Trust in business is currently at its lowest level ever. The “2024 Edelman Trust Barometer Global Report” recently revealed that only a minority of people globally trust businesses to do what is right, reflecting widespread skepticism and concerns about corporate integrity and transparency.
This isn’t great news for business.
When people aren’t engaged and don’t feel a connection to something, there are massive consequences. This is why absenteeism is currently through the roof; people are calling in sick more than ever, and many employees are simply checking out (either showing up for work and not engaging or quitting altogether).
And this is costing companies billions.
In fact, disengaged employees cost US companies up to $550 billion a year, according to a 2023 Gallup report.
You see, companies are working as though it’s still the Industrial Age. They believe that focusing on profit is the only way to run a business. It worked then because products and services were uniform and based in one region, and executive thinking was independent.
Workers clocked in, did the basic work that needed to be done (with the manager barking orders), and then clocked out. The quality of life wasn’t great or aspirational, but it worked in that context. Nothing personal — only business.
Do we honestly think that this scenario works now?
We are now in the technological and digital age. Business is much more interconnected. We are more interdependent, our competitors are also our allies, and change is more fluid. The work is global, the challenges exponentially more complex, and the solutions require creativity and involvement from various sources, sectors, and regions. People are also demanding transparency, to the point where transparency is fundamental to the way business needs to be done (to create trust and connection) — and because of technology, you can no longer hide.
We’re at an inflection point. The power is shifting into the hands of people: customers and employees. More than ever, there is a competitive urgency to create spaces and cultures where people want to work and that make them happy. The leaders who can do this will win; these leaders put human values like kindness, empathy, vulnerability, imagination, creativity, and courage first. Spaces need to be created where people like what they do, feel psychologically safe, feel empowered, aspire to do their best, want to come up with great ideas and solutions, and want to stay.
Engaged employees have major consequences on companies: Gallup found that engaged teams are 21% more profitable, and happy employees are 400% more innovative.
This, of course, makes sense.
When people believe in what they are doing and feel a part of it, they create better customer service. When employees feel psychologically safe to innovate, they push their thinking further and happily voice their ideas. They are excited about going to work, don’t often miss work, feel like they are a part of the solution, and don’t quit. And if people aren’t leaving, then companies aren’t spending billions to replace them.
[For more from the author on this topic, see: “The Power of Purpose.”]
