Translator: Valérie ESPANET Reviewer: Zsófia Herczeg
Imagine for a moment
that you're miserable at work,
and you're thinking about quitting.
But you're really good at your job.
Colleagues come to you when they need help,
clients praise you.
You have a supportive manager,
and you may even be paid really well.
Would you walk away from that?
Now, I know what you're thinking.
Why would someone walk away from what sounds like a dream job?
But I know that I have.
And at first, I actually used to be so guilty and feel so ashamed
for feeling so miserable and wanting to leave.
But the more that I shared my story,
the more I realized that I was not alone.
Because it turns out that great people quit good jobs all of the time.
The real question is: Why?
There's a saying in American business
that people do not quit companies,
From my personal and professional experience,
I believe there's something much more at play
than just people quitting leaders.
I believe great people do not quit companies or leaders.
Great people quit organizational cultures.
Today, I want to talk to you about two things.
One, why that happens,
and two,
how you can create a meaningful work environment
in which great people like yourselves would want to stay.
You see, any organization is comprised of two categories of people:
employees and leaders.
Employees and leaders work together under a set of defined rules.
This is the definition of a culture.
What's interesting
is that the culture of a company is similar to that of the human body.
Like your own body, cultures have a DNA imprint
that transfers messages created by the people working together.
If we take a closer look at a culture's DNA strands,
we will find that they are encoded with information like
values,
attitudes
and beliefs shared by the people working together.
So in this context, culture then provides a sequence of instruction
and code for how people are treated,
how decisions are made,
who gets hired or fired
and what behaviors are rewarded,
promoted, valued and recognized.
And just like your body,
the culture of a company adapts
to any environment that it finds itself in.
The human body is a fascinating instrument
in that it can go from fight-or-flight survival mode to thrive
depending on how favorable conditions are for growth and sustainability.
Cultures are no different.
So you see,
when people at work are unhappy,
especially great people,
it stresses the entire organization.
This leads to a company culture
operating in survival mode.
So what does a culture in survival mode feel like?
If you hold your breath
the moment you walk into work
in an attempt to "make it" through the day,
and you do not exhale until you leave the office,
and you do this day in and day out,
that is a clear indication you may be working in a company culture
operating in survival mode.
Constantly working in this type of environment
is at best uninspiring, and at worst, it is exhausting.
The hard truth is,
many organizations operate culturally
So as you can see, this guy is clearly in survival mode right now.
So, what does a culture in survival mode look like?
It is an environment where at the top of the house,
there is a lack of clear leadership.
And because there's no clear leadership,
this leads to a misalignment of the vision or direction,
where the activities and decisions made throughout the entire organization
do not match its core values.
And since the vision is misaligned,
this leads to no clarity in the roles and responsibility of its people.
And because there's no clarity in the roles,
this leads to compromised values or beliefs.
And it becomes a place
where mediocre performance is accepted and even encouraged.
Once you have compromised values, this leads to toxic behavior
being tolerated by employees and leaders alike.
And it becomes a place where people are constantly disrespected
for no good reason,
and everyone's opinions are not valued as equally.
Once toxic behavior seeps in,
this leads to a cliquish environment.
And it becomes a place where there's a lack of diverse thoughts,
the wrong people being promoted,
and no appreciation for community, affinity
and recognition of others.
And guess what.
Once you have a lack of diversity and inclusion,
this leads to stagnant organizational structures and processes,
and it manifests into a place that becomes too difficult
and too political to get any damn thing done -
which leads to great people quitting good jobs.
But it doesn't have to be this way.
On the other hand,
what does a thriving culture look like?
I'm going to provide you three specific examples.
It's the successful online entertainment company
that disrupted an entire industry with a thriving culture.
It is a place where people are very thoughtful
in how they hire employees and leaders for culture,
and never ever wavering from that recruitment criteria.
It is a place where only high performance is accepted and valued.
It is a place where creativity and innovation are the norm,
and people are empowered to take charge of their careers
as well as the company's direction.
Or take a social media giant
that created an entirely new sector with a thriving culture.
It is a place where employees and leaders share the same open workplace.
It is a place where trust and transparency are bound
to create the perfect backdrop for bold problem-solving solutions.
It is a place
where it's about being accountable for how decisions are made,
and what behaviors are rewarded.
I personally remember the very first time I experienced a thriving culture.
It was actually with a former client of a financial services organization.
That experience still brings a smile to my face 10 years later.
I used to love going to that client site
because every day I was part of something really special.
It was so amazing.
Everyone had a voice, and they rallied to solve the company's challenges.
And in meetings,
I actually couldn't tell the C-suite executive
from the entry level employee.
And that is because in thriving cultures,
the line between leaders and employees are blurred
because everyone is empowered to take charge.
An increasing number of companies are beginning to realize
that culture can be a key distinct competitive advantage
to mitigate against market threats.
In a global human capital trends report,
over 50 percent of CEOs surveyed
are currently attempting to change their culture
in response to shifting talent markets.
In today's competitive, looming environment,
there is a threat of disruptive technologies
such as artificial intelligence.
With robotic automation,
your very livelihood may be at stake
without a thriving culture.
You cannot afford to ignore the problem anymore.
According to a Harvard Business Review,
adaptability is a key distinct advantage of thriving cultures.
And companies that get this
understand that culture is the key to sustaining market competitiveness.
While I'm not saying that thriving cultures are perfect,
thriving cultures are about performance.
Thriving cultures adapt.
Most of all, thriving cultures get results.
Are you ready to take on the challenge of owning your experience
and creating a meaningful work environment?
(Laughs)
Employees,
stop accepting the mediocrity,
being dished out by colleagues,
management and leadership teams alike.
Ask the hard question,
get involved in problem-solving,
be part of the conversation.
And take time to reflect:
What is stopping you and your colleagues
from coming in and doing your best work?
And liberally share those ideas with everyone around you.
Last but not least, employees,
if you have done everything, and I do mean everything,
and there still is no change after a concerted effort,
you have the power to walk away
and find an environment that aligns with your values.
But remember, employees,
you are the validators of a culture.
So if you stay and become complacent,
you also bear responsibility should your colleague walk away.
Leaders,
take charge of the narrative you create every single day.
Leaders, you are the regulators of a culture.
Step up to your role accordingly.
Step up!
You do not have to accept survival mode as your reality
or the reality of your people.
And that also doesn't mean, leaders, to go and dump the problem onto HR
to create yet another forced employee engagement program
and then walking away.
Because what you're essentially doing,
is putting the burden of your leadership responsibility
of owning and shaping culture
onto a business function instead of onto yourself.
Leaders,
how are you conveying a vision
that makes people excited to want to come to work?
Walk the halls and talk to your people,
and figure out what do they need.
Do they need empowerment to make their own decisions,
processes improved,
coaching,
new experiences,
political obstacles removed?
Just like the body,
it is your decisions and habits as a leader
that either creates a thriving culture
or reinforces a culture in survival mode.
So, imagine that instead of being miserable at work
you woke up every day excited and energized
to create a thriving culture that becomes so amazing
you not only attract the best possible colleagues
but you help build a business that can adapt
and thrive in the digital economy.
Employees and leaders
have the power to shape the conditions of the work environment.
And maybe with your help,
we can wake up in a world
where great people do not quit good jobs,
but good jobs do not quit great people.
Thank you.
(Applause)