Are you working in a half-brained business?

When it comes to building a strong employer reputation, many companies accidentally build “half-brained” organisations. If we look at what drives a company’s reputation, it mirrors the two hemispheres of the human brain albeit in a cross-wired paradox from our model (aka they’re the other way round!)

Take these quotes from recent focus groups we ran with two different clients by way of example:

• Quote 1: “We’ve a start-up culture where people who are good with ambiguity thrive”. What does that mean? We’re agile, flexible, innovative and we break things and fail fast without repercussion. Or is it that our process, systems, policies and tools aren’t quite up to scratch.
• Quote 2: “We’re encouraged to try new ideas but if you can’t back it up with data and a clear logical rationale, it won’t get past the first review”. A simple interpretation: process, data and facts are valued more highly than creativity or innovation.

So, let’s explore the business brain…

The “Right Brain” (The Soul of the Company)

What it is: Your Purpose, Connection, and Emotional Environment. It answers why we are here and who we are to each other.

Potential Pitfall: Startups often over-index here. You get incredible passion and tight-knit bonds, but terrible systems. The result? A reputation for being fun, but frustratingly disorganised.

The “Left Brain” (The Systems of the Company)

What it is: Your Enablement, Expertise, and Physical Environment. It answers what we do and how we get it done efficiently.

Potential Pitfall: Legacy companies often over-index here. They offer state-of-the-art tools and rigorous training but neglect the emotional side. The result? High performance, but high burnout and a reputation for being overly task focused.

The bridge between the right and left already exists in the human brain and is known as the corpus callosum (We’re creatives and storytellers, not neuroscientists, so we had to look that up). It connects the two hemispheres so they can communicate. To function at its optimum, your organisation needs a similar bridge.

You cannot separate the two sides if you want them to be effective. You can have the most inspiring mission in the world, but if your employees don’t have the software or policies to actually execute it, that purpose quickly turns into cynicism or disengagement. Likewise, people feel much more secure (a “right brain” emotion) when they are properly trained and surrounded by capable leaders and experts (a “left brain” operational asset).

Have you ever assessed your organisation to identify if you are left or right brain dominant? Ceriph’s proprietary diagnostic tool, ERin is a quick and effective way of identifying the strengths and weaknesses of your reputation as an employer. Get in touch to find out more.