MightyRecruiterEmployee Engagement and Creativeship: Six Pillars to Base Your Business On
Once upon a time the concept of leadership was considered the model on which a successful company should be built. The idea was to lead the employee with the end game being to make money and increase numbers; the bottom line was the definitive focal point. However, as Bob Kelleher describes in his book Creativeship, this simply is not the case anymore in modern business. Companies such as Arthur Andersen and Enron had been built with profits being the focus and with little regard for employee engagement and creativeship. Unfortunately, as they forgot their purpose as a brand, their moral standings dropped and the corporate titans eventually collapsed in a big and painful way.
By letting go of the archaic concept of business leadership, a company is free to take the reins of creativeship and engagement instead, which are necessary to build cultures and business models that can be sustained over time. For today’s companies to grow, Kelleher says, this new paradigm must be embraced along with the inclusion of its six pillars.
1.Purpose
Purpose has become a huge motivation amongst two very different groups. The Baby Boomers who, once upon a time, focused on building wealth and climbing the ladders to success in their careers, are now switching their focus and priorities to put corporate social responsibility in the spotlight. At the same time, the up and coming Generation Y is entering the workforce with purpose being their primary motivation. This one pillar of employee engagement and creativeship is successfully bridging the gap between generations.
2.Engagement
Businesses that tout high levels of engagement have been found to be twice as profitable as their counterparts. Engagement, as Kelleher defines it, is the ïunlocking of employee potential to drive high performance.ï This means that those in leadership-type roles must find that which motivates the individual to find a balance between the employee’s talents and passions, and the needs of the company.
3.Performance
It should be noted that when it comes to performance, equal is not the equivalent of fair. For instance, when a company opts to reward each of their employees with the same percentage of pay increase, it can result in a decrease of engagement. This is due to the fact that when a raise is given without consideration for performance, those producing at higher levels see no benefit to doing any better than those providing mediocre results. Performance-based incentives are integral for employee engagement and creativeship.
4.Innovation
Technology is continually changing, meaning innovation is mandatory if you wish to maintain a stronghold in just about any major industry. It does not matter how amazing your product is if it does not evolve with the times. This was no better seen than in the photography industry where both Eastman Kodak and Polaroid saw their companies come tumbling down despite having been giants for the better part of a century. As technology moved towards the digital era, the corporations failed to invest in ways to keep up and ended up losing out to more innovative products. Keep an eye at all times on the future and remain cutting edge.
5.Tri-branding
Branding has evolved to link your traditional product or service brand with an employment brand and a third party brand. This means it is necessary to create a sustainable culture where your customers have a significant amount of loyalty and are willing to spread the information. This is the same with your personnel and their perception of your business as a place of work as they tout the company as a valuable destination for employment with significant employee engagement and creativeship. This passion is then spread by sharing on multiple live platforms such as social media.
6.Growth
The new crop of millennial employees tends to be more interested in companies with intent to grow, as they are of a more global mindset than generations that came before them. Therefore, to attract this new talent, it is necessary for companies to consider the next step in extending their reach and have a plan or goal already within view. Says Kelleher, ïLocal companies need to think regional; regional companies need to think national; and national companies need to think global.ï
Leadership is an antiquated concept as employee engagement and creativeship is now necessary for modern day companies wanting to succeed. Create a sustainable culture and keep an eye on tomorrow in order to thrive today.
Learn more about improving your company and how to build it with all-star talent by utilizing resources at Mighty Recruiter.