I recently watched an interview with Barack Obama in which he was talking about the “ship of state” and the impact of leaders as himself on its course. He described how the “captain” behind the wheel could steer with all his might and only turn such a big ship 1 degree. He shared that in a 4-year period, you may “screw up” and hit an iceberg, but if you set a better course, you may not even see it in a mile, and that sometimes you would only know when you look back in years and say “you know, we are actually at a better place now”.
It was a very good interview, here it is with the link to the exact segment if you want to watch it. Recently, I had 2 moments in which I got to experience that sensation he described in our company.
The first moment was in the morning, during Latin America’s strategy review session for the first half of the year. Jorge, the local sales leader created a space for people to connect, share their OKR progress, and discuss how to win the rest of the year. This was amazing because that space was tangible evidence of an integrator mindset. A space for dialog and collaboration born from mutual respect. This space is a game changer, and it is inspiring to see how passionate Jorge was to create and support it.
It was also fantastic to see Juanse, our first Growth PM leading the Growth conversation and connecting with the team on experiment results, and why his new focus on retention and product experimentation enables sustainable growth. The progress here is outstanding, I’m truly impressed to see the capabilities that Juanse and the product team are unlocking for our future.
The second moment was a presentation from Brad, one of our senior leaders, about his new role moving forward. It was really meaningful to me to see that while describing all the exciting parts of his new role, he mentioned experimentation and an experimental mindset many times. Not only as a concept but in the concrete examples of the programs and initiatives in which he’s implementing that approach. Love it! This “common language” and focus on growth concepts is tremendously meaningful for Growth leaders.
As I looked back and reflected on the past 2 years and where we are now in our company, with strong leaders such as Juanse, Jorge, and Brad guiding such impactful projects; with better infrastructure for data and experimentation; using a common language; and recognizing experimentation as a key strategic muscle to exercise, I feel confident to say to you, fellow Growth practitioners and leaders: Those “1-degree direction adjustments” will take time, but are worth it and will take you to a better place.
Photo by Andrew Neel: https://www.pexels.com/photo/galleon-ship-model-on-a-wooden-wall-7174515/
Pablo Borbón 