11th March 2022
Why being purpose-driven matters
The pandemic, the latest UN report on the ‘irreversible impacts of climate change’, and the war in Ukraine, are making each of us think about the difference we want to make. As one Forbes article put it: “Nothing raises questions concerning life’s purpose like facing mortality”.
Now, more than ever, employees are looking for purpose. In this article, Crispin Manners, Chairman of Inspiring Workplaces, has outlined the reasons why that matters both organisations and employees.
From the Article:
1. We have a fundamental need for purpose
The need for purpose is one of the defining characteristics of human beings. We crave purpose and can suffer serious psychological difficulties without it. Research commissioned by the John Templeton Foundation found that purpose “is a central component of most leading conceptions of optimal human development and psychological well-being” (pp 15-16).
This extract from their post above is a good example of how a sense of purpose can make a difference at both a personal and organisational level. ‘A sense of purpose in one’s career is correlated with both greater satisfaction at work as well as better work-related outputs. In a 2001 study of service workers, researchers indicated that some hospital cleaning staff considered themselves “mere janitors” while others thought of themselves as part of the overall team that brought healing to patients. These groups of individuals performed the same basic tasks, but they thought very differently about their sense of purpose in the organizations where they worked. Not surprisingly, the workers who viewed their role as having a healing function were more satisfied with their jobs, spent more time with patients, worked more closely with doctors and nurses, and found more meaning in their jobs.’
2. Shared purpose at work can be transformational
This means that purpose is powerful for companies. A study published by Harvard Business Review showed that companies that had a clear purpose had better growth compared with companies that didn’t. The research found that 52% of purpose-driven companies experienced over 10% growth compared with 42% of non-purpose-driven companies. Purpose-driven companies benefited from greater global expansion (66% compared with 48%) and more product launches (56% compared with 33%). But perhaps most telling for the world we live in today, purpose-driven companies experienced more than three times the level of success in major transformation efforts (52% compared with 16%). And this research is from before the pandemic. Since then, the need to change or transform the way we all operate has become paramount.
Get the full article online: Nothing raises questions about life’s purpose like facing mortality.
Make sure to explore Inspiring Workplace’s other content and insights about leadership and Covid-19.