In our last posting, we talked about the need for, and the benefits that flow from, an \u201cengaged\u201d workforce . . . that is, employees who are energized by their work and committed to supporting the company\u2019s goals.\u00a0 In that posting, intended to be an introduction to a series on workforce engagement, we described what an engaged workforce is, but not how to build one.\u00a0 So that\u2019s what this series will attempt to do . . . help you to understand the pieces that must be in place before you can have a fully engaged workforce.\u00a0 For this, the first installment of the series, please read below.<\/p>\n
First, we need to talk about your mission, vision, values, and culture because . . .<\/p>\n
Wha . . . ??\u00a0 I just felt a great disruption in The Force, like a whole bunch of people hitting \u201cDelete\u201d at the same time.<\/p>\n
I know, I know.\u00a0 A lot of you think this stuff is a bunch of fuzzy crap that has no real relevance to how you run your business . . . high-sounding words that you put on your conference room wall and nobody pays any attention to.\u00a0 But if that\u2019s true, if your mission statement and the rest have no relevance to your business, then you simply did a poor job of crafting them.\u00a0 And they are necessary if you want a fully engaged workforce.\u00a0 Why?\u00a0 Let\u2019s look at them one at a time.<\/p>\n
Values.<\/strong>\u00a0 These are just the rules of the road for your company.\u00a0 They tell us how we\u2019re supposed to behave around here.\u00a0 They tell us how we\u2019re supposed to treat one another, how we\u2019re supposed to treat customers, suppliers, and any other stakeholders in our company.\u00a0 When we practice our values openly, honestly, and consistently, we create a framework that helps guide decision-making throughout the company.\u00a0 For instance, if one of our core values is \u201cExtraordinary customer service,\u201d doesn\u2019t that give us some guidance when we\u2019re trying to resolve a tough customer service issue?<\/p>\n OK, so what do our values have to do with an engaged workforce?\u00a0 Simple.\u00a0 If we expect our people to pull together, operate as a team, and strive to go in the same direction, they need to share the same values (rules).\u00a0 Without shared values, there is chaos, and an engaged workforce\u00a0 will never evolve.<\/p>\n Culture.<\/strong>\u00a0 This is simply the sum of our values and the working environment we create when we adhere to them.\u00a0 Again, if we have people amongst us who can\u2019t embrace our culture (our values), they will be disruptive to an engaged workforce.<\/p>\n Mission.<\/strong>\u00a0 I have found very little agreement among business writers about what should be included in a mission statement, or about what separates a good mission statement from a bad one.\u00a0 Personally, I think a good mission statement is very short (preferably only one sentence, no more than two) and answers the question, \u201cWhy does this company exist?\u201d\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t have to be clever, funny, or flowery.\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t have to rhyme.\u00a0 It just has to give a straight forward statement about what your company does.\u00a0 Consider the mission statement for a pump manufacturer: \u201cWe make the most durable, dependable marine pumps on the planet for the largest commercial ships afloat.\u201d\u00a0 Short, sweet, and direct with a little bragging thrown in for dramatic effect.<\/p>\n Why is this important to an engaged workforce?\u00a0 Because everyone needs to have the same understanding about what we do around here, and because everyone needs to be able to uniformly articulate what we do to the outside world.<\/p>\n Vision.<\/strong>\u00a0 This gives most of us trouble.\u00a0 Even George H.W. Bush, when he was criticized for failing to clearly articulate policies, said in exasperation, \u201cOh, that vision thing.\u201d\u00a0 Like a mission statement, I think a vision statement should be short and to the point, but it also needs to create some excitement.\u00a0 If a mission statement describes the bus you\u2019re driving, then a vision statement describes where you want to take the bus.\u00a0 When you\u2019re asking your workforce to get on board your bus, they need to know where you think you\u2019re taking it or they won\u2019t be able to help you get there.\u00a0 And the destination needs to be one that unifies and excites your people.\u00a0 Who\u2019s going to want to get on your bus if all you\u2019re going to do is drive it around the block.\u00a0 If you need help with this, Google on \u201ccorporate vision statements\u201d and all sorts of stuff comes up.<\/p>\n Your values, mission, and vision need to be in writing, and they need to be disseminated, explained, and discussed.\u00a0 They need to be repeated and reinforced regularly.\u00a0 And if you need to revise these documents, or if you don\u2019t have them at all and need to draft them, don\u2019t be afraid to involve your people . . . they\u2019ll be more likely to support them if they have a hand in creating them.<\/p>\n Next up in this series, we\u2019ll talk about some leadership concepts that will help you down the road toward an \u201cengaged\u201d workforce.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In our last posting, we talked about the need for, and the benefits that flow from, an \u201cengaged\u201d workforce . . . that is, employees who are energized by their work and committed to supporting the company\u2019s goals.\u00a0 In that posting, intended to be an introduction to a series on workforce engagement, we described what<\/p>\n