While we hire wonderful global talent at a great price at Sagan Passport, the truth is, it’s only a part of what we do.

Global Talent is a KEY part of a larger way of doing business - but it’s a part of a larger “system”.

When we look at what we do at Sagan - what are the organizing principles?

While we are HUGE in global talent - it is all a part of what I think I want to call “Digital Dominance”.

Case in point:

So without further adieu - allow me to present the “Sagan System (1.0)” - The Ten Pillars of digital dominance.

Why did I write this?

It’s a playbook to execute on, create material on, assess yourself against, and find all sorts of new opportunities for building modern leverage.

I sat on this for awhile, and realized that it’ll NEVER be done. I have so many things I could develop off of it… grading criteria, examples, case studies, workshops, a book, you name it.

As to the title of this email, my buddy Tim who also hosts a great podcast said “Yea - sounds interesting but like 6 people are going to read it”.

Well Tim - jokes on you - my Mom, Dad and wife all subscribe to my newsletter PLUS you… and I’m on the home stretch.

Before I forget, here are all the people who helped me develop this stuff, and looked at early drafts:

Gary Goldberg - Told me I should write all this down to quote “Continue to eat the f*&cking lunch of those influencer backed amateurs”, and turned me on to the Danaher Business System. And no Gary they have not “put a hit out on me (yet)”.

Brian Wilson - Provided edits & comments on a few of the most important ideas. Thought partner for 20 years.

Binsi Das - Who lives these every day, and helps me develop the ideas in real life.

Kayvon Bina - Frequent target of my “Jon talks until he reaches a good idea” also fellow tinkerer.

John Seiffer - Great feedback on an early draft, and origin of a lot of key phrases like “Everyone Plays at the Top of Their Game” and “Output Thinking”

Peter Lohmann - Thought partner & friend

The Sagan Operating System: 10 Pillars of Digital Dominance

The First Pillar - Start with the End in Mind

• End state thinking is about knowing what you want to achieve before you start a project.

• Having a clear picture of success and planning everything with that goal in mind.

• Recognize that the path to your end state will involve uncertainties and changes. Maintain focus on the ultimate goal while remaining flexible in your approach to overcome obstacles and seize opportunities along the way.

• John Seiffer calls this “Output Thinking”

• Benefits include clear goals, better decisions, efficient use of resources, team alignment, flexibility, and progress tracking.

The Second Pillar - Go FAST - Speed is Your Ally

• Focus on accelerating the Observe-Orient-Decide-Act (OODA) loop to enable rapid learning, decision-making, and execution cycles.

• Observe - Continuously gather relevant information from diverse sources.

• Orient - Analyze and contextualize information to align understanding.

• Decide - Empower teams to make informed decisions rapidly.

• Act - Encourage prompt implementation of decisions through clear responsibilities.

• The core premise is that compressing timeframes for each OODA phase allows the organization to adapt and pivot quicker than competitors and market conditions.

The Third Pillar - Talent is Global

• Hire the best team from around the world, regardless of location, directly

• Applicable to any role that can be done remotely, only limited by creativity.

• Finding wonderful people around the world is easier and smarter than ever.

• Globat Talent allows businesses to take advantage of labor specialization at smaller than normal sizes - creating outsized impact

The Fourth Pillar - Everyone Plays at the Top of Their Game (including global talent)

• Let humans focus on human stuff - and AI and automation focus on low-level tasks.

• Your team should be focusing on higher-value activities at the top of their capabilities.

• AI and automation make humans more productive - not replace them.

• A company's outputs should be created with the optimal mix of human expertise and automated systems.

• Routine, repetitive tasks are identified and systematically automated over time.

• The more processes that can be delegated down to AI/automation, the more scalable and productive the human workforce becomes.

  

  Matzner’s Hierarchy of Leverage

The Fifth Pillar - Empowered Remote Leadership

• Decentralize Decision-Making - Define the overarching goals, but give teams and individuals autonomy to decide how best to achieve those goals.

• Clear Communication of Purpose - Ensure teams understand the "why" behind their work and desired outcomes to align their efforts.

• Role Clarity, Not Rigid Processes - Assign responsibilities based on the end result needed, not strict processes, allowing teams to devise the best approach.

• Regular Review and Feedback Loops - Frequently discuss what's working well, what can be improved, and identify opportunities for the team to enhance their methods.

• Continuous Learning and Skill Development - Invest in ongoing training to help teams expand their capabilities.

• The core idea is pushing decision-making responsibility down to those closest to the work, providing high-level guidance while fostering an environment of ownership, creativity, and continuous improvement within teams.

• This enables the agility and fast decision cycles required to effectively lead a dynamic, highly-skilled global workforce across different locations.

The Sixth Pillar - Write It Down

• When people work remotely, it's harder for them to learn about the company.

• Write down important things like how the company works, what's expected, and goals

• Documenting processes, expectations, goals, and deliverables clearly provides the context remote workers need to succeed.

• Writing down company culture, values, policies, and norms helps align the global talent.

• Recorded videos, tutorials, and knowledge bases supplement clear written documentation.

• Clear documentation of roles, responsibilities, and what "good work" looks like sets standards.

• This documentation regime replaces the informal knowledge sharing that happens in offices.

• Create a regular battle rhythm for reviewing documentation. Do so with your team so you can capture their feedback on what’s actually working and what they’re actually doing..

The Seventh Pillar - Architect the Way Work Gets Done

• Implement organized, standardized workflows and processes to bring efficiency and clarity to knowledge work, akin to an assembly line.

• Forms - Using structured forms and templates to enforce consistency and control over inputs/handoffs between teams.

• Kanban Boards - Visualizing workflow stages and progress using Kanban boards to track tasks moving through the process.

• Systematic Handoffs - Establishing systematic mechanisms for work to transition between individuals/teams while maintaining structure.

• Pick an organization system like "Getting Things Done" to get maximum personal productivity

• By standardizing and organizing work you can maximize efficiency and transparency - even for complex, collaborative knowledge work.

• This structured approach helps mitigate ambiguity and misalignment that can arise in conventional ad-hoc workflows, especially in remote environments. It brings rigor and visibility to processes.

The Eighth Pillar - Right Message, Right Medium

• Use the most appropriate communication method and medium for the specific context and purpose.

• Asynchronous Video (Loom, etc.) - For updates, explanations that don't require immediate feedback.

• Written Documentation - For detailed instructions, documentation, specs.

• Email - For formal, non-urgent communications to be addressed as needed.

• Real-Time Meetings - Reserved for discussions benefiting from synchronous interaction.

• Chat/Messaging - For quick questions, updates, coordination between teams.

• The core premise is enhancing productivity and clarity by intentionally matching the communication approach to the goal - whether that's disseminating information, gathering feedback, making decisions or enabling collaboration.

• Using the wrong medium (e.g. an endless email thread for a decision) can lead to inefficiency and misunderstanding. This pillar provides guidelines on leveraging the strengths of each mode appropriately.

The Ninth Pillar - Content is King (even if you aren't a silly influencer)

• Embrace content creation as a core business strategy, regardless of your primary industry.

  • Leverage the zero marginal cost of content replication:

    • Create high-quality content once, use it indefinitely across various platforms and purposes

    • Examples: training materials, onboarding guides, vendor resources

• Integrate content creation into daily workflows:

  • Develop systems and habits to capture and document valuable information

  • Make content production a natural part of ongoing operations

• Repurpose internal content for external use:

  • Adapt internal documentation, guides, and best practices

  • Transform them into assets for marketing, thought leadership, and customer education

• Implement content-driven customer acquisition:

  • Utilize content marketing strategies to attract and nurture leads

  • Convert prospects into customers by building trust through informative, valuable content

The Tenth Pillar - This is What Winning Looks Like

This pillar defines the ultimate objectives and success criteria for a business operating under the Sagan Operating System, tying together the previous nine pillars into a vision of success.

Key aspects of a winning business under the Sagan Operating System:

1. End-State Focused: Clearly defines and achieves its goals through end-state thinking (Pillar 1).

2. Agile and Fast-Moving: Rapidly adapts to changes by mastering the OODA loop (Pillar 2).

3. Globally Talented: Leverages a diverse, world-class team unbounded by geography (Pillar 3).

4. Optimally Efficient: Maximizes human potential by focusing on high-value tasks while automating routine work (Pillar 4).

5. Empowered and Decentralized: Thrives through remote leadership that fosters autonomy and continuous improvement (Pillar 5).

6. Well-Documented: Maintains clear, comprehensive and living documentation (Pillar 6).

7. Systematically Organized: Implements structured workflows that enhance efficiency and transparency (Pillar 7).

8. Communication Savvy: Utilizes the most appropriate communication methods for each context (Pillar 8).

9. Content-Driven: Leverages content creation as a core competency for growth and market positioning (Pillar 9).

10. Purposefully Designed: Intentionally structured to serve owners, team, and customers effectively.

A business embodying these winning characteristics will create significant value, outperform competitors, and thrive in the digital age.

This tenth pillar serves as a benchmark for the journey towards organizational excellence and success, integrating all aspects of the Sagan Operating System.

So…. what do YOU think?

Yallah Habibi,

Jon

Passage of the Week:

Don’t just stand there with your hair turning gray,

soon enough the seas will sink your little island.

So while there is still the illusion of time,

set out for another shore.

No sense packing a bag.

You won’t be able to lift it into your boat.

Give away all your collections.

Take only new seeds and an old stick.

Send out some prayers on the wind before you sail.

Don’t be afraid.

Someone knows you’re coming.

An extra fish has been salted.

--Mona (Sono) Santacroce