A Matter of Principle: 7 Ideas that Interlune Lives By

Interlune

Founder

Creating and writing about corporate “leadership principles” or “company values” is dicey. In many cases, they seem obvious, trite, or contradictory. Even the most compelling set of principles might be forgotten after rollout and never become part of the fabric of the organization. At their worst, leadership principles might be weaponized to criticize colleagues or their work, or the company. So why even bother?

Despite all these risks, the founding team at Interlune decided to develop a set of leadership principles anyway. We’ve been kicking around industry and government for longer than most, and we believe that our decades of experience give us a better shot at using a set of actionable leadership principles to create a culture that’s both durable and distinct. They’re not a rigid or linear list of instructions that tells us what to do, but rather an interconnected set of ideas that can serve as a grounding source of healthy discussion.

So here goes.

Think Big

The entire premise of Interlune--harvesting natural resources from space to benefit humanity--has never been done before. We’re creating the first natural resources business in space!

To achieve this mission, we must train our brains to think at massive scale about big solutions, big breakthroughs, and big collaborations. Details matter, but there’s no room for small thinking here.

Extreme Ownership

At every level of the organization, we need people to make independent decisions and own them. The mindset is not, what does my manager want me to do, but rather, what is right for the company and my team and what is the path to success?

Granted, this requires a high level of judgment to know what decisions should be made at the most appropriate individual contributor level and which ones need more thorough consideration. But if an Interlune employee is confident they know what to do, we don’t want to hold them back with unnecessary bureaucracy. They’re empowered to operate like an owner.

Be Transparent And Open

To have Extreme Ownership, you need the right information at the right time. In organizations where information is politicized, or communications are too hierarchical, it’s human nature to fill the knowledge gap with rumors and speculation, which is distracting, demoralizing, and can lead to mistakes.

At Interlune, we openly share information, trusting that the upside of transparency outweighs the risks. This is easier today as a relatively small group than at a large organization, so we will work intentionally to maintain the spirit of trust and transparency as we scale.

Collaborate To Win

Undoubtedly, some organizations succeed by having a highly competitive culture among employees, where people are constantly trying to outperform their peers.

However, we believe that, for our purposes, we’ll get farther by instilling a culture of collaboration and support. That doesn’t mean that people aren’t held accountable for results—quite the opposite—but it means that our policies and processes are geared around collective accomplishments.

Which brings us to the next principle:

Deliver Results

Yes, we’re collaborative and supportive, and our people have the necessary information to succeed. But everyone is also responsible for doing their job exceptionally well. We know from experience how easy it is to fall into a busy, meeting-driven culture and lose sight of the actual work. We’re constantly asking ourselves, does what I am doing now make a difference? Does it move us closer to a short-term goal or serve the long-term mission concretely? Am I making the company more valuable right now? Am I removing an impediment to success?

Choose Action

Closely related to Extreme Ownership and Delivering Results is Choose Action. When faced with a decision on whether to take a chance on a new idea that might not work, choose to act. Do it now, or do it tomorrow? Do it now. This mindset speeds the metabolism of the entire organization and creates the high level of intensity we need to achieve our ambitious goals.

Hire & Develop The Best

Relatively few people have the skills, knowledge and wisdom that Interlune needs for its ambitious mission. What’s more, people who fit the bill have many opportunities to choose from. So, how do we make this principle a reality? Very carefully.

The Interlune mission is sexy and exciting, if we do say so ourselves, which is a huge advantage for attracting highly intelligent and ambitious sorts. It also means that we must be good at predicting which candidates align with the other leadership principles. Is the candidate capable of true collaboration, or are they hard-wired for individual accolades? Do they have the confidence to demonstrate Extreme Ownership, or do they need explicit permission and a set process for every decision? Do they have the mental desire to grow in skill and breadth of knowledge, or are they inherently focused within a narrow stovepipe of achievement?

Hire & Develop The Best is last in this post, but it could just as well be first. None of the principles will be meaningful if we don’t hire people who are humble enough to buy into them yet talented enough to embody them.

We’re proud of the Interlune leadership principles and committed to making them a force of good in the company and for its investors and customers. We’ll keep you posted on how it goes.

In the meantime, if you like what you read and are interested in joining Interlune, check out our Careers Page.