Murimi Holdings
You - learn from the Dandelion
Dandelion
(Taraxacum officinale) is a perennial weed that belongs to the Asteraceae or
sunflower family. This weed has European origins and grows well in all types of
soil, doing best in full sun. Alternate names include fairy clock, Irish daisy,
monk's head, puffball and swine's snout. Dandelions continually bloom and
reseed themselves, making this weed difficult to remove from lawns. They can be
difficult to eradicate in part because they have more than one method of
reproducing themselves. This gives them multiple ways to spread.
Germination
As
soon as temperatures warm in the spring to at least 50 degrees Fahrenheit,
dandelions buds start to appear in lawns. The taproot of a dandelion is usually
about 6 to 18 inches underground, and the buds sprout from the upper part of
the root. Serrated leaves sprout from the ground; they can be up to 14 inches
long and 3 inches wide in a circular pattern extending from the root. Seeds
germinate throughout the growing season and the plant remains in the seedling
stage for approximately eight to 15 weeks.
Flowering
Dandelion
flowers are bright yellow and sit on top of a 6- to 24-inch stalk. The
elongated petals radiate outward from the center button. Flowers appear soon
after the seedling stage when leaves develop. The blossoms and seed heads
persist throughout the life of the plant and dandelion plants can live for
several years.
Seeds Dispersal
Most people are familiar with the common method of
dandelion reproduction. They form seeds that are attached to puffy white bits
of fluff. These seeds and fluff give the flowers a white puffy appearance. When
the seeds detach from the flower head, the wind catches the fluff and carries it away, sometimes over great distances. The seed is then able
to begin life in a new location.
The
dried flower heads that have gone to seed look like puffballs made of small
1/8-inch seeds. The ends of each seed have a parachute-type structure on the
tip, allowing the wind to blow them around for many miles for seed dispersal.
The seeds land and begin a new germination cycle in warm, moist soil.
Seed Production
This seed production is at its peak from early
April to early June. It peaks again in the late fall. However, the seed production can happen almost all
throughout the year. Each dandelion, when it goes to seed, produces between 125 and 300 seeds.
Different Methods of Pollination
Formation of a fertile seed requires both male and
female reproductive organs, even in flowers. Insects carry pollen from the male
reproductive organs to the female reproductive organs in order to accomplish
the formation of a fertile seed. Dandelions have two different ways they can go
about this. The insects may carry the
pollen from one flower to another. However, dandelions have both male and female organs on the same
flower. The flowers can pollinate
themselves. Thus it only takes one
dandelion to reproduce itself and spread over a lawn.
Reproduction from Buds
Dandelions are even capable of reproducing themselves when there isn't enough sunlight to cause
the flower buds to open. In this case the male parts pollinate the female parts
they are pressed up against. The resultant fertile seeds push their way out of
the top of the bud.
Reproduction from the Taproot
The dandelion also has another means of
reproduction. They can regrow the whole
plant from the taproot. this is why mowing them does no good at controlling
them. Cutting off the stem above the ground leaves the taproot intact below the
ground. Indeed, the dandelion does not even need a whole taproot to accomplish
this trick. All it takes is a mere 2 millimeters of the root to germinate a
whole new flower.
The “So What”…
“Carried by the wind over
long distance”:
Sometimes we ought to allow the unfolding of the
journey to drive our business direction, without compromising the vision. There
are certain successful initiatives that may not require common sense or the
traditional ‘rules of the game’ but rather unconventional but creative methods.
We commit not trade business acumen for Creativity. We believe in an
environment that breeds creativity and rewards innovation; because we realize
that our competitive advantage is the ‘business unusual’ mantra. We also
realize that the wind speed can only accelerate our growth into different
markets and as such we will ‘enjoy the ride’. In essence – like the dandelion,
we will allow the wind to carry us over long distance.
“Begin new
life”
We realize that not all venture will be successful
but will be resilient enough to always ‘begin new life’, irrespective of where
we land., Using the chinnesse man philoshophy of always taking
over and thriving in any country where he lands.
“insects may
carry the pollen”
We may now and again form strategic partnerships
with other companies/ individuals who may be our insects in carrying out our
vision. These partners have to qualify or pass the ‘strategic’ test which
covers the below: -
v
Already practice (within their own company) or display (during our
meetings) an acceptable level of our culture and values
v
Be active in our strategic geographies, sectors and/ or
v
Be respected in the industry
“one dandelion to reproduce
itself”
We will always look within to further pursue our
vision and goals. We have an ambidextrous nature of resources.
We realize that any one of us are more than just
one thing and have more than one interest. Any member of the team will be
multi-functional in every aspect: -
v Job: More
than one Core Job Responsibility
v Role: Finance
AND Business Strategy
v Performance Contract:
Core Job AND Strategy driven goals
v Professional
and Creative project
v Work Hard but
also Play Hard
v Profits AND
Community Involvement
“…reproducing themselves
when there isn't enough sunlight”
Thrive without any resources. Instead of sitting dormant
or waiting for someone else to do something – We commit to always be problem
solving driven. Identify a problem or hindrance of any kind, roll up your
sleeves and think creatively around how we can solve it. How we can do it
better. Practices like Brainstorming, SWOT analysis, KT, Fishbone, Six Sigma
and other Problem Solving or Improvement methods will be adopted throughout the
company. It’s about constantly finding ways to reproduce and achieving maximum
results with little resources – Creative thinking has to be rewarded.
“seed production can happen
almost all throughout the year”
The business is not seasonal but happens throughout
the year. Even though some seasons may have the biggest harvest but we will
generate profit during any period within the financial year. Milestones targets
are therefore essential to overarch the yearly target. On demand reviews and
Corrective Actions are every Heads (MD, CEO) responsibility.
“each produces between 125
and 300 seeds”
Each individual will constantly stretch to surpass
previous targets. The ratio will keep going as we better understand and build
capabilities. We will only invest where there is/ can be sustainable return on
investment (ROI):-
v People
o Train
critical skills which will support the vision
o Coach and
performance manage (+) to develop key resources
o Multi
skilling that can be measured and tracked towards the vision
v Process
o Document key
processes: Financial, Operational & Legislative (HR, Industry Acts)
o Drive
education and adoption of processes
v Tools/
Technology/ Infrastructure
o Relevant
business tools
o Reduce
technology to requirement
o Do more with
less.
“regrow the whole plant
from the taproot”
Maintain our guiding principles and culture in
every sector/ geography we operate in
Sustain the business of foundational profit makers.
Never sacrifice the profit makers for new ventures
No polarity thinking. An assertive, win-win
approach. A This AND That culture of leadership
An organization wide Leadership culture for
everyone – not restricted to managers or heads but every individual leads
something or someone. A culture where we are all accountable to one another.
A few will always influence the many. It takes one
person to change a team, a group and essentially a company – YOU – MAKE IT
HAPPEN!