BY MIKE ZAPPONE
Editor’s note: This is the concluding article in a three-part series designed to introduce EOS concepts in your business. The previous entries can be revisited in our February and March 2025 issues.
What if I told you that defining a healthy business isn’t just about profitability? Many leaders focus on the bottom line—but what about the people who are driving that success?
At Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS), we aim to help entrepreneurs achieve what we call “living the EOS Life,” or as EOS Founder Gino Wickman puts it, “doing what you love, with people you love, compensated appropriately, with time for other passions.”
In this 24/7/365 industry, it is hard to imagine having time for other passions. After operating my company for 33 years, I know firsthand how difficult a concept this may be. Generally, we are glued to our phone or computer and rarely even present in the moment when attempting to do something outside of work. But the fact remains that there is nothing to stop us from working hard while enjoying life outside of our business. In fact, the more balanced we are, the more effective we are at maintaining this stability.
This sounds great, but how realistic is it for this industry?
Wondering how your company measures up? Take this organizational checkup to gauge your company’s strength: Organizational Checkup [Click Here]The transition from an entrepreneur to an organization requires leaders to replicate their ability in others. Frankly, this is a difficult task. How many of us have said “it is just easier if I do it myself”? Letting go of those tasks and allowing someone else to step in takes courage and clearly defined metrics for success. When we say no one can do it as well as I can, we are holding on tightly to being entrepreneurs. For us to transition, we need to create a pathway for others.
Before we move on, let’s recap this three-part series:
Vision: Where are we going and how are we going to get there? Have we defined and communicated a clear vision for our company? Decide what you want from your company and break down the action steps into attainable pieces.
Traction: How do we bring that vision to life through daily execution, discipline, and accountability? Define roles and responsibilities and narrow them down to three to five items. If everything is important, nothing is important.
Healthy: Have we built a team culture that supports openness, honesty, and direct communication?
The Right Person in the Right Seat
A common and difficult situation arises when we have the right person for the job but the wrong person for our culture. This individual may be excellent at their job but clashes with your company’s culture.
This happens when we hire without considering culture during the interview process. If we have done our due diligence properly, the candidates we are interviewing are all qualified. We simply need to find candidates who will fit our culture like a glove, which I know is easier said than done in a difficult hiring climate. Never pick a candidate with an amazing resume without consideration of their core values fit.
Steps to Ensure Cultural Fit
We need to define what a great person means to our organization. Once we have clarified this, we can ensure they are not only qualified but also a fit for our culture.
The first step is deciding who we are at our core and what type of culture we want in our company. At EOS, we do this by defining our core values and then using those values to ensure we have the right people.
Defining your core values is not something you should rush through or take lightly. Clients often say we can skip this exercise because they believe that they already have clear values. In this case, my response is, “Great, let’s put them to the test to make sure they are accurate.” To date, I have not had a single company stick with what they originally defined as their guiding principles. This is important stuff; it is very personal and individual. We cannot borrow from another company or use Google search results. They must accurately define who and what the company is at the foundation to be useful.
When we identify a company’s true core values, it creates an amazing level of clarity; they become an integral part of their everyday conversations and actions.
At the end of the day, a truly healthy company is not just profitable—it is a place where people thrive. By fostering a strong culture, building a cohesive team, and staying true to our core values, we set ourselves up for sustainable success. [CD0425]
Mike Zappone is a former operator, industry consultant, and a professional EOS implementer. He can be reached at mike.zappone@eosworldwide.com.