Initially skeptical about the importance of company culture, the speaker's perspective shifted after learning about the Halo Effect and Good to Great, realizing that culture influences performance rather than vice versa. Through mistakes, auditing, and personal experiences with winners and losers, the speaker gradually embraced the significance of culture in shaping business success and developed a playbook around it over 15 years. Contrary to the misconception of culture being touchy-feely or just about employee happiness, the speaker acknowledges its critical role in driving business outcomes.
Sanjay Ayer is a portfolio manager at WCM Investment Management, the Laguna-based $80 billion equity manager profiled on three popular past episodes with CEO Paul Black, President Mike Trigg, and emerging market portfolio manager Mike Tian. Sanjay joined WCM in 2007, and alongside Mike Trigg, leads the firm’s research process that follows the mantra: think different and get better.
Our conversation is a fascinating exploration of the differentiated mindset at WCM. We discuss topics, including self-discovery, cognitive dissonance, thinking differently, getting better, compounding knowledge, reflection time, and feedback loops – all in the context of Sanjay’s path and the application of the concepts to WCM’s research process, investment examples, and business.
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