The elea Way - Preview

elea’s FOUNDATION AND OPER ATING MODEL

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entire package, even though we pay for performance and are guided by market practices in our compensation approach. Our team members are evaluated annually based on an analytical performance measurement and management system (PMM), which is centered on self-evaluation and takes into account our ethical beliefs about liberty and accountability. As our colleagues reach higher levels of achievement and competence, they can receive promotions, and we co-invest with them in their further pro- fessional education. We consciously attract young talent to develop them internally, so that they can professionally grow into the elea way of oper- ating and behaving, to make a difference for both investees and for elea. In addition to our dedicated staff members, we also deploy seasoned pro- fessionals for specific temporary project assignments, or we ask selected philanthropic investors who have both an appetite for professional activ- ity and the relevant experience to help us as senior advisors. In doing so, they contribute their expertise and help our young professionals to grow. This development program is embedded in a culture characterized by strong partnership values and flat hierarchies, and that emphasizes learn- ing, development, and contribution. elea has established accountabilities around the core components and processes of its operating model and encourages bottom-up initiatives and teamwork. The guiding thought is that elea associates should advance in their professional and personal skills development at least at a similar pace to their peers who opted for careers in commercial professional service companies. Besides the growth of individual colleagues, this systematic development program helps us to ensure that elea can grow as an organization. elea, like other philanthropic investment organizations around the globe, strives to make the world a better place. Its combination of ethical values, purpose, and distinctive operating model is a unique endeavor that is intri- cately linked to the founders’ ideas, personalities, and way of doing things. By sharing our reflections, insights, and lessons – rather than providing a blueprint – we hope to inspire others to find and explore their own path. In our experience, learning can only take place when implicit assumptions behind decisions and developments are made explicit, so that they become open for debate and further improvement and development. In these pages, 3.3 Conclusions 3 .3 .1 Insights and takeaways