What's REALLY Your Org's Purpose? Has it Changed?
Shortly before COVID, a Harvard Business Review article “Why Are We Here?” by Sally Blount and Paul Leinwand noted that according to a PwC study, just 28% of people felt connected to their work. Just 39% said they could clearly see the value they create. I’d say that being connected to work includes the work itself and the people.
If I had to guess, the new work from home reality further threatens a company’s ability to help employees feel connected. At a minimum it’s a different way and a different challenge to make connections happen. So many conversations pre-COVID happened just walking down the hall or picking up a soda or going to lunch in the old primarily-office environment. I am surprised that where it’s feasible, there aren’t more socially-distanced coffee or coke walk-and-talks to hang on to or create connection.
Even though we are all busier than ever, it’s the most important time ever for those leading at the top to have crystal clarity about purpose and communicate it with great clarity. Purpose could well have changed in this economy. Or people have drifted from it. If you want to keep your best team players and reduce the risk that someone else with a clearer purpose recruits them away, there’s no such thing as reiterating your purpose too many times.
There’s a misconception that hiring must have halted. At least for Financial Officers, having the right fit Finance Parter for the C-Team has never been more important.
What is true is that more Finance professionals are less inclined to make a move. What if the new gig doesn’t work? There’s not an increase in Finance executive unemployment that I can tell.
Now is the time to revisit and communicate your purpose as a company. The purpose should translate to strategy. Have each manager confirm they have revisited and communicated a specific person’s purpose directly to the team member. If you don’t, you risk losing people to other organizations that do have a calling and tribes are following. Is there anyone who isn’t feeling groundhog day these days? We need purpose now more than ever rather than the cog in a wheel feeling.
From the article:
“A truly powerful purpose statement is one that achieves two objectives: clearly articulating strategic
goals and motivating your workforce. These objectives are important individually and
synergistically. When your employees understand and embrace your organization’s purpose, they’re
inspired to do work that not only is good—and sometimes great—but also delivers on your stated
aims.”
Love the clarifying point made in the article that many companies define their purpose vaguely. Get specific. Does your purpose answer these questions?
“What is your reason for existing? What value are you giving your customers? and Why is your firm uniquely capable of providing it?”
The first question is easy. the last two aren’t. They continuously evolve, especially in the light of competition. If you’re in a service business, you’ll need to peel the onion much further than “we provide the highest quality or best service”.
Does your team know the value your organization is uniquely capable of providing and what customers/clients actually value?
When you set out to hire someone today, whether on your own or with outside help, the first step is to make sure you have a good definition of purpose so you can approach potential candidates with a great story. No story. No hire. Well, no hire of an A-Player without an A plus story to tell.
Reduce the need to hire someone in the first place by revisiting your purpose and making sure that thread is woven throughout everyone in the organization.
Full article here.