Final answer:
Zappos maintained its superior customer experience through the creation of 10 standalone units, allowing for agility and maintaining its customer-focused values. The company's adoption of a holacracy structure further supported autonomous decision-making and rapid response to customer needs.
Step-by-step explanation:
Zappos addressed the challenge of maintaining its core competency of delivering a superior customer experience amid rapid growth by adopting a unique organizational strategy. They divided the company into 10 standalone units. This division aimed to empower smaller, more agile teams to focus intensely on customer service and innovation without being bogged down by the bureaucracy that often accompanies growth.
The company's overarching focus on customer satisfaction remained steadfast, ensuring that each unit retained the foundational values that made Zappos successful. The standalone units operated with a level of autonomy that allowed them to quickly respond to customer needs and changes in the market, while still benefiting from the resources and brand recognition of the larger organization.
The strategy also involved adopting a holacracy structure, which replaced the traditional top-down hierarchy with a decentralized management system. This gave employees more responsibility and decision-making power, aligning with the company's goal of keeping the customer at the center of all operations even as it scaled up.