The WorldBlu Conference + Awards is just two weeks away and I'm pumped about it. We have people coming in from around the world who are all committed to exploring how to bring more democracy and freedom into the workplace. This is our third event like this and I know the quality of the people, ideas and energy will be outstanding. Plus, we have a lot of cool surprises planned.Someone asked me recently if the concept of democratic management was just a "nice idea" and not a "must-have." I explained that many of the things organizations care about -- such as employee retention, attracting Gen X & Y talent, employee engagement, increasing innovation and productivity were all related to the operating system of the company. A command-and-control operating system would produce one set of results. A democratic management style would produce another (better!) set of results.
In the increasingly interconnected, participatory and collaborative age in which we live, you'd be hard-pressed to find someone advocating for a command-and-control management style as a way to address the challenges of running a business today.
People increasingly advocate for ideas such as more choice in the workplace (aka: ROWE), more autonomy (think Dan Pink's Drive) and even more happiness (a shout-out to WorldBlu awardee Zappos and Tony Hsieh's new book out today!). But all these authors and leaders know that it's not ONE thing that makes a company hum, it's all these ideas working in a freedom-centered operating system that makes it work. And that's not a luxuary, that's an imperative.
A less-than-ideal operating system on a computer can make computing difficult, even tedious and frustrating for the user. The same holds true for a company. The challenge is that most of us don't understand that the version of the operating system our company is running on is out of date. It's time for an upgrade.
So, I invite you to come learn more about how you can upgrade your operating system at the WorldBlu Conference + Awards in Vegas June 22-23rd. It's being hosted by Zappos Insights and ever since I first visited Zappos back in December 2008 and saw their democratic culture in action I became even more of a fan. Did I drink the Kool-Aid? Nah. I just know a good operating system when I see it.







Q: How can having a clear purpose and vision translate to the bottomline?
V. Srinivasan, CEO explains the impact of workplace democracy when he states, “With democracy in the workplace, you can generate a lot of ideas on revenue improvement, cost reduction and various other aspects of business. You can also make people take ownership of the vision and goals of the company, which is very important for its sustained growth.”
Q: What’s a good way to stay committed to my company’s values and promote positive change?
It is Namasté Solar’s goal to propagate the responsible use of solar energy, pioneer conscientious business practices, and create holistic wealth for our community.
CEO Blake Jones explains, “Namasté Solar implements conscientious and democratic business practices because we recognize the interconnectedness of all stakeholders and all individuals – and have experienced firsthand how this fundamental integrity can translate into financial viability, consumer loyalty, and community recognition and support. Since the company was founded in 2005, Namasté Solar has gained a reputation for its unique business practices, community outreach, customer satisfaction, support of solar-friendly legislation, and for being one of the “best places to work” in Colorado. It has also grown from a staff of three to 68 and in 2009 was ranked 56th on the Inc. 500 list of Fastest Growing Private Companies."



