‘Living your Purpose’ requires you to make the right decision at key tension points. US-based consultancy August uses its Values to help staff make the toughest calls.
We’ve all been there as leaders: we’ve had tough calls to make with benefits, costs and consequences. Do I choose bottom line profit or employee learning and development? Do I prioritise individual recognition, or that of the team? Do I stand up for flexible working practices or team togetherness?
A Purpose-driven culture lives or dies through the toughest decisions made, especially by senior leaders, at critical moments. If such a decision is made and communicated well, stakeholders – especially employees – deepen their commitment and it becomes a ‘teachable moment’.
At August Public Inc, they’ve wrestled with the biggest tensions they face and decided to reflect those tensions – and the choices made to resolve them – in their Values. For example, they’ve decided to prioritise: Team ‘even at the expense of flexibility and individual recognition’; Equity ‘even at the expense of fast growth and ease of cultural affinity’.
Do your company’s Values help leaders resolve key tensions and set priorities with confidence? If not, work with your colleagues to identify typical tension points; and like August, make it very clear where you stand.
To find out more, check out the Team section of August’s website.
