Corporate shift to entrepreneurial values?

It was fun to read the article on the new rules for companies - as opposed to Jack Welch's old rules - in this week's Fortune. In particular, I got a big kick out of Rule #5: Hire Passionate People. This is intended to replace the old rule of hiring only the A crowd and firing the the C's (while the B's madly tried to move up the alphabet chain).

Of course, entrepreneurs are all about passion, and I've been discussing it in this blog frequently. In fact, one of the recent posts 'Deluded by passion?' is about the feasibility of being passionate about a corporate job, and proposes yes, it is possible to be passionate about your role and what you do, though the corporate goal may be less than electrifying. So it was interesting to read about the big companies trying to get 'passion' into their interview checklists, but in all fairness, some of them have always done so, not just because it is the current fad - Apple for one has a history of favoring passion in its hires.

The other rule that stood out was Rule #2: Find a Niche, Create Something New. Again, this is how entrepreneurs thrive - or stay in the game, as pointed out in One Size Doesn't Fit All. When you're just getting started, you're not consumed with being #1, you're fighting to stay alive and finding customers rooting through under-served niches.

Which bring us to Rule #3: The Customer is King. It was shocking to read the disconnect between executive and customer perception on service. On the other hand, it is almost impossible to find a startup that is not obsessive about its customers - they jump through so many hoops to attract and retain their customers they could be auditioning for Cirque de Soleil. A point of interest - the old rule was that 'shareholders rule'. There could be some of that in funded startups too where investors may drive the agenda and literally rule, but usually any investor who's had operational experience is unlikely to slip on the customer focus.

All in all, I must confess to a certain smugness on reading this article and seeing the startup values moving into the rulebooks of the corporate giants. It's a vindication (maybe these are not 'niche' values after all) and it also offers hope that the big guys will remember their roots and what being in business is all about.