Values more important than CEOs

In the best of organisational worlds managers aren’t necessary. Good values rule instead. And good values are many times more important than strong managers. But an organisation without managers needs a strong foundation: well-functioning dynamic teams.

According to this philosophy, one plus one is always a minimum of three. And everything that’s created will be better if the creation process takes place in symbiosis. Together, with the exchange of ideas between people with different experience and with different backgrounds. In meetings that breach traditional work roles and areas of competence.

No company is a one-man-show. It’s about finding a common driving force for people who want to work together towards a mutual goal. While specialist competence is pressed for price over time, there is a lasting value in well-functioning group dynamics.

But in order for the manager-free society and employee-led organisations to work in reality, we need to proceed smoothly. It’s important not to hurry, but to water where it grows and see every day as a chance for growth. And to let employees roam – manager-free – naturally requires a framework, processes and methods. And of course, common goals, an open work climate and above all, co-workers who share the same vision.

Yellon has evolved from being almost overly cautious to being more innovation-driven and organisationally experimental. And today we have a CEO who, according to his own opinion, wants to eventually make himself redundant.

‘This is a way of working that is not always economically justifiable, so I’ve had to fight my way forwards over the years. It’s important that all people find their roles in order to have a working and profitable everyday life and now we are at a point where this has become our natural way of working. When people with different skills find their roles in a group, an invaluable driving force is created that no longer depends on strong management. But the most important thing is that we continue to be authentic, true to ourselves. We can only succeed if we are ‘real’ on a daily basis.’

Markus Leijonberg, CEO Yellon AB.