W.L. Gore: Culture of Innovation Case Solution And Analysis, HBR Case Study Solution & Analysis of Harvard Case Studies

W.L. Gore: Culture of Innovation

Introduction

W. L. Gore and associates formally known as Gore was originated in 1958. The company is a privately held company and headquartered in Delaware. The best of the products are known as Gore-Tex fabric. Other than that, the company is manufacturing a vast range of products made by PTFE. PTFE is Polytetrafluoroethylene that is an artificial fiber used as the main raw material of the product. Teflon is a famous name given by DuPont to PTFE. The company has formally started its operations in 1958 and used PTFE for the insulation of electric cables. By the end of 1990, the company started manufacturing other products as well as the operations of the company is segmented into four major segments i.e. medical products, industrial products, electronics and fabrics.

In addition to that, the case study represents the cultural norms and values that have been adhered in the company for years. The culture of the company comprises on four basic pillars that are the people working in the company, property rights, the structure of the company and ethics followed in the company. The management of the company believes that organic and decentralized approach would be best for the growth of the company. The unique culture that has been followed in the company has been created by the founder Bill Gore.

Q 1: Is W.L. Gore a successful enterprise? If so, why has it been so successful? What are some of the building blocks of its success?

Successful enterprises are the ones with that are putting their maximum efforts to be on top. These companies are the ones who do not believe in copying their main way towards success is through bringing innovativeness and uniqueness in the culture. In addition to that, they give security to employees in terms of job benefits and perks. Other than that, it is vital to make proper hiring and recruiting to avoid hiring mistakes. W.L. Gore is successful because the company gives so much emphasis and importance to proper hiring. The company is successful because the core competitive advantage of the company builds from the three main components. The employees at Gore knows how to communicate and implement a company’s vision, goals and objectives for almost more than three decades. Other than that, the company has successfully implemented its core competency by using Polytetrafluoroethylene in diverse products. PTFE formally known as Teflon used in the products like cables for the space shuttle, medical products, clothing and cable in computers.

Along with that, the company is successful by securing the remunerations of being a first mover and this competitive advantage of the company has been protected through applying for patents for their secret formula. Because of this, the company has got benefits like they can charge higher or even premium prices for their products. In addition to that, the company has developed strong brand recognition and brand name. Other building blocks of the company are based on the unique culture of the company.

Figure 1: Building blocks towards success

The theme of the company is based on the system that has no such management and formal procedure that in turn gives empowerment and authority to employees to do work the way they want and show commitment towards the company. Despite no management in the company, the company is successful and profitable because of the strong leadership by the founder himself. According to Bill, the values and culture of the company should be based on the values set by the founder. He further exemplifies the fascinating, captivating and visionary leader to make the organization work according to the policies and beliefs set initially.

Bill and his wife started W. L. Gore and associates by envisioning organization that is not typical where employees have to follow the traditional approach. He created a company with no formal hierarchy where each and every individual was free to talk. There was no concept for bosses or supervisors. Employees were given authority to choose what they wanted to work on. The vision of the founder was to set up an organization where employees and management of the company are not bound to traditional working style. He believed that to be successful; it is not mandatory for managers or leaders to be commanding in nature.

Q 2: Bill Gore built the company on a set of principles and beliefs that guide Gore associates decision-making process. Thus, what are the origins of gore's culture?

The origin of the company’s culture is based on four basic cultural values that are structure, people, property rights and ethics of the company.

Structure:

The origin of the company’s culture is also derived from the structure of the organization. The company is using decentralized, flat and lattice structure. The company reinforces these values by making the team structure ...............

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This is a best practice case. WLGore is a very successful company, and it describes in detail the culture of the company. WLGore different from the main company in a number of ways, strategy, structure, ownership, leadership and operations. This event allows participants to immerse themselves in each of these elements and see how they are consistent and mutually reinforcing. The focus of the case of "innovation culture". Both "culture" and "innovation" are two elements are reviewed and discussed constantly in large organizations, but there is always confusion and disorder. This case was written with the sole aim to shed light and put some concrete around these slippery concepts. Please note that this case was completely written using publicly available materials. "Hide
by Jay Rao Source: Babson College 17 pages. Publication Date: April 1, 2012. Prod. #: BAB698-PDF-ENG