Zappos is known for our amazing company culture and customer service but keeping these things strong isn’t always easy. As Zappos grew they realized that many traditional ways of operating were setting them back and slowing them down. This speech will highlight novel ways Zappos has been emphasizing employee empowerment, encouraging non-linear progression, and bolstering entrepreneurism. The speech will cover the history of Zappos from the creation of the core values to their decision to move away from traditional hierarchy and even a look out into the future of the company’s vision.

What you will learn:

- Methodologies for employee empowerment. Zappos has “no scripts” and always empowers employees to do what is right for the customer. The outputs of this led to a rabid customer base with high brand affinity. We will take a look at ways in which traditional structures by their nature reinforce top-down control. We will look at ways in which you can empower employees with autonomy both to make decisions in their roles and set a course for their progression within the company.

- Non-linear progression techniques. Zappos realizes that every person’s skills and desires are unique. They think of progression not as a “job ladder” but as a “job jungle-gym”, where employees chart their own course through a large and diverse set of options. This speech will dive into the upsides and challenges with such an approach.

- Adaptable Organizational Structures. Approaches that enable people to work on multiple teams throughout the organization while still ensuring organizational strategies and key business performance indicators are successful.