Employee Engagement: Cultivating the Mission Minded Workforce

In the modern workplace, when evaluating employee engagement, employers are searching for a type of candidate to add to their workforce. There are two types of employees, those who view the workplace as a job and those see it as a calling; or their mission in life.  One punches a time card, works to rule and gives adequate effort to achieve results which keeps them employed. The other, the more desired employee, sees their role within the workplace as being inextricably conjoined to their purpose in life.

The mission minded employee views their career path as a means to be of value in the endeavor of helping others.  While it may have the appearance of modern pop psychology and the cult of “positive thinking”, there is scientific proof that those who see themselves as living their calling offer more value to the workforce than those who simply work to rule.

Science Supports the Value of the Mission Minded Employee

In a study conducted by the US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health, proved those who seek out to live their calling, regardless of results; offer benefits that,

[1] “perceiving a calling and living a calling were positively correlated with career commitment, work meaning, and job satisfaction.”  

This viewpoint proved beneficial in the workplace as those,

[2] “living a calling moderated the relations of perceiving a calling with career commitment and work meaning, such that these relations were more robust for those with a stronger sense they were living their calling.”

More to the point, those who held the belief that they were living their calling experience higher level of job satisfaction which impacted their career commitment as well as an overall sense of contentment and well-being.

While the study did not conclude that workplace culture correlated with overall life satisfaction, the authors of the study state that it may have an indirect impact.  It went further to state that as employees are allowed to increase their ability to live out their calling in the workplace, the results positively impacted job fulfillment which directly increased the company’s productivity and profitability.  

The question then arises: How does the workplace cultivate a supportive workplace that empowers the mission minded employee?

Empowering Top Producers

Unfortunately, many employers are facing the age of entitlement. The younger members of the workforce are expecting high end rewards for merely showing up. What these younger workers fail to realize is that much like anyone starting out, there are learning curves and performance evaluations. 

Everyone has to pay their dues and work their way up the ladder.  However, a business also should be based on a meritocracy, and not seniority driven. Rewards come to those who produce, not merely show up.  The task then becomes cultivating talent and enterprise within the workforce, even with less experienced employees.  The important component is discovering the mission minded candidate, and cultivating opportunities for engagement.

Here are three ways in which the workplace can cultivate the resources of the mission minded employee.

Engagement Through Inclusion

Ideas are the lifeblood of any enterprise and sometimes they come from the most unlikely sources.  Go to any watering hole and one will hear stories where ideas offered by junior members of staff, which could dramatically increase the profitability of a business; go ignored by those in holding superior positions.  This is not to say that all ideas are profitable, however read any business journal and there are stories of burgeoning entrepreneurs leaving their places of employment only to find success with those who appreciated their abilities and talents.

Engagement Through Recognition and Promotion

It is vital to be knowledgeable of staff, their abilities and how to utilize them. Rewarding a mission minded employee through appropriate recognition goes a long way in cultivating the talents of the workforce. It also builds employee loyalty and retains the talent that a business has investing in cultivating. 

Taking the ideas of an employee then handing the reins of responsibilities for the completion of the assignment to another is a sure-fire way to alienate the talent available within the workforce. Talent will go to where it is valued, appreciated and allowed to flourish.  Unfortunately, when talent leaves for greener pastures, so do any benefits the employer may have reaped in profiting from having the mission minded employee on their staff.

Engagement Through Appropriate Financial Remuneration

Business Directory.com defines Financial Remuneration as:

[3] “Reward for employment in the form of pay, salary, or wage including allowances, benefits (such as company car, medical plan, pension plan) bonuses, cash incentives, and monetary value of the non-cash incentives.”

It almost goes without saying that while some overvalue their contribution to an organization, there are occasions when feeling undervalued is perfectly justified.  While it may not always be feasible to reward employees financially as one may desire, the bottom line is that even the mission minded employee wants to be appropriately compensated for the effort, talent and service to their employer.  In neglecting to appropriately reward the exceptional employee will result in their departure, taking their abilities with them.

Loyalty Breeds Productivity

A workplace environment where the employer relegates the more capable employee in a job which does not allow for the cultivation of their abilities runs the risk of a potential negative impact upon the company and its productivity.  

The modern workplace is ripe for a revolutionary shift in how employers view their staff. It is important now, more than ever, to cultivate the mission minded producer and reduce the potential of marginalizing or ignoring their talents.  It benefits an employer to allow those with the greatest strengths the opportunity to excel and receive appropriate workplace engagement. 

The mission minded employee that is not recognized, valued or effectively utilized, is a resource that does not enable a business to reach its full potential.   However, when an employer cultivates the talent of the mission minded employee, they create the opportunity for higher productivity with new ideas, solutions and systems which can bring prosperity to a company.

Sources

[1] US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health, Study on living out a calling http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22059426

[2] US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22059426

[3] Definition of Financial Remuneration. http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/remuneration.html