keep moving forward.
The simple quest with the brass ‘balance’ barometers, was to connect people to who we are, what we do and why we do it; consistently guiding them to operate within that framework, so the business could focus on what mattered most, extend it's strengths to new areas, continue to do what it was great at and always be at its best.
balance matters
Balance has been an intrinsic part of our lives forever, but it’s a concept that is often overlooked or misunderstood. Whilst the above story shares an example of balance in a boardroom in the 1970’s, we’re a bit obsessed with getting it back into leadership conversations today.
Simply put, balance is the ability to adjust position, relative to things around you. It’s a core capability that enables us to evolve and therefore a brilliant skill for leaders to develop and apply - not in a Zen poster kind of way, but in the true sense of balance that helps leaders and their people continue to improve and evolve.
Between us we’ve spent many years in Boardrooms, giving us unique insights into why some organisations survive and succeed and others seem to struggle or fail.
What we continue to observe, is those with clarity on who they are, what they do and why they do it, are able to respond to changes, challenges AND opportunities and new ideas much quicker and more effectively than those who are not. Understanding and staying connected to what sits at the very heart of their organisations, gives them both stability and agility – in other words creates the balance they need to keep moving forward.
Balance isn’t a soft skill, but a strategic one. It’s not a one-off corrective mechanism, but a useful and effective leadership mindset and approach. If you think now might be a good time to renew your understanding of balance and explore its benefits for your organisation - please do get in touch.
balance podcast
Michael Gough, a commercially focused brand and marketing consultant, has curated a collection of interviews with leaders who are passionate about something that is at risk of being overlooked. Sometimes it's a brand, a product or a service but it can also be a concept or an idea. We’re thrilled that Michael, who hosts these conversations invited us to contribute to the series and talk about Why Balance Matters?
You can listen to other Podcasts in this series or get in touch with Michael here.
