Get your hands dirty culture

I have always tried to hire people who were ready to just get the job done and who were capable of looking at the big picture without worrying about minor details. There are a lot of people out there who are very specific about their needs. I need to have this kind of computer, this kind of monitor, this kind of desk, pen, calculator, etc… I think at Argos we mostly have people who are ready to get their hands dirty and just get on with the job without worry about all the other stuff.

I think a good example of this is that once again (soon after our latest to the building) some departments have had to move, other departments have had to make changes to accommodate more people sitting with them and in general there is no complaining. People are just getting on with it without making a big deal out of it.

I can’t emphasize how valuable I think this attitude is. Of course I know its disruptive and not ideal, on the other hand I believe this is really part of what makes us strong. The fact that we can change quickly and adapt to different situations is a real strength. We saw an opportunity to take advantage of the extra space we had in the building and we went for it. This has happened many times over the history of Argos (deciding to buy land rather than rent space, hiring various key employees when we didn’t really need them but who turned out very valuable later, moving from selling only Polish to all East European basically from one day to the next). I know some of you may perceive this as complete disorganization. The truth is that to succeed in business you need to be flexible and you need to have the ability to change as fast as the business environment around you. Adaptability is what I am talking about and I think Argos employees have plenty of it.

I think there is always one thing you can be sure of at Argos. Nothing will stay the same for too long. We are an ambitious company that will constantly push to succeed and pushing means change and change isn’t always comfortable. What gives me great satisfaction is to look back and to see how far we’ve come. It has all been thanks to the constant push to get better and be more competitive and it has all required enormous adaptability of the people working in the company.

Hats off to you all!