Q & A
Each of you has been running your company for a long while . I assume your corporate cultures are constantly changing . Has your leadership style evolved to keep pace ?
oleg : I agree that corporate culture is constantly changing . Today the generations of Y and Z come to work and have extremely different priorities , motivated by different values than we have . Therefore , corporate culture changes along with the inflow of new generations . Employers need to maintain and have a fresh look , innovative thinking , an ability to absorb massive amount of information and use it accordingly .
Every company has its own style of management , and at Kommesk Omir we aspire to provide a democratic environment . However , certain frameworks are necessary to provide structure . We welcome initiative , a desire to become a project leader . At the same time we have a high tolerance for mistakes , committed to training entry level staff not to repeat errors versus dealing out consequences .
маrк : Our corporate culture is quite open and friendly . All doors , including mine , are always open . I sit among the staff , as well as all other partners . So , we are not that CEO sitting on the top floor , while staff sit below . Rather , we all sit in the same space , trying to implement an open , transparent working environment . This brings us back to listening to other people ’ s point of view , you have to change your style and listen . People in Kazakhstan are developing at a very fast pace and giving junior people a voice to be heard a little bit more than it used to be is important . And , they appreciate it .
Andrey : The attraction of my company lies in its corporate culture that has never drastically changed . Every organization surely changes with time . Every person changes too . I truly believe though that we choose the company whose aims coincide with ours . Eventually , the most effective cooperation is the one built on a ‘ winwin ’ principle .
Erlan : The core principles of EY corporate culture have always remained the same : integrity , commitment , leadership , highest work ethics , teaming . We develop our people and empower them , as only with support and encouragement will they be able to build meaningful and successful careers with EY .
The way we do business and interact is evolving constantly , as we should be efficient and provide our clients with new solutions , as well as digitalize our internal processes , embedding new technologies . ‘ Thinking and acting digitally ’ will inevitably form an integral part of our corporate culture .
Is it difficult managing younger workers these days ? Are Millennials actually different , and do they require you to adapt how you handle talent ?
“ People today want to move from opportunity to opportunity . Long-term brand building is a diminishing art .” – Martin Sorrell , CEO of WPP , # 2 ranking of the “ best-performing ” CEOs in the world
маrк : Millennials are different . Within the age group of CEOs , I am younger , and because I am actually closer to the age of millennials , I don ’ t have as big an age gap that many other CEOs have . I certainly feel a difference . They are motivated differently from my generation . I worked through the processes they are going through fifteen years ago , but my generation ’ s motivation is different from the motivation of millennials . My generation is motivated by progression , financial awards , business opportunities , but the new generation is less into this . While they are still interested , they are more motivated to find sustainability , participate in corporate social responsibility , establish a balance in work and life . Millennials see the job market as much more fluid . If we look to the older generation we see a ‘ job for life ’ mentality . People in my generation maintain a working position for three to five years , but now we see Millennials staying at a job for much shorter periods . I think it is much more difficult to maintain their interest and motivation now than it was in the past .
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