we are under no obligation to do so. This forum allows the background and reasons for decisions to be discussed with the entire staff and for their questions to be addressed. IPM’s twice-quarterly newsletter ( The Pulse) is another communication tool to keep employees abreast of Company progress, financial status, and other important information during the months between quarterly Staff meetings. Each newsletter includes a message from Rich, which since 2018 has also been delivered as a podcast, an improvement based on staff feedback and implemented to increase the message’s consumption. While face-to-face communication is preferred, company-wide emails are sent to relay important news, such as promotions, new hires, and birth announcements. IPM’s open-door policy invites employees to provide input at any time. Figure 1.1-2 highlights some of the frequent communication channels. There is no hierarchy restriction—if an employee believes that the best recipient of an idea is someone other than the immediate supervisor, he or she can absolutely approach the appropriate person. Members of senior leadership routinely hear from employees who want to discuss ideas, decisions, work environment, and/or the direction of the Company. As excerpted from M&B , “The Company’s culture must, in a disciplined, yet motivating fashion, forever embrace continuous improvement and teamwork, and defy complacency in any form.”
as a post on LinkedIn), and through the Customer Service Person(s) of the Year (C-SPOTY) awards. Senior leadership solicits C-SPOTY nominations and determines the winners, with statuettes distributed as part of a ceremony at the November Staff meeting. Finally, senior leadership uses personal contact—conversations, emails, or handwritten notes—as a means of genuinely recognizing performance. The e-newsletter Managed Right is IPM’s vehicle for communicating with customers at the aggregate level. But to build engagement, IPM relies on the personal touch, with everyone in Operations (Ops) management, from the CEO down, maintaining and nurturing relationships with key customer contacts, through phone conversations, business lunches, and other in-person interactions. IPM also celebrates a Customer Appreciation Week, during which senior leadership sends emails thanking our clients for their continued business. PMCs and Directors are tasked with doing something special (typically lunch or supplying sweets) at the client sites to express our appreciation and further strengthen the relationships. The Project Performance Evaluation (PPE) provides another vital communication channel for our clients. Upon project completion, IPM’s Chief Operations Officer (COO) initiates the PPE to our clients to gather their feedback on how well IPM has delivered during the engagement. These performance results are shared by senior leadership during each quarterly Staff meeting, and instances of high performance and complimentary quotes from clients are formally recognized. 1.1c Mission and Organizational Performance 1.1c(1) Creating an Environment for Success To create an environment for success, senior leadership uses our M&B and FV to guide the BPP. While strategies change to address dynamic market conditions, our M&B and FV establish a foundation of consistency to drive ethical deliberation, consistency of conduct, and a “true north” when making all decisions. Additionally, all those accepting promotions to managerial positions are required to sign a “Management Employment Agreement.” The Agreement defines leadership conduct that must be consistently exhibited and promoted. While financial and other performance metrics are important, these do not take precedence over alignment with our FV and M&B . With rapidly changing market conditions presenting opportunities and threats, it is crucial that IPM is informed and prepared to evolve the business. The BPP is designed to obtain information about conditions and trends so that we can be organizationally agile and respond appropriately. Nearly every aspect of IPM is put under the proverbial microscope, and the insights yielded may influence or effect changes to our processes and/or model; therefore, each BPP cycle is a cultivation of organizational learning and serves as a cycle of improvement. Detailed components of IPM’s planning process are described in 2.1a(1) . The Strategic Objectives ( Objectives to conform to Baldrige vernacular, but referred to internally as Strategic Imperatives ) related to establishing a Discovery & Development (D&D) function and Brand Refinement 2.0 are
Figure 1.1-2 IPM Leadership Communication System Each year, the Company’s Business Planning Process (BPP) begins by sending the AP survey to employees to gather their input on aids and hindrances to outstanding performance, trends observed in the marketplace, and feedback on IPM’s culture, as well as other qualitative and quantitative questions. The results are compiled and reviewed by the Executive Team (ET). Each quarter, the ET also reviews the most germane inputs on the Observations and Trends (O&T) Hub site, which was created to collect various insights all year round, instead of relying primarily on the annual AP survey. To continually promote high performance and customer focus, senior leadership recognizes employee achievements in The Pulse , at quarterly Staff meetings, through social media (such
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