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The New York Times led the obituary of Ken Oshman with this paragraph.

"M. Kenneth Oshman, who helped create one of the early successful technology start-up firms in Silicon Valley, one that embodied the informal management style that came to set the Valley apart from corporate America, died on Saturday in Palo Alto, Calif. He was 71. "

That's true, as far as it goes, but it doesn't go nearly far enough. The firm referred to was ROLM, a company that started out making super-rugged computers for the military and branched into the switchboard business. That doesn't sound real high-tech today, but ROLM had some of the first digital phone systems.

Even that would be just an interesting historical fact today, but what set ROLM apart was that Oshman was a pioneer in ways of doing business. He kept units small and lean. Headquarters staff was a little more than a dozen. Once he used the money earmarked for a Christmas party to renovate the headquarters adding fitness facilities, swimming pools and other amenities He challenged his people to do more than they thought was possible.

The engineers at ROLM designed computers and digital telephone systems. Oshman designed a working environment that supported them and encouraged them to work hard and long. He was a mentor to many of the Valley's stars, including Scott McNealy, and shared his wisdom by serving on many of their boards.

Ken Oshman was one of the first to understand that culture is a powerful force in the workplace. He called the culture he wanted "GPW" for "Great Place to Work." In his mind it was a place where people worked long and hard but where they were passionate about their work. It was a place where rewards were based on merit and failure was a stopping point on the way to success.

He achieved some of that at ROLM before he sold the company to IBM in 1984. He achieved some of that at other companies he touched directly. More importantly, I think, his willingness to share and teach inspired others to create their own versions of a Great Place to Work and that is a legacy worth pondering and emulating.

Boss's Bottom Line

What are you doing to make your team a GPW?

Wally's Working Supervisor's Support Kit is a collection of information and tools to help working supervisors do a better job. It's based on what Wally's learned in over twenty years of supervisory skills training. Click here to check it out.