Billions can be loosely modelled on the real-life hedge fund manager Steve Cohen of S.A.C. Capital Advisors and his various fights. Steve Cohen is played by the character and one-percenter Robert “Bobby” Axelrod, it demonstrates how he operates his hedge fund business Axe Capital but if you take a closer look, it also reveals crucial aspects of a successful corporate culture.
What can you take away from the Axe Capital culture?
1. A case study for Mental Health
Wendy Rhoades is a psychiatrist and is Axe Capital’s performance coach in-house. The billions of dollars in revenue prove how mental well-being is just as crucial in the workplace just as in personal life. If your staff is not performing it is expected that they visit Wendy to ‘tune’. Bobby made a bad trade, Axe Capital Review 2022 even though he’d been told it would be unsuccessful, and he visited Rhoades to learn the reasons behind his actions and what he could do to prevent it from happening again. This illustrates how important being in a good mindset is when it comes to managing someone’s finances or looking for a suitable candidate. Whatever your position, make sure you are aware that a healthy mental health is the key to an effective work environment. Find out more about Wendy’s strategy on this page.
2. A argument in favor of an Open Workspace
In Axe Capital, there is an open-plan workspace and the highest-ranking employees including Wendy are in glass offices.
There are pros as well as cons for any workspace, whether it is open or closed, but an open workspace is crucial to team collaboration and enhances team communication. There are studies that explore the negative impact of open spaces, such as the study the impact of an open-plan workspace on collaboration between humans which was published by the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biology Sciences in July 2018 by Ethan S. Bernstein and Stephen Turban in July 2018. Recognizing that there is a connection of privacy with productivity the Axe capital decided to build an area for meditation.
It all comes down to the best solution for your employees. You will know this only when you consider their mental well-being seriously and know who they are.
3. A Case for approachable leadership
Bobby is many things, and as the show develops, one could say that he’s quite a good leader. He takes care of his team according to his own style while managing money to earn more money isn’t the end game, he is concerned about his team members. One of the most important things is that Bobby is accessible, and should you need any idea or need information, you are able to talk with him or go to his office to talk with him.
Affluent leaders feel secure in themselves and show this confidence to their workers. This kind of leadership promotes an enviable relationship within the organisation, however it is important to learn to put up and be respectful of boundaries.
Axe Capital is not a flawless company however, we can learn a few things from the culture of its employees. Future of the workplace lies in making mental health at the workplace a top priority as well as cultivating a sense of community and mindful leadership.