Philosophy
At John Zink Company, we have gone beyond the familiar notion of
corporate culture to build an operating philosophy and set of values
that heavily influence the way we do business. We call this system
Market Based Management™, or MBM™. MBM is a management
philosophy based on market-process economics, the philosophies of
science and knowledge, and many years of practical business experience.
MBM is much more than a set of management tools. It involves a
vision of our rapidly changing world, a set of core commitments,
and an aim to enhance the potential of each employee.
MBM stands against the traditional command-and-control approach
to corporate governance, with its command hierarchy and incentive
systems designed to ensure that orders are followed and the hierarchy
preserved. MBM promotes, by contrast, a spontaneous order of employee-entrepreneurs.
These individuals work within a framework of appropriate incentives
and decision rights, and create value for customers by applying
powerful knowledge systems.
We believe that Market-Based Management improves company performance
by helping people realize their potential. In essence, MBM helps
our employees act like owners.
Vision
Where and how we look determines what we see. What we see determines
what we think and how we act. Our vision either limits or enlarges
our potential.
Similarly, when individuals see their jobs as creating value rather
than following instruction, and as satisfying customers rather than
the boss, they begin to act and feel like entrepreneurs.
Core Commitments
Change is one of the few constants in our professional lives. We
try to minimize resistance to it and reduce the hardship it can
bring by emphasizing certain core commitments:
- Humility
Acknowledging our weaknesses and learning from others are essential
to social progress and economic growth.
- Integrity
A "discovery culture" based on honesty, openness, and constructive
challenge improves and expands our knowledge and vision.
- Tolerance
Unless we treat others with dignity and respect, actively cooperate
with and learn from those with different kinds of knowledge and
perspective, we cannot realize the possibilities of a discovery
culture, much less build a truly civil society.
- Responsibility
Only if we have the self-discipline to accept responsibility for
our mistakes will we learn from them.
- Desire to contribute
Employees must want to contribute, believe that they have the
potential to do so, and believe that they will be rewarded accordingly.
Incentives and Decision Rights
Incentive systems must be geared toward contributions to long-term
success as well as to short-term profits, and include contributions
to our culture and communities. As individuals make contributions
to long-term success, they acquire decision-rights - that is, a
greater level of responsibility and authority to allocate the firm's
resources. The concept simulates the market process whereby profitable
entrepreneurs accumulate property rights or the ability to direct
more scarce resources. Market-Based Management moves control of
resources to those who successfully satisfy customer needs.
Knowledge Systems
Companies must have profit signals, or discovery measures, so that
employees can see what does and does not create value. These measures
will expand employees' vision, change their thinking, and enable
them to make new discoveries. Again, the signals must include contributions
to the whole, not to just one part. Moreover, the most efficient
knowledge system in the world is useless unless shaped by the core
commitments of the decision makers.
John Zink Company, LLC
11920 East Apache
Tulsa, OK 74116
United States of America
+1-918-234-1800
email: info@johnzink.com
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