An Atmosphere Based on Purpose

Today, Cindy and I have the pleasure of working closely with several organizations where the leaders have created the kind of atmosphere in their respective teams where each member understands the purpose they’re working to achieve and how their daily responsibilities connect with their company’s mission, vision, and values. I’ve seen one team rally around the saying, “Customers for life!” and another team truly live out the idea of “Neighbors serving neighbors.” And since I previously shared the story about why nearly every individual in yet another company THANKED me after a handbook rollout meeting, all because of how the owners instilled the values that handbook was centered around, I won’t detail that out again here - but hopefully you get the picture.

In each of those companies, I saw firsthand what it looks like when team members were willing to contribute the additional discretionary effort I referred to throughout What’s KILLING Your Profitability? (It ALL Boils Down to Leadership!) and I saw the results it had on the bottom line. The revenue of one grew by fifty percent in just eighteen months, with several long term employees staying on well beyond their planned retirement dates to help ensure the new owners had a successful transition. Another had back-to-back years of record growth. And the other had a 24 month stint with no voluntary turnover whatsoever despite being in a market where team members frequently received substantial offers from competitors. I think it’s safe to say that exemplifying the company’s values and providing a clear organizational purpose makes an impact!

I could go on and on but I’m guessing you get the point. Interestingly enough, in each of these organizations and in several others I didn’t detail here, the leaders didn’t just work to build engagement around their own purpose or a purpose that served the company. In every case, they were just as focused on helping everyone on the team identify and work toward their own purpose AND connect it back to everything the organization was working to achieve. But they didn’t stop there! These same leaders have also been very intentional about providing the necessary tools for each of the folks on their teams to grow and succeed, in their current positions as well as for roles they have interest in moving forward.

Doing these things certainly helped each of those companies in achieving their purpose and it helped the leaders fulfill their individual purposes. On top of all that, each organization was more productive and more profitable. And I doubt you’ll be surprised to know that there was one more amazing byproduct that each business experienced: some of the best talent in their respective industries began reaching out to join them!

When we create an atmosphere where our teams embrace the purpose we’re working toward, great things can happen - and fast. When we’re able to help each individual on our team identify their own definite purpose and connect that to the organizational purpose, we add even more fuel to the fire - so that’s what we’ll start working through soon!