It didn’t look special or anything out of the ordinary. Just another piece of internal mail. But it turned out to be very different.
“It” was a letter signed by the CEO, thanking me for all my hard work and inviting me to enjoy an evening out with my girl-friend at any restaurant of my choice, at the company’s expense. The effect was to immediately dispel any sense of fatigue I was feeling after several months’ of 14-16 hour days and give me a sense of well-being.
We ended up having a fantastic meal at a leading city restaurant and a thoroughly enjoyable evening. Now, more than thirty years later, I can hardly recall anything specific about the occasion. Yet, the whole experience remains a shining beacon in my career.
This seems ridiculous if you think about it. After all, a dinner for two – even an expensive dinner – would have had very little effect on a company like IBM. Certainly it was a very low cost alternative to paying me for the countless hours of over-time I had racked up. In fact a cynic would say that it was nothing more than a gesture. Yet that ‘gesture’ made me feel that my efforts had been recognised and were appreciated and valued. It not only re-energised and re-engaged me, but it gave me a good feeling that persists to this day, if only because it was so unique in my career.
But please don’t think I am playing the victim here and am looking for sympathy! I certainly don’t think I have had a uniquely lousy career. In fact I think am extremely fortunate to have had such an experience. I have little doubt that there are people who have never had such an experience in their careers. And that is such a shame.
And it comes at a cost. As I read about all the efforts to create greater employee engagement I cannot help thinking they would not be necessary if such basic principles of human behaviour were better addressed. Ultimately, every individual matters. After all any organisation is only as effective as its people and the way in which they interact.
You do not, however, have to take my word for it. This 2004 interview with Herb Kelleher makes the point far more eloquently and effectively than I could. It also provides the business case for my argument.
Ultimately, employee engagement is about caring. But it is a two-way street. If you want your employees to care, then you first have to show them that you care. That is why every individual matters.
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If you like what you have read contact me today for a free 30 minute conversation about how my ‘Every Individual Matters’ Model can provide the catalyst to help you create an organisational culture of ‘Love at Work’ : one where everyone cares and the business becomes our business, so embracing change and transforming – and sustaining – organisational performance.
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Bay is the founder and director of Zealise, and the creator of the ‘Every Individual Matters’ organisational culture model that helps transform organisational performance and bottom-line results. Bay is also the author of several books, including “Lean Organisations Need FAT People” and “The 7 Deadly Toxins of Employee Engagement” and, more recently, The Democracy Delusion: How to Restore True Democracy and Stop Being Duped.