Disillusioned employees cost the world billions

According to Gallup’s 2017 State of the Global Workplace survey, alarmingly few are emotionally involved in their jobs. Worldwide, the figure is as low as 15%. Only seven out of ten are engaged, or they are dissatisfied with their jobs. And one in five employees sabotage their own workplace. Many companies are painfully experiencing the truth: They need the best people more than they need them. Or worse, they realise that they have hired the wrong people.

Why is it like that? Well, naturally there is no universal answer. The lack of happiness at work can be caused by many factors: unclear goals and guidelines, poor communication, inconsistency between what was anticipated in an interview situation with the actual workday. It is the management who is responsible when things get out of hand in the workplace. It is the management that must not only face the problem, but also act early with hopefully wise and effective measures. However, it is also clear that each person must take responsibility for her own situation and try to resolve the matter. And if that doesn’t work and she doesn’t get support from the management, she’s better off finding a new job.

For employers who want to build good careers for staff, it is crucial to understand why the company exists in the first place. This is the company's purpose. All other brand facets are built on this: identity, communication and physical and digital touchpoints. The company's purpose is the glue that links the brand to employees. Companies that have a strong purpose, by virtue of this, enable employees to identify with the workplace. Such companies are by nature generous and provide opportunities for self-development and learning. They put themselves on the line and expose their vulnerabilities. They provide empathic workplaces. Naturally, this also increases the well-being and job satisfaction of individuals. My colleague, Bård Annweiler, has recently published the book Point of purpose, where he, amongst other things, goes into the role of purpose in building well-functioning teams, and how such teams do better at a time with high demands for adaptability. Find out more about the book Point of purpose and order it here .

"t’s true what they say that one skilled person can do a really good job, while a well-functioning team can perform miracles."

Well-functioning teams consist of individuals who are able to work well together, despite the fact that they can disagree and are measured on different parameters. Such people want to work somewhere for the right reasons. What links them together is a common goal: They work towards something together, not against something alone. They agree on what matters the most. Yes, without aligning with the company's purpose, it becomes problematic to talk about teamwork. It’s true what they say that one skilled person can do a really good job, while a well-functioning team can perform miracles.

It is a significant point that the company's purpose helps one to reach shared goals. Without this single-mindedness, individual agendas soon take over with the result that one loses momentum and progress. This means loss of time and money. Lots of money. In the long term, the loss of specific targets will result in uncertainty, and often followed by loss of motivation and job satisfaction on a personal level. Who wants to work somewhere where you never reach goals and never achieve great results? Employees who, on the other hand, find that the workplace is permeated by a meaningful purpose, have a strong awareness of priorities, about what’s to gain and about what’s at stake. They identify with the employer's point of view. They feel important for the success, and they feel centred, which in itself gives birth to an inner motivation. The alternative to this makes for bleak reading: In Germany, disillusioned workers cost society $ 170 billion a year and in the United States $ 500 billion.

"The Mission Purpose Report shows that companies with purpose on average have 41.8% higher profitability than others."

What about Norway?

In 2017, we researched Norway's 100 largest companies with a view to find out if they had defined core values ​​and purpose. We operated with a hypothesis that most companies had core values, but no purpose. This is related to a Scandinavian tradition from the 80s, which emphasises the importance of defining core values.There is nothing wrong in the way of values, but they rarely differentiate. And they do not go far enough in finding what’s at the core of the company.

The findings of our research showed that 2/3 of the Norwegian companies had defined core values. But values ​​like "trustworthy", "reliable" and "brave" mean little when 15 other companies claim the same. Or what about the sports fashion chain XXL that that can boast of 9 values? How should employees relate to all these?

Companies that have a meaningful purpose attract employees who identify with what the company stands for. This is relevant for everyone in today's workplace, and is crucial for Millennials generation or the even younger generation Z. These idealistic workers are extremely concerned about sincerity and honesty, and the slightest deviation in the workplace will be enough for them. to sound the alarm. This should be a signal to companies that it is not enough to have a purpose, you must also be able to make it visible internally and externally in everything you do - and in an authentic way.

It helps little to adorn board documents with fine phrases or to use touching statements as wall decoration. To make the purpose meaningful for everyone involved, it must become a part of everyday life. It must be massaged, understood, felt and lived by, day after day. A strong purpose is the best foundation for creating well-functioning workplaces where employees thrive, grow and deliver beyond expectations. And it pays not only for the individual employee, but also for the company. The Mission Purpose Report shows that companies with purpose on average have 41.8% higher profitability than others.

When the figures speak so plainly, then it is incomprehensible that so many company leaders have yet to define why they are in business.

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