A Culture of Discipline

In Chapter 6 of Good to Great, by Jim Collins, he discusses the concept of a culture of discipline. According to Collins, having a culture of discipline is key to the lasting success of a company. A culture of discipline means, “build a culture full of people who take disciplined action within the three circles, fanatically consistent with the Hedgehog concept.” A culture of discipline does not mean that you must have a strong hierarchy with rules and regulations on every task or system. This, according to Collins, would leave little or no room for that entrepreneurial spirit which is so important to the success of a company. Instead, this concept suggests a framework of discipline but allows for the people to still take on responsibility and ultimately make their own choices. Collins provides an example of this when he compares this concept to an airline pilot. The pilot has strict rules and regulations to follow, but when it comes down to the crucial decisions, those decisions rest with the pilot.

The key for this to work is to make sure you have the right people on the bus, ones who will hold themselves accountable and have strong self-discipline. Collins uses the analogy of “rinsing your cottage cheese” to describe the type of people you want to be on the bus. This analogy comes from athlete Dave Scott, who would go as far as to actually rinse his cottage cheese to eliminate the extra fat. A company and its people need to be dedicated and disciplined enough to rinse their cottage cheese. That means getting rid of all the extras like Carl Reichardt did with Wells Fargo. He cut out all luxuries like corporate jets and the executive dining room and private elevator, he froze executive salaries for 2 years, and he even did away with green plants from executive suites because of the costs they incurred.

It is important to remember that a culture of discipline does not mean controlling every little task but more of an overall framework and dedication to discipline. Ray MacDonald of Burroughs ruled the company with an iron fist. His leadership style was authoritative and he had all the traits of a leader. He produced remarkable results while he was there but when he retired, the company struggled. This is because MacDonald was the company’s disciplinarian and when he left, they had no culture of discipline to endure beyond him. Ray MacDonald was only a level 4 leader and if he had wanted to be a level 5 leader he would have instilled discipline throughout the company to ensure success after his reign.

At my current position as an Operations Lead at the Conrad Prebys Aztec Student Union, there is evidence that we are developing a culture of discipline. We have a strict framework of our duties and responsibilities. We write reports, conduct usage counts of the building, set and clean rooms to meet standards, and perform required opening and closing duties. However, while on shift we get to make the decision about how we split up and achieve all those tasks. When an emergency occurs, we have the power to make the crucial decisions as long as it is within the framework that has been established. Recently, we have been hiring a lot of new employees and from the beginning we instill a culture of discipline.

Overall, the key to a successful company is to make sure you have the right people on the bus and remain focused and disciplined to the three circles of the Hedgehog Theory. You must have disciplined people, disciplined thought, and disciplined action.