| Watson Wyatt Worldwide’s WorkUSA 2000
report companies with high employee commitment have dramatically
higher three-year Total Return to Shareholders than companies with
low employee commitment. Figures show, sadly, that only about half
of employees have a strong commitment to their company.
The report found two elements outstanding in
determining strong employee commitment to the company: trust in
senior leadership and the chance to use skills on the job. Both of
these elements were cited by 14% of employees as being keys to
their commitment to their employers.
Companies with high trust and confidence in
senior leadership produced a 108% return to shareholders over
three years. That contrasts with 60% for companies where trust in
leadership was low.
How can leaders build trust between
themselves and their employees?
Watson Wyatt’s report says that management
cultures that encourage employee involvement, communicate with
employees, and provide advancement opportunities are strong
motivators. Companies with strong corporate citizenship programs
have multiple opportunities to build these cultures. It is the
responsibility of top management to set the policy for corporate
citizenship.
Let’s discuss trust and confidence in
senior leadership.
Is it any coincidence that the leaders of
Minnesota’s most-admired corporations are also leaders in our
community’s philanthropic and civic enterprises as well?
Medtronic’s Winston Wallin set a standard that built trust
between him and his employees, whose effects on the bottom line
are still felt long after his retirement. Wallin is admired as
much for his achievements at Medtronic as for his leadership in
healing the University of Minnesota’s Academic Health Center
during its difficult transition to partnership with the Fairview
Medical System.
The key to success was the company leader’s
consistent ethical leadership that connected the company to the
community.
What about the other 14% in the Watson Wyatt
report who cited the chance to use skills as an important part of
their commitment?
When employers think of employee skills,
they too often disregard valuable skills that employees have which
are not used in the execution of job descriptions that are often
defined and narrow. An assembly worker may be a talented musician.
That accountant may be an award-winning fisherman. Food service?
Everyone enjoys their talents!
Employee volunteerism programs allow for
what the WorkUSA 2000 report recommends: employee involvement,
communication, and advancement opportunities. The CEO and delivery
driver can work side by side productively, positively and
cooperatively when they are serving food at a homeless shelter. A
file clerk can get a bonus check and her photo in the company
newsletter when she has volunteered for fifty hours for a
company-sponsored crisis nursery. The company volunteerism program
can find valuable outlets for the musical assembly worker and the
fisherman, and show those employees that they are valued as people
as well as revenue producers.
Nearly two-thirds of employees believe that
their companies should sponsor a corporate citizenship program,
according to a recent report from the Council on Foundations. That
report confirms WorkUSA 2000’s findings that such these employer
practices improve recruitment, morale, loyalty, motivation, and
productivity.
If this is good business, then why is
workplace giving and volunteerism declining?
Corporate executives are not taking the
lead. Formal workplace giving programs are active in only 25% of
companies surveyed by the research organization, America’s
Charities. This is a significant decrease from the figures of a
decade ago. Research conducted in 1998 by the United Way of
America showed that per capita giving within a company increases
when a top executive is in a leadership role in their campaign.
Company executives must be leaders in their company and in
the community.
Who loses when business leaders don’t step
to the plate in the community?
The community loses energy, expertise, and
resources.
The company loses a chance for its leader to
gain trust from employees and build commitment. WorkUSA 2000 says
that this causes a loss in the bottom-line potential.
Who wins when business leaders create a
positive culture of corporate citizenship?
The community improves in quality of life
for all its members.
The leader gains trust and respect from
employees and peers.
The employees gain opportunities for
recognition, personal satisfaction, and commitment to the company.
The bottom line improves.
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