How We Built Our Small Giants Vision: Call-Em-All
Vision. We all have one right? Or at least we think we do? Whether it’s a personal vision, a professional vision, or one vision that combines it all, most individuals have somewhere they want to go. However, that vision is most likely fuzzy, ever-changing, and scattered in each of our minds. Call-Em-All’s trip to Ann Arbor, Michigan to visit with Zingerman’s allowed our team to consciously realize what we’re striving for as we look ahead and learn how to put those thoughts into an “inspiring and strategically sound” vision.
The Zingerman’s organization is completely open book. We had the CEO of a $50 million dollar company at our fingertips and could ask any question about their company’s status and process. Zingerman’s is proud of what they’ve become and aren’t afraid to help others gain similar success. Ari Weinzweig, one of the two Zingerman’s founders, even stated that his passion for sharing his thoughts, ideas, processes, and success isn’t to further the brand, but rather to document his vision and culture to preserve a legacy.
Call-Em-All found that our employees have gotten into a state of being unconsciously competent in what we do and where we are going. Our time at Zingerman’s allowed us to understand that we are currently doing a good job following the 12 natural laws of business on a day to day basis but lacking a distinct vision as well as the ability to share our culture with others. Ari and Maggie, our trainers, were able to quickly modify the program and make our time in Ann Arbor applicable to the current, specific needs of our company: defining a 10-year vision. It turned out that many of us had similar ideas on where we saw the future of Call-Em-All going but we had never formally crafted a dream together.
Through much collaboration and creative brainstorming sessions, we determined the distinct points that we want to be part of our vision. Our task is now to specifically define those topics and make action steps to get there. These visioning exercises had obvious benefits for the company as a whole but it also helped guide individual employees to explore their personal visions as well.
It’s all too easy to become lackadaisical about people, processes, and tasks to the point where you are no longer able to effectively share information, help customers, and challenge employees. We are now consciously making efforts to evoke higher energy in the office and craft a vivid, descriptive, and precise vision that we can all work towards. We are fortunate to be a part of a small company that allowed our entire organization to attend Zingerman’s training and contribute toward the future of Call-Em-All. Our time at Zing Train further unified our company and inspired us all to passionately pursue both professional and personal improvement.
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