Why "meaning" matters

© Minerva Studio - Fotolia.com

So it stands to reason that your people are different too. And in my view, the standout difference is that being in business simply to make money is not enough. This has far-ranging consequences that are only going to become more complex to manage.

I met with four CEOs in India last year, all of whom headed up multi-national companies (Intel, Pepsi, Coke, and Whirlpool) and each, to my surprise, shared the same challenge. They were losing their top talent because of a lack of social relevance within their businesses.

Compounding their problem was the fact that they had no idea how to address the situation - their businesses had been commercially driven for decades and changing this construct was neither within their power, nor their skill set.

What's driving this change is a broad wave of consciousness sweeping the world, including the world of business. People have higher levels of EQ, are more aware of social problems and have a vested interest in fixing them. Employees are demanding a more rewarding work experience, and are willing to make the tough decisions to get more meaning from their jobs, including giving up high salaries and corporate career tracks.

So, you have a chance to make a pre-emptive strike against becoming outdated. And you'll be pleased to know that it doesn't involve tacking on a '.org' to the end of your company URL.

But it does mean the following:

• Making sure you've done your own work to understand "meaning" as a trend, and how it's affecting workplace dynamics;
  
• Moving beyond CSR/CSI thinking, which is simply not enough in the eyes of a younger generation and in fact, can often be seen as a disingenuous attempt merely to be seen to be "doing the right thing";
  
• Accepting that a (growing) part of your leadership role is to ensure that your workplace experience is dynamic - and that this is something you're going to need to work harder and harder at.

The big opportunity - one that will drive your commercial performance - lies in figuring out the space where doing actually drives your underlying commercial performance. Essentially, where values meets value.

It might be tough to even comprehend this idea, but when you've figured out how to meet a social need while at the same time profiting appropriately from it, you'll find yourself attracting smart, conscious people who'll stick around because their jobs will be meaningful.

And that's why meaning matters.