Book of Secrets
SteveIn my son's Christmas stocking Santa left a few interesting items - some card games, some Legos, some candy. But the most intriguing item was a small black book - a Book of Secrets.
The Book of Secrets reveals a collection of, well, secrets. The location of Winston Churchill's secret World War II bunker, how to concoct various secret potions, and how to survive a shark attack (actually that one really shouldn't be a 'secret', if you do have the knowledge on how to survive a shark attack I think you are pretty much obliged to share it).
It is a cool little book, perhaps a little outside the natural curiosity of the average 9 year old, the articles on how to flirt and how to attract women are (thankfully) not yet resonating with my son. But after I took a look through the book I couldn't help but think how all of our organizations and workplaces could probably create our own version of the Book of Secrets. A book that really explained the inside information, and delved into some of the inner, and unseen people, places, and practices that often make understanding and acclimation difficult for new employees.
When new employees join the organization, we typically give them a different kind of book, an employee handbook. A book, while important, mostly and typically only tells the new employee what they can't or shouldn't do, and serves more as a resource for HR and Legal departments rather than a vital and important reference for employees. When an employee screws up, the trusty handbook can be thrown at them, and all is good in 'keep our butts out of court land.'
An employee handbook may tell you the names of the company officers and where to find the organization chart, a company Book of Secrets would tell you who really is important, what departments get things done, and who the true experts are, whatever their title or their position on the 'official' chart.
The employee handbook lists, at times ad nauseum, a long string of company policies and procedures. A Book of Secrets however, would tell the new employee which policies are truly important, and which ones are customarily ignored.
The company intranet, and the 'About Us' sections of the corporate website state, usually in the driest manner possible, the organization's documented vision, mission, and purpose. The Book of Secrets would illuminate what values are actually important, as evidenced by what leaders are really saying behind closed doors, and the kinds of behaviors that are exhibited and rewarded (or punished).
The thing is, when employees have been around for a while, and moved past the initial, tentative, and occasionally confusing and contradictory reality they experience navigating the tension between what is 'official' and what is 'secret', they normally adjust, understand, and eventually start contributing themselves to the Book of Secrets. But, as always, no one documents any of this - this knowledge is, after all, secret. Let the next new hire start all over from the beginning.
"Welcome to the company Maryjane, so great to have you on board. Here is the employee handbook and an organization chart, let me know when you've figured out what you really need to know."
Reader Comments (3)
Happy New Year Steve. First up, I want a copy of that book. I used to swim for my county, then saw Jaws and ever since have refused to go near the sea (and I live in the UK where the only sharks are basking sharks more likely to suck on your leg than rip it off). Some knowledge must be shared, however much it might invade your nightmares. On your serious point though, I totally agree. More, I love this as an idea, even a strategy. So often we hear about the need and benefit of companies making themselves transparent and naked before the world, but not so to their own people. It might go against the grain for the 'wise' managers to learn that the people they have rewarded actually were not the ones the majority consider the real high flyers, for example, but if you can get over the ego - and CEO's should - this kind of internal black book could prove a gold mine rather than a mine field. I've always advocated, for example, seeking to change the typical flow of information. For example, asking recruits to tell you what the organisational culture is after 3 months without giving them any clues and then passing this to the top. Here, this is the lived experience. No preconceptions. No brainwash. How does it fit what we imagined? I digress, but a book of secrets could also be a journal for newbies that the board might just like to read as much as the other way around.
Thanks Stuart for the observations and for sharing those insights here. I will find a copy of the book to try and get to you (I don't want to nick my sons copy!).
I like Certsdone customer supports they help me to restore my PC while I am studying my certification exams, Databricks Databricks-Certified-Professional-Data-Engineer exact questions answer provides authentic IT Certification exams preparation material guaranteed to make you pass in the first attempt.