Imagine you arrive at the office one Monday morning. You flip on your laptop, go get a cup of coffee, and come back to your desk – only to discover the blue screen of death. Your laptop is completely unresponsive and you can't do a thing because your operating system (OS) has crashed.

Without an OS, your laptop can't function. And without an operating system for your company, your organization can't function, either. Like your computer, your business needs an operating system to organize the way the organization functions. An OS ensures smooth communication between your leadership team and all your employees.

Earlier this month we released the latest book in our Traction Library: What the Heck is EOS?  We’re truly excited about this book because it answers many of the key questions that we’ve heard over the years from employees in companies implementing EOS. 

Questions like:

• What is an operating system?
• What is EOS and why is my company using it?
• What are the EOS foundational tools and how do they impact me?
• What’s in it for me?

After reading this book, employees will not only have a better understanding of EOS but they will be more engaged, taking an active role in helping achieve your company’s vision. We also recommend that you and your leadership team read these four blog posts to help you explain key concepts to your team as you implement EOS throughout your organization.

Many companies don’t communicate their vision to employees, and this leaves the entire organization wondering, “Where are we going?” If your employees don’t know where you're going, how can they help you get there?

In fact, many employees don’t even know what a company vision is. A company’s Vision, simply put, is a matter of defining:

• Who you are
• Where you are going
• How you will get there

I’ve worked with dozens of entrepreneurs who started their EOS journey wanting, among other things, more “buy-in” from their employees. While I understand how rare and precious it is to have team members who share and want to achieve your company’s vision, the term “buy-in” itself has always troubled me.

After all, if you have to “buy” someone’s allegiance, does she really share your vision? Can you really count on her to help you achieve that vision? How about when the going gets tough? And, how much are you having to pay, anyway?

Before a leadership team begins its EOS journey, we ask each member of the team to rate the company from 1-10 (with 10 being best) in answer to three questions. The second question is, “How aligned is your organization around the company’s vision and plan?”

The average answer to that question is 4, and it’s not at all unusual for the owner/Visionary to offer a score several points higher than anyone else on the team.