A Case for High Fulfillment and High Performance
Too many people in too many corporations don’t like to get up in the morning to go to work, and see their job primarily as a way to make money. They are just trading dollars for hours. They are neither passionate nor inspired and engagement is low. Despite many methods and programs that companies use to get ahead of this issue, employee engagement mostly stays low or far below expectations. The current economic environment is tough in nearly all industries. The harder it is to survive, the more we seem to care for profit, process, and tools and the less affordable it seems to put energy into “people focus.” Employee centered topics typically come “after” the other stuff gets done.
Is it possible to drive high performance in sales and profit way beyond industry averages and at the same time drive high engagement in the workplace? I know that the answer is yes and have experienced it. The reason this not happening everywhere is that a fundamental shift in the perception of leaders is necessary. This shift is from seeing profit as the goal to profit as the result of meaningful things done in fulfilling ways. Although this may sound improbable in the first place, the secret is found in corporate leaders becoming as fully responsible for supported people in the workplace as they are for sustainable profit. It’s not about “either/or.” It’s about both at the same time. I call that high fulfillment and high performance.