Page 280 - How Great Leaders Build Abundant Organizations That Win

THE WHY OF WORK

why he chose to invest in HR. His response is simple: HR
practices form the infrastructure that makes sustained orga-
nizational success possible.
Early in his career, Dave facilitated versions of a t-group,
where members of a team got together over a weekend to
share their personal feelings about work, each other, and
the company. Late Saturday night, as fatigue set in, people’s
defenses often fell, and they tended to open up and be hon-
est with each other, sometimes to the point of rudeness.
Often a false sense of genuine emotional intimacy resulted.
Unfortunately, this temporary intensity of sharing real feel-
ings was frequently lost by Monday morning, when they all
returned to work and the organization patterns they had estab-
lished. Dave realized that sustained change did not come
through emotive weekends but through institutionalized
HR practices around recruitment, promotion, development,
compensation, communication, and organization design.
When these systems were changed, organization capabilities
emerged that outlasted any single event or leader.
If employee meaning is a lead indicator of organization
capabilities, financial results, customer service, and commu-
nity reputation, it should also be a key outcome of good HR
work. HR practices related to (1) people, (2) performance,
and (3) organization can be designed to create and sustain
meaning.

People Practices

Meaning should be a key consideration when hiring, train-
ing, developing, promoting, or outplacing employees. Hiring
people who are technically competent and intellectually com-
mitted is not enough. Leaders and HR professionals should

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