Spotlight on…the importance of Vision!

Our transformation journey is about coming together, working towards a shared Purpose, celebrating and building on our legacy, by collectively reshaping the future of Al Ghurair. It’s a privileged position, and we all have a part to play in shaping and driving the transformation!

With change all round us, every day, it’s important that we don’t miss milestones along the way, and that we look outside our own teams and departments to see how others are championing and enabling our journey.

Our ‘Spotlight’ series aims to shine a light on transformation highlights, across the group. Each edition will feature a different team or colleague, showcasing progressive action, innovation and Purpose-led progress!

In the latest edition of our ‘Spotlight’ series, John Iossifidis , GCEO, Al Ghurair Investment, talks about the critical role of Vision when it comes to change, optimisation and transformation!

Imagination: a powerful, but often underused tool

Albert Einstein is famously quoted as saying: “Logic will get you from A to B, imagination will take you everywhere.”

On the face of it, one could argue that’s a strange view from somebody so committed to science, a logic-based subject – where theories, experiments and equations are either proved or disproved, in a calculable manner. Yet, let us not forget that Einstein is famed for challenging the laws of classical mechanics, believing they could no longer be reconciled with those of the?electromagnetic field, holding a genuine vision that there was a better, more accurate approach – which ultimately became his special theory of relativity.

Without curiosity, passion and innovation, this theory – along with so many other of his works – would never had happened. And the world today would have been vastly different as a result.

So, what can we – both as a business and as individuals participating in a pivotal transformation – draw as learnings from this?

Logic vs Imagination

Simply put, logic is a system that aims to draw reasonable conclusions based on given information; to make inferences based on the data at hand. Logic can be demonstrably tested. Right or wrong. Pass or fail. Met or not met. Often, logic is sequential in nature – if this is true then…hence the idea of getting you from A to B.

Logic is, of course, critical to any business – as part of our processes, our governance, our metrics, our financials. A profoundly logic-based business may not fail, wrapped up tight in the protection of structure and controls. But…will it thrive?

Imagination is the intangible element that breathes life into objects, brands and businesses. Imagination sparks curiosity, ignites dreams, instils passion – and ultimately dares us to think…what if? Without ‘what if’ moments, so many inventions, creations and historical moments would never have come to pass. Imagine life today without the wheel…the light bulb…the telephone… your i-phone!

Whilst logic is unquestionably important, it is often the illogical - the 3am musings, the ideas and dreams we’re afraid to say out loud - that brings the sparkle, the special, and makes the biggest impact.

Imagine it, then make it happen

There’s a famous line from the 1980s film “Field of Dreams” that has always resonated with me, and speaks to the power of imagination: “If you build it, he will come.” For those of you not familiar with the film, the context is that the main character has a compelling urge to build a baseball field on his corn field – despite taunts from those around him – such is his belief in a vision that he can’t ignore. He dreams about the field, envisages the future – the players, the guests, the release from a life of financial hardship. Sure enough, once built, his vision becomes reality.

Of course, guaranteed happy endings exist only in the movies – but I still think there’s an important lesson in this quote. We have to imagine it, to build it in our minds as we want it, to see ourselves in that situation or space, to embrace it…and then work back from that place to build it in reality, to make it happen.

With a future-back approach, our desired end-state, or destination, is clear, and so all priorities and efforts then align to make it happen, even if that means doing things differently and embracing innovation.

As an example, in our goal to be a customer-centric organisation: we must first imagine what the future looks like through the eyes of our customers, focusing on a set of specific customer journeys. The idea is to design “future back” - determining the ideal future experience and then resolving the ‘pain points’ and building ‘wow moments’ to overhaul an entire journey from start to finish, building the ultimate customer experience.

By the way, another apt quote from “Field of Dreams” is: “Go the distance,” which refers to continuing to do what is necessary until you achieve your vision!

Vision, powered by Purpose

In our latest 'Fit For Future' Leadership Forum event At Al Ghurair, I explained that: our Purpose is our North Star, defining the direction in which we’re going, whilst our Vision is our window into the future of our journey; our aspirational view of a place along the way. Our Purpose keeps us on track, our Vision keeps the fires of progress burning.

With an understanding of our future state, we must work back from there. How? By focusing on our customers. By innovating. By doing things differently. By being passionate. By understanding that each and every one of our people matter, and can make a difference.

After an exciting internal launch of our Vision recently, we will soon formally publish it to our external audiences as well, showcasing the future of Al Ghurair of the future. Watch this space!

In the meantime, I challenge you - our people customers and partners, to be brave, unleash your imagination and dare to dream!