Engaging Employees: The PURPOSE DRIVEN Employee & Customer

12 Apr Engaging Employees: The PURPOSE DRIVEN Employee & Customer

For over 23 years I’ve worked with 500+ companies around the globe on engaging employees and their customers. This level of engagement has allowed me to keep my finger on the pulse to watch emerging trends, and there is a new burgeoning one that will soon change everything. The question is…will you be ready?

The Engaging Employees Trend and Your Business

The new trend is the desire for “Purpose” and it will soon be THE most important driver of engaging employees AND customers.  Research already shows that when people believe in the purpose of their company and their job they are more engaged, more loyal and much more willing to give extra effort, but recently this idea of purpose has become paramount in a growing group of employees and consumers.

Wayne Gretzky, known as the Great One in NHL hockey circles, famously said, “I skate to where the puck is going, not where it is.” Well, that is exactly where every organization must be aiming right now—not where the puck is but where it’s going! (At the end of this blog I am going to ask you three questions about how ready you are for this trend, so keep reading.)

The Purpose Revolution

All around the world there is a rising tide that I call the Purpose Revolution. The trend cuts across nationality, generation and gender. The bottom line is simple: employees and customers around the world are sending a powerful message to businesses—they want it all. On the one hand, they want their self-oriented needs met (good salary, career development, products that are stylish and do the job), but they also want their work and their purchases to help make a better world. They want to work for companies whose purpose they believe in and buy without guilt knowing that they are purchasing from companies that are good for society, good for the planet and the products that are healthy for their family. According to folks at Globe Scan, as much as 39% of the global population now represent what they call the “aspirationals.” These folks love to shop, love brands, and want their work and their buying to have an impact.

They want to do well and do good! The old days of compromise are coming to an end.

Engaging Employees: A Trend to Stay

Now some of you may say, “But John, is this trend really that important?” Well, we have been interviewing leading market researchers as well as company executives at companies like Coca-Cola, 3M, Seventh Generation, HP and many others. Their message to us loud was and clear: You will not be successful as a business in the future if you ignore this trend. As the CEO of one of the largest companies in the world told me, “doing good is about to become your license to operate.”  Engaging employees is about more than just giving them a paycheck and calling it a day. Just this week, we interviewed Seventh Generation executives who told us they are attracting the best talent in the world from their largest competitors simply because their “story of good” is so compelling, and people want more than just a paycheck.

The smartest companies in the world are baking higher purpose into their recruiting, into their orientation, and are working hard to create an authentic story of good and communicating it to their employees and customers.

We have just launched our brand new website focusing on bringing you the latest trends and ideas for creating a Purpose Driven organization that will win in this new era. Among other things we will be publishing a blog called Purpose Revolution to share practical ideas on creating a company that wins this new consumer/employee. We want our new website to be THE “go to” place for you to get what you need to be successful.

In terms of keynote speaking and workshops, I am launching two new exciting keynotes, Leading on Purpose and the Purpose Revolution that are getting great reviews from clients around the world.  Take a look at the attached overview of my current work. We recently did an event on Leading on Purpose for business clients of the Mars Corporation and attendees loved it.

So are YOU ready?

Here are three questions you ought to be asking about your company and the coming Purpose Revolution.

1. Is Purpose baked into the fabric of how you and your company lead? If I worked for you or were thinking about working for you, would my daily experience reinforce how my work serves Purpose?
2. Does your company have a “story of good” that is authentic? Are you finding meaningful ways to tell that story to employees and customers on a regular basis? Do you even know what drives your employees and customers around purpose?
3. Are your leaders aware of the emerging trends around Purpose and what employees and customers say REALLY matters to them?

Ride the crest of the wave with this emerging revolution!

We would love to engage in a conversation with you and/or your leaders to help you get ready to go where the puck is heading. Give us a call.

John

Dr. John Izzo has spoken to over one million people, advised over 500 companies, authored nine best-selling books, and helped some of the world's most admired companies. He has been a pioneer in creating successful businesses and emerging work trends for over twenty-five years.

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