During our recent podcast interview with Mark Miller, VP of High Performance Leadership at Chick-fil-A, we asked him to describe the components of a high performance culture. He responded with a list of three qualities that must exist — Mark’s response is transcribed below.
Quality 1 – Alignment
Mark says, “You need to have the vast majority of people in alignment with the cultural aspirations—that’s one indicator of strength—not how bad the leaders want it, but how much do the people actually buy into the culture aspirations.”
Quality 2 – Performance
Mark told us, “You have to have performance over time now we all have ups and downs and there’s the business cycle and there are factors outside of our control, and we understand that completely, but a high-performance culture is a culture that enables performance—see some people are confused, they think culture is the goal culture is not the goal, culture is an enabler of performance.
Quality 3 – Continuous Improvement
Mark clarified by saying, “There has to be a continuing focus on improvement because without that, any performance that you’ve achieved and any strength of culture that you’ve been able to eke out—it’s in jeopardy because dynamic cultures, thriving cultures, high performance cultures are never static.”
It seems to us that Chick-fil-A is serious about culture. They’re dedicated to high performance leadership development. And if you’ve visited one of their restaurants it’s not hard to see the high performance, no matter where you engage.
Now you may think they are huge and have lots of resources. Do not fall into that trap. The Chick-fil-A culture started with one man, Truett Cathy, and his ability to pass it to someone else has made this organization the gold standard.
And, it starts with you!
Are you cultivating a high performance culture? Your ministry’s culture is directly related to your ministry’s success. Focus on these three components, and your team will thank you later.
Mark Miller enjoys encouraging and equipping leaders all over the world. He can be found online at https://www.markmillerleadership.com/
His latest book, Culture Rules, can be purchased at https://www.leadeveryday.com/
February 2023