We all know a lot of lip service gets paid to the ever-elusive and equally intoxicating concept of an exceptional “company culture.” Every company wants it and claims to seek it. One of the primary ways to build an outstanding company culture has exploded in the past decade: motivating a workforce with a higher mission, a greater goal.
Of course, we at Third River Partners absolutely subscribe to the centrality of a greater goal . Our co-founders, Ken and Heather, even wrote a book about it. But what do we mean by a greater goal? Why does it matter, and what’s driving the gap between so many companies’ aspirations and reality?
First off, studies show that companies with engaged employees generate more value. According to Gallup, engaged teams are 21% more productive than their disengaged counterparts. Similarly, companies with a highly engaged culture enjoy a 28% reduction in internal theft. These numbers have huge implications for profit margins, customer satisfaction, and patient health outcomes. It’s no wonder that organizations want to dial in a sense of purpose!
The gap between this desire and reality is huge, though. In a recent poll in London, fully 37% of employees reported that their job makes no meaningful contribution to the world. While some of these disengaged workers may make meaningful contributions outside company scope, such as writing an acclaimed novel, most will not. Instead, energy that could be used pursuing company ends gets siphoned into hiding an ongoing game of Candy Crush during meetings.
So what is one step that you, as a leader, can take today to boost engagement at work?
Simple: throw away the duct tape.
In his book on meaningless jobs, David Graeber notes that some meaningless jobs consist of “duct tapers." Duct tapers patch or bridge major, systemic flaws that their bosses are too lazy or inept to fix.
We’re all guilty of breaking out the duct tape from time to time, and encouraging our teams to do the same. Often, we’re tempted to use duct tape because we’re either 1) operating out of a scarcity mindset or 2) trying to protect our ego. When an employee or team member recognizes a systemic flaw, the prospect of creating a new system seems daunting and costly. If we, the leader, created the failing system, its failure takes on a personal tone.
But Serving Leadership precludes the need for Duct Tape. When a team member points out a failing system, we need to recognize that they’re running to a greater purpose. That employee is more focused on creating value for the company than protecting their boss’s ego. Ouch! But don’t we all, deep down, know that a winning team consists of people like that? Next time a team member notes a flaw, take a breath, and realize that you’ve just discovered a huge asset in your team. Build on it; ask other team members what they think could improve. This practice combines the practices of upending the pyramid, running to great purpose, and building on strengths.
Know that this practice of listening carefully to feedback takes just that -- practice. As with all of our Serving Leader actions, they become easier and more natural with time and discipline. Soon, we believe that throwing the duct tape away will bring your organization closer to achieving its greater goal.
We all know a lot of lip service gets paid to the ever-elusive and equally intoxicating concept of an exceptional “company culture.” Every company wants it and claims to seek it. One of the primary ways to build an outstanding company culture has exploded in the past decade: motivating a workforce with a higher mission, a greater goal.
Of course, we at Third River Partners absolutely subscribe to the centrality of a greater goal . Our co-founders, Ken and Heather, even wrote a book about it. But what do we mean by a greater goal? Why does it matter, and what’s driving the gap between so many companies’ aspirations and reality?
First off, studies show that companies with engaged employees generate more value. According to Gallup, engaged teams are 21% more productive than their disengaged counterparts. Similarly, companies with a highly engaged culture enjoy a 28% reduction in internal theft. These numbers have huge implications for profit margins, customer satisfaction, and patient health outcomes. It’s no wonder that organizations want to dial in a sense of purpose!
The gap between this desire and reality is huge, though. In a recent poll in London, fully 37% of employees reported that their job makes no meaningful contribution to the world. While some of these disengaged workers may make meaningful contributions outside company scope, such as writing an acclaimed novel, most will not. Instead, energy that could be used pursuing company ends gets siphoned into hiding an ongoing game of Candy Crush during meetings.
So what is one step that you, as a leader, can take today to boost engagement at work?
Simple: throw away the duct tape.
In his book on meaningless jobs, David Graeber notes that some meaningless jobs consist of “duct tapers." Duct tapers patch or bridge major, systemic flaws that their bosses are too lazy or inept to fix.
We’re all guilty of breaking out the duct tape from time to time, and encouraging our teams to do the same. Often, we’re tempted to use duct tape because we’re either 1) operating out of a scarcity mindset or 2) trying to protect our ego. When an employee or team member recognizes a systemic flaw, the prospect of creating a new system seems daunting and costly. If we, the leader, created the failing system, its failure takes on a personal tone.
But Serving Leadership precludes the need for duct tape. When a team member points out a failing system, we need to recognize that they’re running to a greater purpose. That employee is more focused on creating value for the company than protecting their boss’s ego. Ouch! But don’t we all, deep down, know that a winning team consists of people like that? Next time a team member notes a flaw, take a breath, and realize that you’ve just discovered a huge asset in your team. Build on it; ask other team members what they think could improve. This practice combines the practices of upending the pyramid, running to great purpose, and building on strengths.
Know that this practice of listening carefully to feedback takes just that -- practice. As with all of our Serving Leader actions, they become easier and more natural with time and discipline. Soon, we believe that throwing the duct tape away will bring your organization closer to achieving its greater goal.
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866-737-8268 | info@3rd-river.com
