Business change catalyst Michele Hunt harnesses the power of two simple words—"vision" and "values"—to help leaders transform their organizations and unleash the talents of their people.    Hunt started her career in the Michigan Department of Corrections as a probation officer and later the state's first female deputy warden over rehabilitation programs in a male prison. She then spent 13 years as Senior Vice President for People at Herman Miller, Inc., a company known for its leadership practices. In 1993, President Bill Clinton appointed her Executive Director of the Federal Quality Institute, where she advised government agencies on Total Quality Management. The thread throughout Hunt's career has been a desire to "change systems and structures that put people in boxes and limit their potential."    Author of Dream Makers: Putting Vision and Values to Work (Davies-Black Publishing, 1998), Hunt serves on Hewitt's Board of Directors. Hewitt spoke with her recently about her life and work.

As background, would you give some insight into the type of work you do?
I'm a leadership and organizational change catalyst. I'm brought in by CEOs or presidents when they want to grow the company exponentially or make a radical shift in the company's culture. I start with the leader and have him or her develop a clear picture of the organization he or she wants to create. Then, we engage the leadership team, and they embellish that picture. They come to a shared agreement on every aspect of their picture of success—that is the key. After they put a stake in the ground, the next step is to look at what needs to be changed. I use a simple gap analysis. Then, we put very specific metrics behind each dimension.

The critical part of the process, to make sure they don't lose themselves in this journey of change, is to identify the core beliefs that are nonnegotiable as they go on this journey—the core values that they want to keep, build, and celebrate. Then, they engage every team in the organization in identifying what needs to change.

Why do some companies fail at establishing vision and core values?
When companies hit a chasm, they usually try to use a linear strategic planning process or a mandate from the top. You're just not going to get the type of performance you want unless you're engaging the minds, hearts, and imaginations of all the people. That's the underlying foundation here. I come with a certain bias: that people are extraordinary, and capable of extraordinary accomplishments when they are mobilized around a shared, compelling vision that's rooted in and born out of their shared values, and everything is changed and aligned to serve that vision and those values—their systems, processes, decision making, and most of all, their actions.

What makes a vision compelling?
Generally, people want to be part of a winning team and they want to do good work. So a compelling vision is something that people want to get up and run toward. It has to be uplifting. They have to see themselves in it. You're not going to have a powerful vision that says "return on shareholder value." That's just too far removed.

Would you give an example of a strong vision?
The compelling part is not what ends up on the banner. It's the process of engaging the organization that makes the vision compelling. At high-end office furniture maker Herman Miller, the vision was "to be a reference point for quality and excellence, in anyone's eyes." If an eight-year-old child sees a Herman Miller truck, he or she thinks of quality and excellence. We wanted everyone to feel that this is a quality organization. So when you set that standard, and then do a gap analysis, you can imagine the actions that emanated from viewing the company through the eyes of a child. It changed the culture tremendously.

Let me tell you what the results were. We were a dying company. There were 360 companies that could produce our product better, faster, cheaper, and with better quality and service. And then by 1988, after this visioning process, we became the most admired company by FORTUNE magazine and held that position for over five years. We were in the top five companies to work for. We were the best company for women, and the best company for working mothers. We had two stock splits in four years. Customer satisfaction scores went up an average of 15%. It was just amazing.

What drives your clients to make transformational change?
It is always, unequivocally, the insight of the leader. It takes a special leader to lead from beginning to end—you can't be in the middle of this and decide you're going to lead through fear. Every decision has to be bounced against your vision and values.

Would you share the characteristics of the visionary leaders you call "dream makers"?
They have a desire to do more than make money. They have a dream of what they can create. They have a passion to create something that matters, and something that will last. They're risk takers. They're extraordinarily curious. Innovation is a way of life for them. It's built into their character.

What can companies do to develop these kinds of leaders? Or are they just born that way?
That's the age-old question. I do think companies can develop them, but not without one at the top. High-potential processes and succession planning are an important part of a company's transformation. You need to institutionalize visionary leadership, and grow, attract, and retain the right kinds of people. For example, at Herman Miller, we had a woman who was a very high performer. She just had a passion for what she did. She was a vice president. She was brilliant, and she knew how to lead people. She had lost a baby and then got pregnant again. She came to us and said, "When I have this baby, I can only work part-time." We were in a real dilemma, wondering, "How can we hang on to this talented person?" And I think she was prepared for us to say no. We had plans to launch Herman Miller for the Home. So we promoted her to President of Herman Miller for the Home. She went part-time, even had her meetings with her team in her home with her baby, and they launched that company and beat goals for schedule, cost, and quality. Because we saw the value in keeping such a dedicated leader, the unconventional situation became a model for success. It was a win-win solution.

Are vision and values effective consistently around the globe?
Honestly, yes. There are some transcending qualities of all people. They like to belong to something that matters. They like to be recognized. Everyone wants to create. This is real simple stuff. But it's hard to do, because it goes against everything we've been taught. We've been taught that people are lazy and can't be trusted and have limits on their growth. We've been taught that there's only one answer, and the teacher or the boss has it. But if you ask individuals about what motivates and inspires them, they'll tell you, "I want to contribute my gifts." It doesn't matter if they're in prison for murder. It doesn't matter if they're sitting in Switzerland, or Australia, or Africa.

How does visioning help companies and individuals reach their full potential?
I was raised with visioning, and that got my family through hard places. When we were stationed in Kentucky, we were one of the few African-American families to have housing. It was rough, because kids and teachers would call us "nigger." It was constant harassment. So every morning, my dad would take us into the bathroom, individually. He'd stand behind us, and we'd have to look in the mirror and say, "I'm healthy, I'm happy, I'm intelligent, I'm beautiful, I'm loving, I'm loved, and I'm wise." Seven times. This was in the late 1950s, before all of this was in vogue. As a result, when people called us all these names, we had a different vision for ourselves. This was powerful.

For companies, the power of shared vision and values helps create an environment that enables people to contribute their talents toward achieving the organization's goals. My fundamental beliefs are that the answers lie within an organization. We simply need to find ways to tap into the genius of people.

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