Sustain the culture
As a company grows, it can be a challenge to sustain the corporate
culture, especially one that fosters speed and innovation. But
Lukianov anticipated the problem, and installed a number of processes to assure that the culture endures beyond any growth pains.
“I work extensively with our management team to make certain the
culture is perpetuated, especially for all the new employees who are
joining what has become a much larger organization,” Lukianov says.
“So we’ve developed a cultural immersion program for new employees. For starters, every single person we hire goes through a training
program on our products, anatomy and surgical techniques, then they
must pass a knowledge test as a condition of employment. We want
every person in the organization to be a subject matter expert, understand how our products and techniques differ, and can interface with
a surgeon.”
In keeping with Lukianov’s high-performance philosophy, and as
an introduction to the company culture, employees must pass the
exam with a score of 90 percent or better, if they fail to do so, they
must retake the exam. The motivation for high achievers includes
$500 for a perfect score and $250 for those who score 95 percent.
“It’s a very difficult test, and people are petrified to go through it,
but it brings new people together and teaches them about the company and our values,” Lukianov says. “We also perpetuate the culture, continue the educational experience and have a little fun, by
playing a game we call spinal jeopardy at meetings and by giving
annual cheetah awards and spot awards like ‘cheetah in the wild,’
where we recognize an employee who goes above and beyond in
exemplifying the culture. When you constantly reinforce the culture, it doesn’t just become the flavor of the month, and there’s no
way the culture won’t endure through growth.”
HOW TO REACH: NuVasive Inc., www.nuvasive.com
