Tomáš Baťa has been a symbol of business success for more than 100 years. More than a symbol of successful business, it is a symbol of creating a socially responsible system
WHO WAS TOMÁŠ BAŤA?
The founder of famous shoes company „Baťa“ applied the way how to distribute the results and benefits of business between the workers, customers and the company. He was one of the biggest entrepreneurs of his time, introducing original methods of production and trade management as well as a system of employee motivation. His practices are still used as examples of top management.
The founder of famous shoes company „Baťa“ applied the way how to distribute the results and benefits of business between the workers, customers and the company. He was one of the biggest entrepreneurs of his time, introducing original methods of production and trade management as well as a system of employee motivation. His practices are still used as examples of top management.
To be transparent in behaviour, thinking and emotions.
The basis of successful leadership is the need to be transparent, not only in behaviour but also in thinking. If you have a transparent mind and your behaviour is in line with it, you don´t have to waste time and energy thinking about different scenarios, how and what to say. You say what you think. Baťa´s philosophy says that you can feel transparent mind from people. Technology can be more and more sophisticated, but if the person is dishonest and lie, you can feel it.
The manager or any other employee should create peace in his subordinates, be their liason officer in the company and lead them. Do not spread negative emotions, fear and incomprehensible demands.
„Transparency is one of the steps in gaining the respect of other people and it is essential for the person to become a good manager.“
Let people to cover you
The desire to be irreplaceable and the best is the main engine that motivates us to achieve better results. It´s all right, it´s a source of our inner motivation. However, the total brake on progress is the desire to remain irreplaceable.
The Baťa´s philosophy prepared its mnagers to be replaced. It says that it is absolutelly natural and not a sign of disrespect. The head of the Baťa´s company chose his successor himself. His task was to pass the best of his experience to him so that life in the company would continue.
„Make sure that every person in your work team is covered and every activity is duplicated.“
Don´t give anyone anything for free
Tomáš Baťa is often presented as a philantropist and one who gave his co-workers everything that was necessary for a full life.
Tomáš Baťa is often presented as a philantropist and one who gave his co-workers everything that was necessary for a full life.
„Anything that is free loses value.“
Trust your people
If you don´t trust your people, something is wrong. The moment you have people in your team you can´t rely on, who you don´t trust, don´t look for fault in them, but in yourself. Firstly it is necessary to find out where the mistake occured. There are two options. Either it is your quality, not to trust people in general or that you are surrounded by the wrong people.
„One of the principles of Baťa was that each leader chose his own work team, precisely in order to be responsible for what kind of person they choose.“
Don´t underestimate emotions
What creates a positive relationship between the company and co-worker or the company and customer are emotions. The positive experience associated with them are the main reason why people feel satisfied at work and why customers return to you. Don´t underestimate them! At the end of the day, they are the ones who decide the relationship that your subordinate will have with you, the job and the company.
„Being disrespectful to another person is your own loss.“
Don´t focuse only on work
It´s amazing when you love and fulfill your job, but it should never be your whole life. A happy person is the one who has a hug at home and not one who returns home at night tired and falls asleep alone. You have never been required to devote all your energy to business and work. Such an approach is the beginning of a burnout.
„Baťa´s philosophy says that work can never completely return to you what you put into it.“
Not to be a perfectionist
In general, within the Baťa´s philosophy, it was true that perfectionists are dangerous not only for themselves, but also for their surroundings. Their desire for perfection exhausts them and tires people around. While the perfectionist is happy with his result, he usually spends lot of time, effort and energy that could be used for another project. And how do people around perfectionists feel like? Over time they start to get tired and working with perfectionists stress them.
„Perfectionists who are focused only on the perfect result often do not even achieve it, and even if they do, mostly at a price that corresponds to the implementation of three other projects.“
Career growth was thus conditioned not only by professional education and practice , but also by human qualities. The ability to communicate with people, transparency , honesty, justice and at the same time wheter you will be able to withstand crisis situations were important. Tomáš Baťa says: „Whoever chases after money will never catch up with it. Do your job better than a neigbour. The money will flow after you.”
