Written by: Heidi Dulebohn, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Was it the pandemic, or did it ignite what people have been thinking about for a long time? Regardless, people, worldwide have reprioritized their values and time on this planet. In other words, people now demand what matters to them in all aspects of their lives, and they're prepared to find it.
It's not easy, but as employees navigate the blurred lines between work and home, they gravitate to organizations that are builders—leaders, be that builder. Numerous studies reveal how employees choose purpose over frivolous perks, flexibility over one-size-fits-all schedules, and workspace. Employees want to be respected, valued, heard, appreciated and offered more than just a place to work. Gartner's article, "Employees Seek Personal Value and Purpose at Work. Be Prepared to Deliver," explains that the days of a simple financial transaction to merely pay someone to do a job, and that's that, are over. Today, employers are addressing the whole-self employee. We are all on a 24-hour clock now, not the cloistered 9 to 5 workday of yesteryear. The Gartner study tells us that employees want more than a fair wage; they want a "more human employment value proposition ." Employees want to be valued and given value on a human level—to develop their careers, find purpose in their work and improve their well-being, and enhance their communities. 1. Build your Workforce. Win the war for talent by building your own. Develop, upskill, and train your talented workforce through genuine interest and investment in everyone on the team–it's essential to be equitable, it’s worth the effort. Teach, train, and retain. We all know it's difficult, but hiring new help is also very costly. Research at Workest found it roughly costs 20% of the salary to replace someone who has left the company, and US employers spend over $1 billion per year replacing employees. Treat people as individuals with individual skills, capabilities, and aspirations and help them get there. Develop your employees through education training, and increase their responsibility as their experience grows. Leaders, be empathetic, open your eyes, and see your organization through your employees' lens—how does it look, what is the employee experiencing? If you don't like what you see, then change things—embrace and engage your workforce. Don't make the mistake of solely considering your client's experience. Gallup found that a highly engaged workforce is 21% more profitable than the lowest engaged organization. Treat your employees how you want to be treated, and you'll create engagement, trounce burnout, and increase morale.
2. Build with Purpose Post pandemic, amid the great resignation, people are looking for purpose. It's not enough to merely count widgets anymore. Today's employees want to find meaning in their work, and know that what they do matters. Employees want to feel that their efforts support the organization, their communities, for the greater good, and they will search for an organization whose values align with theirs–and leave those who don't. PwC conducted a study about purpose in the workplace and found that 79% of business leaders believe purpose is central to their success. Yet, only 34% of business leaders put the organization's purpose central to their decision-making. The study also found that 52% of leaders value finding meaning in their daily work, while 83% of employees value meaningful day-to-day work. Leaders, wake up and smell the coffee—mind that gap. People want to be proud to work for an organization. A great example of purpose as a guiding force lives at Medtronic, one of the world's largest medical device companies. Medtronic's mission statement was crafted in 1962 and has remained the guiding force in day-to-day work and decision-making. The mission: "To contribute to human welfare by application of biomedical engineering in the research, design, manufacture, and sale of instruments or appliances that alleviate pain, restore health, and extend life." During the pandemic, Medtronic faced unprecedented demand for their ventilators which were desperately needed to help covid patients in hospitals. As the Medtronic leadership decided how to handle the overwhelming demand, the 50-year-old mission statement, "to contribute to human welfare…" spurred the company to openly share their design for a specific value used in ventilators in hopes other companies could help meet demand by manufacturing the values. Medtronic worked with several global companies to increase ventilator production, and then Elon Musk called. Musk’s SpaceX was uniquely qualified to help due to their division that makes and designs values for their rockets. SpaceX had the energy, engineers, and technicians that made them the perfect partner to work with Medtronic’s team to produce precise valves. They were able to convert space from rocket-building to ventilator valve production. “They literally turned a rocket production area into a ventilator valve manufacturing facility almost overnight.” This innovative, mission-driven process was accomplished in a few months, which otherwise would have taken years. Medtronic literally and figuratively built upon its purpose and creatively collaborated to create life-saving devices in a time of great stress, uncertainty, and life-and-death time constraints.
In conclusion, leaders–listen up, appreciate and build your employees to their highest potential and build your organization by using your purpose to guide leadership decisions, and you will reap the benefits.
Being a builder is the right thing to do, and it's good for business; you will be more profitable productive, attract and retain top talent, improve the well-being of your employees, their families, and their communities. In short, life will be better.
Leaders, listen up and build.
Heidi Dulebohn, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
After traveling the world, breaking barriers and securing several "firsts" as an executive in the grain trading industry, Heidi turned her passion for etiquette into a series of helpful workshops, columns and crowd-pleasing speaking engagements. Fascinated by the cultural history behind traditional etiquette rules, Heidi has devoted her career to empowering leaders with a modern-day version of those same wonderful rules. A highly certified expert on modern etiquette for the digital age, she is dedicated to sharing all she knows to help others live their best personal and professional lives. Her mantra: Be kind. It's free.
