I recently read book titled “The Birth of the Choardic Age”. The author was Dee Hock and he was the CEO and Founder of Visa International. If you open your wallet, I’m sure that many of you will find a little plastic card with the word Visa on it. It is the most recognized credit card in the world, but ironically it came tobe through the humble and visionary work of Dee Hock.
He felt that institutions were becoming dysfunctional due to their lack or loss of purpose and making profit is not a purpose. He also felt that for an organization to remain healthy had to exhibit a blend of Chaos and Order what he termed Chaordic. That innovation and success is driven by chaos, which is the tension between collaboration and competition among employees who are empowered
by the order of purpose.
He felt that institutions were becoming dysfunctional due to their lack or loss of purpose and making profit is not a purpose. He also felt that for an organization to remain healthy had to exhibit a blend of Chaos and Order what he termed Chaordic. That innovation and success is driven by chaos, which is the tension between collaboration and competition among employees who are empowered
by the order of purpose.
Much like an electric cooperative, Visa was founded on basic principles the reflected their core values. For Bandera Electric Cooperative our 7 founding Principles include Voluntary and Open Membership, Democratic Member Control, Members’ Economic participation, Autonomy and Independence, Education, Training and Information, Cooperation among Cooperatives and finally Concern for Community.
In the book, Hock outlines the principles for the formation of the Visa organization which included: Participation should be open and voluntary, Being equitable and owned by all participants, All participants should have the same rights and obligations, no existing participant should be left in a lesser position by any change to the organization, the organization should induce and not compel behavior, it should be infinitely malleable yet extremely durable and power, function and resources should distributed to the maximum degree.
During his tenure as CEO from 1970-1984, Visa was a self-organizing, self- governing institution that charges no fees or interest on transactions, and he was able to persuade the 13 largest banks in the world to collaborate and work
together based on these principles.
together based on these principles.
But I think the most notable takeaway was the importance of organizational purpose. For Visa it was “To be the embodiment of a community based on shared goals calling to the higher aspirations of people.”
Today it seems that many distrust institutions and many feel disconnected and isolated from their community. It is up to organizations to reinstall trust by focusing on purpose. For BEC it is to strengthen our community by providing affordable and reliable services empowering our employees to bring innovative
solutions that benefit all.
solutions that benefit all.