After spending six years at REA, and over twenty-five years across multi-nationals and startups, Chief Inventor Nigel Dalton shares his view on management’s role in creating a culture of resilience. At REA, implementing change or seeking innovation or invention is not viewed as a one-time ‘transformation project’. In this environment, individuals and teams can unleash their energy and creativity to solve problems for customers. The cycle of continuous improvement delivers new insights back to management, sometimes prompting the fundamentals (such as strategy or structure) to be revisited. Nigel shares the lessons learned in developing the model that has allowed REA to adapt and thrive in today’s digital marketplace.

1. A g i l e i s t h e l a s t
t h i n g y o u n e e d
Nigel Dalton, Chief Inventor, REA Group

5. https://www.propertyhunter.com.my/news/2017/01/3245/international/200-people-queue-up-the-streets-for-1-property-viewing

8. 8

10. 10
1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020
The era of property search The era of property match
The property business landscape to the 2020s – from search to match
Predictable regular business
cycles run by bureaucracies.
The rise of the web leads to global
markets, unpredictable, short cycles
of business and new organisations
– inc startups
We typed our
property
searches into a
keyboard
We searched by
touching the
screen on a
mobile device.
We ask our devices for
information – some is
pushed to us by
algorithms.
Property related data is pushed to
us on wearable devices based on
known needs
Volatility
Uncertainty
Complexity
Ambiguity
VUCA LIFE
DATA becomes
the new oil
Organisations begin to change shape – global
giants get focused on profitable, local
markets. Agility becomes a key capability.

12. All that we learn from
history, is that we don’t
learn from history
(Sir John Bagot Glubb, 1970)
© estate of Peter Keen / National Portrait
Gallery, London

13. 13
Loop
of despair 1. Management
Organisational health
Strategy, purpose, values.
Organisation structure.
Productivity.
Building diversity of thinking
Building scale and managing growth
4. Lean & Agile Operations
Good factory operations (4S)
Hardwire the customer’s voice.
Be responsive to change.
Value, flow and waste focus.
Kaizen
Test & Learn.
2. Resilience
Individual, team and organisation
Bouncebackability & Recovery.
Grit and Longevity
People + System of Work + Place.
3. Invention
Causes growth, and the need to re-evaluate
the management model…
Rolls up into broader organisational capability.
Makes it a safe environment
for experimentation.
Ensure your ideas find a place
to be owned and executed.

14. Kaizen and the other thing
The passing of time
%Growth

15. 15
Netflix did not kill Blockbuster, ridiculous late fees and lack of choice did.
Uber is not killing taxis, decades of dispatcher lies, cabcharge rorts and
ancient fleets are.
Spotify and Apple didn’t kill the music industry, being forced to buy whole
albums did.
Amazon isn’t killing retailers, poor customer service and choice is.
Technology by itself is not the disrupter. Not being customer-centric is the
biggest threat to any business.
(After Alberto Brea, Ogilivy Worldwide)

16. 16
Loop
of despair 1. Management
Organisational health
Strategy, purpose, values.
Organisation structure.
Productivity.
Building diversity of thinking
Building scale and managing growth
4. Lean & Agile Operations
Good factory operations (4S)
Hardwire the customer’s voice.
Be responsive to change.
Value, flow and waste focus.
Kaizen
Test & Learn.
2. Resilience
Individual, team and organisation
Bouncebackability & Recovery.
Grit and Longevity
People + System of Work + Place.
3. Invention
Causes growth, and the need to re-evaluate
the management model…
Rolls up into broader organisational capability.
Makes it a safe environment
for experimentation.
Ensure your ideas find a place
to be owned and executed.

17. 17
System of
Work
Lean & Agile methods
Squads
Planning
Visualisation
People
Purpose
Culture
Engagement
Organisation
Values
WorkplaceTeam neighbourhoods

18. 18
Loop
of despair 1. Management
Organisational health
Strategy, purpose, values.
Organisation structure.
Productivity.
Building diversity of thinking
Building scale and managing growth
4. Lean & Agile Operations
Good factory operations (4S)
Hardwire the customer’s voice.
Be responsive to change.
Value, flow and waste focus.
Kaizen
Test & Learn.
2. Resilience
Individual, team and organisation
Bouncebackability & Recovery.
Grit and Longevity
People + System of Work + Place.
3. Invention
Causes growth, and the need to re-evaluate
the management model…
Rolls up into broader organisational capability.
Makes it a safe environment
for experimentation.
Ensure your ideas find a place
to be owned and executed.

19. Visualised work
Prioritised work
Owned
work
Daily conversation
Reflect on the system of work

20. 20
Loop
of despair 1. Management
Organisational health
Strategy, purpose, values.
Organisation structure.
Productivity.
Building diversity of thinking
Building scale and managing growth
4. Lean & Agile Operations
Good factory operations (4S)
Hardwire the customer’s voice.
Be responsive to change.
Value, flow and waste focus.
Kaizen
Test & Learn.
2. Resilience
Individual, team and organisation
Bouncebackability & Recovery.
Grit and Longevity
People + System of Work + Place.
3. Invention
Causes growth, and the need to re-evaluate
the management model…
Rolls up into broader organisational capability.
Makes it a safe environment
for experimentation.
Ensure your ideas find a place
to be owned and executed.

21. DALTON’S
ASPIRATIONAL
AXIOM
“Because I
heard the
managers were
awesome”

22. “ T h e o n l y t h i n g
m o r e d i f f i c u l t t h a n
s t a r t i n g s o m e t h i n g
n e w i n a n
o r g a n i s a t i o n , i s
s t o p p i n g
s o m e t h i n g o l d ”
Russell Ackoff, Systems Thinker