Vagas.com: Innovating Recruitment with Self-Management
The RenDanHeYi model, developed by Haier Group CEO Zhang Ruimin in 2005, is revolutionary management philosophy aimed at transforming traditional hierarchical corporate structures into highly adaptive, customer-centric ecosystems. Rooted in the belief that employees (Ren) and their entrepreneurial capabilities should align with customer needs (Dan) to create value, the model emphasizes individual accountability and dynamic organizational roles (HeYi). By dismantling conventional silos, the RenDanHeYi model fosters a network of autonomous micro-enterprises within the larger corporate entity, transforming the organization into a nimble startup factory.
To develop and share the idea of Zero Distance and its broader management philosophy of RenDanHeYi, Haier hosts an annual forum to celebrate the world's most progressive organizations. This September marks the 8th edition of the forum, taking place in Haier’s hometown, Qingdao, on September 20. Working with the Business Ecosystem Alliance and the Management Lab, the Haier Model Institute will release the inaugural listing of the progressive companies which are putting Zero Distance and related ideas into practice.
These organizations are characterized by:
Zero Distance to customer | Decision what to build is based on insights from the marketplace
Autonomy | Small teams with full decision-making autonomy enable speed in execution
Shared Rewards | Everyone in the micro-enterprise participates in its financial success
For the 2024 inaugural ZeroDX awards, Haier approached us to list 50 self-managed organizations that showcase the principles of RenDanHeYi in how they organise their work. Vegas.com is one of the 50 organisations we listed this year.
Introducing Vagas.com
Established in 1999 by Mário Kaphan, Vagas.com is a pioneering and leading Brazilian company in the e-recruitment sector. Vagas offers a range of recruitment solutions based on its AI+H Matching Technology—AI enhanced by 'human' criteria created by the recruiter—to optimize recruitment success. The organization employs 100 people within a unique horizontal model, developed and refined over its 25 years of existence. Vagas' purpose is to contribute to a world where people choose companies better and companies choose people better.
Vagas.com approach to permeable organisational design is a prime example of RenDanHeYi as represented by the level of decentralization and autonomy in decision-making.
Organizational Structure
Vagas.com has an organizational structure with 'permeable' circles and a very simple self-management model, in which all people are naturally empowered to participate in nearly any decision. It stands out from other progressive company models due to its minimal predetermined rituals or bureaucracy. Its main building block is a horizontal decision process that aims to achieve overall consensus or at least consent in four simple steps involving as few participants as possible, fostering the realization of the company's purpose with maximum quality, speed and innovation. As decisions embody values that emerge and are shaped in the process, it promotes an experience of wholeness for individuals while molding the organization's ethics. The only role that resembles a managerial one but involves no power hierarchy is the circle's 'orchestration'.
Vagas' Four-Step Horizontal Decision Process
Any individual at Vagas may initiate a decision process if, in its first step, 'tension', they reiterate its potential contribution to the realization of the company's purpose. The second step involves selecting a 'GACC,' the smallest possible group—often just the proposer!—to discuss and build a decision in the third, 'controversy,' step. The last step, 'visibility', ensures the process is horizontal: the decision is appropriately widespread so that any person may consider questioning it in a new 'tension' step. All this process is more of a mindset and is normally very fast. Decisions have a deadline and an accountable person, usually the proponent. All decisions at Vagas follow this simple process.
Internal Culture and Employee Engagement
Vagas strives for a 'permeable' structure with 'no walls,' enabling anyone to see and contribute beyond their primary circles and up to the customer. The horizontal decision process leads to fast purpose oriented decisions. Large meetings are solely for sharing information and gathering feedback. Discussions happen in as small as possible groups, allowing for deeper conversations and opening space for innovation. Transparency is pervasive, cultivating a culture of shared autonomy and trust. Although the company is strongly result-driven, there are no set roadmaps, targets, or budgets. Instead, decisions are made organically as needed to best align the strategy with long-term goals.
Conclusion
Vagas.com is an example of an organization that continuously experiments and evolves not only its product and client value proposition but also its organizational structure and setup. At the core of its philosophy are principles closely aligned with the RenDanHeYi approach to zero distance to customers and autonomy of team members.
