The Avengers-Endgame movie which released this Friday has been running to packed houses. Each and every person going to watch the movie is having a blast, including myself. Being a student from a B-School, I could not help but draw parallels between the characteristics of my dream company to the characteristics they possessed.
I'm going to keep it very simple so that even those who aren't fans could understand this article.
The characteristics I observed were as follows:-
1. Good teams are purpose driven - Here, the purpose of the Avengers was to protect the world. A good company can have any single purpose driving them- societal benefit, for instance.
2. They have a long-standing vision - Dreams and aspirations are not achieved in a day, or even a year. This may take even more than a decade at times, common to both this group of superheroes and groups of super-managers who work incessantly to achieve their common goals.
3. The veterans leads from the front - Case in point being Thor, Captain America and Iron Man- the veterans of the franchise whose catchphrase was literally- 'Whatever It Takes'. Only when leaders pave the way do the rest of the able members of the team feel motivated enough to work.
4. Brainstorming and Debating - Any good organization looks at the different scenarios that could pan out with regards to a situation. Doctor Strange did that to a magnified level- 14,000,605 scenarios to decide the future course of action!
5. Flexibility - A word commonly used in organizations is cross-functional. How else would you describe Hulk, an aggressive superhero earlier(maybe from sales?) who sobers down and becomes more introspective in the last movie (HR, Finance?). Scope for flexibility and rotation should always be present.
6. Inevitable conflicts - Conflicts are bound to be present. There is an entire movie made on a conflict- which is called Civil War. The key lies in handling them and coming together irrespective of the personal differences.
7. Diversity is Key - An organization may not be as diverse as The Avengers- consisting of superheroes from different countries, planets and even a tree and a raccoon, but should incorporate for different talents irrespective of caste, creed, sex or religion. It's about the power each individual contributing to that organization possesses.
8. There's always a lot of scope for humour - Even when the world is nearing its doom, The Avengers manage time for some healthy banter. A good organization too should always have a positive atmosphere irrespective of the quantum and urgency of targets that loom over it.
9. Mentorship and Succession Planning practices - A good company always has its eyes on who is going to take charge next. This may be alluded in the different phases of the Marvel movies, and who better to describe mentorship than Iron Man mentoring Spider-man?
These are just some of the traits that I would like to see in my dream organization. Movies have so much to ponder over if we think about them in relation to our personal lives.
The Avengers, in my opinion too are businessmen at heart- they understood the need of the situation (destroy Thanos), and attempted to ensure customer satisfaction (no spoilers here!).