In the early days at Opex Analytics, we accidentally discovered a great way to build strong relationships.
Early on, when we had about 20 people, we wanted to spend time at a company meeting helping people become better public speakers. We came up with the idea of having everyone do a 5-minute presentation on any topic they wanted. We wanted the talks to be interesting, so we stressed that the topic should be important to the person and not about business.
I have no idea if those talks that day made anyone a better public speaker.
However, we realized we had stumbled into something extraordinary.
Those talks created orders of magnitude more positive energy than anything we’d ever experienced in company meetings (ours and throughout our careers). These presentations were better than covering strategy, sharing meals, or team-building exercises.
These talks allowed everyone to connect deeper, build new relationships, see someone in a new light, and build trust. We all had new ways to approach each other. I think it also allowed the speaker to share something about themselves and be listened to— we don’t always get these opportunities.
One of the strengths of Opex Analytics was the amount of collaboration and support everyone gave everyone else. Those 5-minute talks deserve a lot of credit.
We invested in them. We carved out valuable time at every company meeting for this. For example, at one meeting where we flew people in from around the country and the world, we devoted most of the time to this.
Any normal company would think we were crazy, but I wouldn’t do anything different.
I had wanted to write the above story for 18 months. What prompted me was something Karen Smilowitz said in an interview with Anand Subramanian on his “Subject to” podcast.
The “Subject to” podcast interviews accomplished professors in Operations Research. His interviews are about an hour and cover much more than professional accomplishments. They cover childhood experiences, hobbies, talents, etc. In other words, you get to know the person being interviewed.
Karen pointed out that these interviews are beneficial for the same reasons we found with the 5-minute presentations. She said that students and younger professors can more easily connect to these professors, see them as human, and relate to them.
For example, after Karen’s interview, we know that she likes Bruce Springsteen, is a Star Wars fan (and thinks Rogue One is the best), and enjoys musicals and literature.
While on topic, there is one more idea I would like to try. Steve Levitt, the author of Freakonomics and the host of the excellent People I (mostly) Admire podcast, mentioned an icebreaker for a small roundtable of accomplished people who don’t know each other.
Instead of standard introductions, he made a rule that everyone had to brag and talk about their most significant professional accomplishment. He was trying to get past everyone’s tendency to be humble. He wanted to see if he could build tighter connections faster.
I would encourage you to try these 5-minute presentations (or Steve Levitt’s idea). It is not easy. No one likes to share these stories— especially in a professional setting. And it isn’t natural to push people to do it. (I’d like to think that I haven’t tried Steve Levitt’s idea because he is famous and can pull it off, but the real reason is that I haven’t worked up the nerves to do it!)
If you want tips on these stories, Matthew Dicks’s book Storyworthy (here is a podcast interview that covers the ideas) is a good place to start. He wrote the book to tell stories at The Moth, but the ideas are the same.
Thanks, Mike. I will share this story and experience with other leaders who are looking to strengthen their organizational culture.
My personal favorite was "Red Sweater" by Pradeep.