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W.L. Gore Bill and Vieve Gore founded W. L. Gore on January 1, 1958 based on the assumption that Teflon (PFTE) could be profitable as coated ribbon cable. Today W.L. Gore produces numerous PFTE derivative products such as: Gore-Tex, clothing, sealants, filter bags, cartages, coatings, electronic, medical, and industrial products. What makes W.L. Gore & Associates so unique is the fact that they have never had a hierarchical titles or conventional structures. As Bill Gore, the president, states: “Get big by staying small.” Bill Gore knew that products alone did not make a company. He wanted to avoid smothering the company in thick layers of formal management, thus, the lattice structure evolved. In the lattice structure interpersonal interactions, self-commitment to group know responsibilities, natural leadership, and group discipline were important factors that Bill deemed were necessary to the overall performance of the company. Direct lines of communication with no intermediary, sponsors not bosses, natural leadership, objectives set by those who must make them happen, tasks and functions organized through commitments, and no fixed or assigned authority were the key traits of the lattice structure in W.L.
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