The four factors run along different dimensions: short-term vs. long-term, individual vs. collective. However, they should be treated as interdependent parts of an integrated system and addressed holistically to ensure that a focus on one doesn’t undermine another.
When recruiting, be sure you have thoughtful, structured conversations with candidates about the relationships among the different components. By determining whether the needs of potential employees are aligned with those of the organization, you can reduce costly hiring mistakes. Explicitly discussing the rationale underlying your iEVP can also help you craft an offer that is more compelling than those of your competitors.
But problems could arise if meaning and purpose are addressed in isolation. For instance, UNICEF’s mission to protect the world’s children is arguably one of the most compelling and motivating purposes out there, and has long been a primary asset for attracting and keeping talent.
But organizations across various sectors have implemented strict return-to-office mandates, including the tech giants that were quick to make the switch to remote work when the pandemic hit. These have often been met with resistance from employees: Roughly 30,000 Amazon workers spoke out against the company’s back-to-office policy in an internal petition, and employees at Apple, Meta, and Google have also conducted similar protests.
As this one example illustrates, these factors are inextricably interconnected. Although the iEVP is no silver bullet, it can help organizations frame, address, and meet employee needs in a balanced and comprehensive way that ultimately benefits all parties involved.
Beyond material offerings
The end of Covid-19 workplace disruptions has ushered in a fresh set of challenges for organizations. Chief among them has been establishing new office policies for a workforce that has largely embraced flexible work and has expressed a desire for this to become a permanent fixture.
Prior to the pandemic, the most important topic among management thinkers was meaning and purpose. These are the organization’s aspirational reasons for existing and are the answer to the central question of why employees do the work that they do.
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It may also not be the most effective tactic. For instance, given that flexibility is top-of-mind for many workers, employers who adopt this strategy could be tempted to offer employees hybrid or remote working arrangements and leave it at that. However, we found that most people we spoke to who worked remotely felt less connected to their companies than when they went to the office. Organizations may end up trying to buy loyalty by giving employees something that, in fact, reduces loyalty. This doesn’t work, and it’s certainly not sustainable.
The iEVP provides a common language to help employers and employees come to the table and facilitate a conversation. However, to implement this effectively requires commitment, time, and effort to ensure that the four factors are being addressed holistically.
However, investigations in 2018 and 2019 revealed that UNICEF’s mission-related “results at all costs” culture had fostered bullying and harassment, and triggered many departures. In our discussions with senior UNICEF officials, there was a recognition that they had unwittingly created a toxic culture by promoting the organization’s purpose in isolation. To fix this, they eventually launched initiatives to balance purpose with employee development and building connection and community.
What should leaders do?
Getting this right isn’t merely about attracting and retaining talent. It’s also about developing an employee experience that benefits the mental health and well-being of your staff, and an organizational culture where people are more engaged, put in more effort, and feel more motivated. If done well, it shifts the focus of leaders and employees from what they want in the moment to what they need to build a thriving and sustainable future for the organization and themselves.
First published June 19, 2023, by INSEAD.
To aid in this process, we developed an online instrument that allows individuals and organizations to measure, visualize, and analyze their iEVP. The tool maps individual needs against what people feel they get from their organizations. Armed with these data, both individuals and organizations can better understand where they stand and where gaps—and thus opportunities—exist.
Communication and flexibility are key
Take, for example, one of the most significant current demands from employees: to work remotely. While some may be delighted by the opportunity to do their jobs from home (what we call material offerings in our model), for many this may come with associated costs. A Generation Lab poll that surveyed 544 college students and recent graduates in the United States revealed that 74 percent would miss the office community (connection and community) when working remotely, while 41 percent were concerned about missing out on mentoring (growth and development).
These interpersonal bonds matter immensely to people, and neglecting to foster the conditions for their growth can negatively affect retention. We spoke with a young computer scientist who left a coveted role at a large financial services firm because its work-from-home policy meant no one was in the office. She decided to take a job at a tech company that required workers to report to the office at least four days a week because she valued the camaraderie and energy that came naturally with physically working alongside her colleagues.
Developing meaning and purpose
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In response to this, we devised the integrated employee value proposition (iEVP) as a way for companies to adopt a more balanced approach to the process. The holistic system comprises four interrelated factors: material offerings, growth and development, connection and community, and meaning and purpose.
A third aspect of the iEVP is connection and community, the relationships employees form with co-workers. Strong social ties function as a crucial support network, foster mutual accountability, and make employees feel like they are appreciated and valued for who they are. This gives rise to an energizing culture that allows people to express themselves candidly and fosters a deeper sense of belonging.
The first step is to collect and measure data about what your company is currently offering in terms of the four factors, how employees experience them, and what employees want. Companies invest countless hours and consulting fees in compensation benchmarking but rarely measure what their own employees think, particularly in terms of purpose, advancement opportunities, and community.
This could necessitate the restructuring of internal processes because many organizations currently manage the four components separately: HR oversees growth and development, while the C-suite owns meaning and purpose. Companies also tend to tackle the factors sequentially rather than together, which overlooks how changes in one factor affect others.
Unsurprisingly, Covid-19 workplace policies have directly affected this. Research conducted by Microsoft and the University of California-Berkeley found that remote work made relationships between co-workers more siloed and reduced collaboration.
Once you’ve obtained these data, you can use them as the basis for conversations between the different parties. When doing so, it’s important to ensure you’re discussing the iEVP in an integrated way and are explicit about how the factors are related. This can reduce disagreements and misunderstandings around the reasoning behind key decisions.
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Quality Digest
منبع: https://www.qualitydigest.com/inside/management-article/holistic-approach-navigating-new-workplace-071923.html
Many companies tend to zone in on material offerings when trying to meet employees’ needs. Besides compensation, this includes aspects such as the physical office space, equipment, commuting subsidies, flexibility, and other perks. These are generally the easiest levers to pull, are the most straightforward to measure and negotiate, and are immediately appreciated. For example, it doesn’t take much to give a bonus, make the call to allow employees to work from home, or stock the office pantry with free snacks.
One of the big reasons people stay at organizations is because they’re able to progress in their careers. This is a source of engagement, energy, and fulfillment that companies shouldn’t overlook.
A second element of the iEVP is giving employees opportunities for growth and development. This encapsulates the various ways in which a company helps workers acquire new skills and become more valuable in the labor market, such as training, promotions, and assigning them to new roles.