Overcoming 'Silos' and 'Waiting for Instructions': How Good Life Sala Kanto Transformed its Organization

Unipos, a company dedicated to unlocking the potential of people and organizations, has announced the results of an organizational culture transformation at Good Life Sala Kanto, which manages 8 sales offices across 5 prefectures. To tackle universal organizational issues such as 'communication silos' in multi-branch companies and a 'wait-for-instructions' culture common in organizations with strong core businesses, the company implemented the Unipos® peer bonus platform and a leadership development program. As a result, they have begun to see steady progress, including positive changes in managerial behavior and ripple effects on business performance.

Challenge: The Need to Transform into an 'Autonomous Organization' Alongside Business Expansion

Good Life Sala Kanto provides regional services centered on energy businesses across its 8 offices. Under the Sala Group's medium-term management plan, the company was in a major transition phase, aiming to strengthen its 'retail (renovation, etc.)' sector alongside its traditional energy business. However, several barriers hindered this transformation:

Lack of communication between branches: Due to the pandemic, it became difficult to see the activities of physically distant offices, causing employees to focus inward on their own branch and reducing interest in other locations. Conversation trapped in 'immediate tasks': Daily discussions were limited to resolving immediate issues, failing to reach the root of fundamental organizational problems. 'Wait-for-instructions spiral' and learned helplessness: A strong top-down culture from a history of corporate integration led to a lack of initiative, resulting in 'learned helplessness' where employees felt that 'doing anything is useless.'

Solution: Organizational Reform Driven by 'Visualizing Gratitude and Praise' and 'Leadership Training'

To achieve their ideal organization, the company implemented a two-pronged approach using tools and training programs.

1. Implementation of Unipos® peer bonus: They built an infrastructure where employees send daily gratitude and praise to each other, creating an environment where positive behavior is visible company-wide in real-time, transcending branch boundaries.

2. Leadership development program: Using Unipos's proprietary 'Organizational Insight Survey®,' they conducted development programs for managers and next-generation leaders. This approach consistently identified fundamental issues and enabled leaders to formulate and implement solutions themselves.

Results: Signs of Change Leading to Managerial Behavioral Shifts and Business Success

Continued efforts have led to concrete behavioral changes and business results, extending beyond mere communication activation:

1. Managers shifted to a style of 'spotting and broadcasting subordinates' positive actions': Using Unipos as a management tool, managers' behavior changed. Activities like finding good behavior in subordinates became a habit, and some managers even began self-scheduling weekly reviews, reflecting positive changes in management styles.

2. Impact on business results: Improvement in the internal sales ranking: The results of the initiative aimed at creating an autonomous organization are reflected in business performance. In the 'Renovation Competition' held between group sales companies, their ranking improved from 3rd/4th in previous years to 2nd recently. Organizational change is now steadily supporting business performance.

Comment from Eiichiro Kawada, President and Representative Director, Good Life Sala Kanto Co., Ltd.: 'Organizational culture reform cannot be judged within a short span of one year. Through our efforts so far, Unipos has deeply understood our company's internal situation, including our strengths and weaknesses. We trust them greatly because they provide practical and accurate advice, such as 'Given your current organizational state, you might be able to do this.' We are still halfway there, but we will continue to work on transformation toward our ideal organization.'