If 5,000 People Gave You the Answer to a Problem, Would You Listen?
Photo by Alex Block on Unsplash
In 2002, the Corporate Leadership Council conducted a detailed study, Building the High-Performance Workforce, and discovered that human performance drives organizational success. They identified factors contributing to people's performance. That was 20 years ago.
Kim Seeling Smith’s September article for Fast Company reflected on more than 5,000 exit interviews she conducted over 15 years. 5,000 people told her why they quit their jobs. Those conversations became the nine factors Smith refers to as “currencies.”
People are finally starting to listen. In 2019, 180 CEOs of leading organizations signed a new purpose statement shifting their emphasis from stockholders to shareholders, which includes employees, suppliers, customers and the community.
Kim Smith’s 5,000 people tell us what they want:
to work for a company with values similar to theirs
to work for someone they respect and trust and with people they like
to be appreciated for what they do and have it expressed
to feel listened to
a chance to grow and develop in their work
to be informed, inspired and given feedback
This matches Gallup’s three decades of engagement surveys which underline the three strongest drivers of engagement. I want to...
feel like my input is valued and listened to
grow and be developed in my job
feel like I am appreciated
Gallup’s recent work on managers prompted this from CEO Jim Clifton:
“That has always blown me away. People all over the world want a good job with mission, purpose -- and one that they're really good at -- with a living wage. This finding gets you pretty close to the meaning of life in the new millennium.”
I’m not so sure that’s new. What is new is the number of people starting to pay attention to engagement and focus on culture and the rewards that follow -- what we are calling The Economics of Decency. On the flip side is another Gallup statistic:
50 percent of people leave their job because of their manager.
The point? The keys to building robust organizations with engaged, happy people are available and not that difficult to employ, but we continue to struggle. We are partial to our judgments, opinions, perceptions and blind spots, and we take these with us wherever we go. As we unpack that baggage and set it aside, however, we create room to bring decency to our workplace, home and life.
Kim Smith reported that numerous industries in multiple countries adopted her nine currencies; they have reported increases in performance, productivity, motivation and engagement. Meanwhile, workloads and stress have decreased. It’s pretty simple math and pretty simple solutions...and fair enough, simple is not always easy. You have to listen!
I hope you all had a joyous Thanksgiving!
Cheers and Blessings,
Fundamental # 3: SPEAK STRAIGHT, RESPECTFULLY
Speak honestly and clearly in a way that moves the action forward. Say what you mean. Ask questions for clarity, share ideas and be willing to raise issues, even if they may create conflict, when it is needed for success or maintaining collaboration. Address issues directly with those who are involved or affected. Take responsibility for getting your message across.
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