Seven practices of successful organizations. Part 2: Invest in training, reduce status differences, don't keep...

The economic benefits to those firms that really put their people first can be enormous--particularly in industries that are as dependent on people as health care. Extensive research shows that seven specific practices are related to such enhanced organizational performance. In part 1 of this article (in the January/February 1999 issue of this journal), I described four of these practices: employment security, selective hiring, self-managed teams and high compensation. Here, I discuss the remaining three: training, reduction of status differences and sharing information. Knowing what should be done and what it can accomplish should spur you and your colleagues to explore ways of actually implementing this knowledge.