The Insight brand uses the analogy of organic growth for the organizational notion of strategic growth because it so aptly captures the way in which each piece of an organization is a living entity that is unique, variable and interdependent. For example, the resources needed to grow an organization depends on the organization’s mission; which is supported by shorter term business strategies; which depends on the ability to meet the needs of target customers; which depends on the systems in place to deliver reliable products and services; which depends on the right mix of people you have in place to run the systems. For many reasons, these variables are always changing and moving. More so, most all of these aspects of an organization are driven by people who are also organic, unique, variable and interdependent.

With all of this movement and change that exists inside, outside and around an organization, is there anything that can remain constant and reliable? Well, just like human nature, the ultimate philosophy and direction of an organization begins with its DNA, which we find is encoded by a combination of elements that can be identified and isolated to predict and direct growth in a particular direction. Just as a human’s DNA encodes its physical and mental traits and length of life, an organization’s DNA encodes its traits and length of life. By accepting this analogy between human DNA and organizational DNA, we find that business owners are able to appreciate and understand the order behind the perceived chaos of their organizations. Likewise, they can begin to break down the components of their organization to see where and how they integrate to produce the outcomes that they are experiencing. Thus, this analogy also provides a foundational understanding for problem solving that is an important skill for every business owner to master. Continuing with the DNA analogy, we like to introduce the metaphor of an oak tree to represent the Organic Integration that occurs within an organization. The components of your organization must organically integrate with healthy and growing parts; much like the parts of a tree. The relative health and depth of the root system can be seen as the source of nourishment of passion, mission and values that feeds and inspires the growth of the organization. The trunk of the tree can be seen as the stabilizing, upward support represented by the quality, integrity, ethics and strategies enforced by the organization’s ownership and leadership. The branches and twigs tend to be closer to the production of the leaves. Therefore, the branches can be seen as the central nervous system or technology that spreads energy, nourishment, life and production throughout the organization. The leaves represent employees, who collaborate, shine and adjust with the wind to reach out and provide connection with customers. The nuts or seeds are examples of the tree’s “product.” Therefore representing the organization’s products and services that result in profitability, productivity, and the ability to reproduce and invest into more growth, capabilities, and expansions. Just as your customers are drawn to your organization, nature’s creatures are drawn to the oak tree as a source of oxygen, food, energy, shade and safety. Your customers depend on the unique, Organic Integration of your Passion, Strategy, Collaboration and Process to manifest your organization’s ability to solve specific problems unlike any other organization. Organic Integration is the unique way in which your organization’s passions, strategies, people and processes will predictably co-exist and continually connect in an ever-changing environment because of their inherent interdependency on one another to survive. The Organic Integration of these elements can be altered in either overt or covert ways depending on the degree of consciousness of the organization’s primary influencers during the time of alteration. Regardless of intent and frequency of alterations in an organization’s Organic Integration, we have yet to find two organizations that are identically the same; no different than you have yet to find two oak trees that are identically the same. Thus, by accepting that each organization is forever unique, even in the midst of change, the next defining factor for how an organization will exist becomes dependent on how conscious an owner chooses to be in understanding, trusting and acting upon the organization’s natural ability to be different. Also, to what degree will owners truly take ownership of these differences and allocate resources to cultivating them for growth? What stands true is that when owners and leaders start consciously focusing on the Organic Integration of their organizations’ DNA, they will finally: believe that they have no direct competitors; stop trying to clone their competitors; achieve profitability for the core services that their organizations are best at delivering; become known as experts in their fields of business; stop targeting all customers and start targeting the right customers; develop brands that become known as common solutions for solving big problems; hire people that are right fits for carefully designed jobs that follow known and standardized organizational practices; develop unique, time-saving and cost-saving technologies that streamline information and reporting around their specific business needs; create innovative products and services that achieve greater growth and recognition; have interesting stories, products and services to start selling to new customers and new markets; embrace the benefits that globalization has to offer in expanding their possibilities for exposure and efficiency. The bottom line for surviving in any industry today is to grow in innovative ways. Most markets are saturated, so you need something unique to offer in terms of products, services, systems and people. You are already unique. Figuring out how starts with dissecting the DNA of your organization and identifying those parts that make you different. Then, you must understand how those parts combine to uniquely work together to solve problems that are germane to your target customers’ needs. The result is an intimate understanding of the traits, characteristics, strengths and responsibilities of your organization. The result is also a mental picture of the depth of your roots (passion, mission and values), the height of your trunk (leadership, integrity, ethics and strategy), the strength of your branches (systems and technology), the number of your loyal leaves (employees) and the quality of your nuts and seeds (products and services). Owning and leading a business is like cultivating an oak tree; in that it requires the same caring approach but with even greater sensitivity and vigilance. You must watch the integral parts of the whole system and look for the signs of what is needed and not needed to grow. And, like any living system, the Organic Integration of one organization is different than that of other organizations.