Greenlight Leadership Company

Why We Do It

Because, quite simply, what we’re doing and how we’re doing it isn’t working, as evidenced by the following research:

The 2017 Edelman Trust Barometer reveals that trust is in crisis around the world. The general population’s trust in all four key institutions — business, government, NGOs, and media — has declined broadly, a phenomenon not reported since Edelman began tracking trust among this segment in 2012.

"To rebuild trust and restore faith in the system, institutions must step outside of their traditional roles and work toward a new, more integrated operating model that puts people — and the addressing of their fears — at the center of everything they do."

Statistics

Some stats summarized by the  report: Gallup State of the American Workplace

Most workers, many of whom are millennials, approach a role and a company with a highly-defined set of expectations. They want their work to have meaning and purpose. They want to use their talents and strengths to do what they do best every day. They want to learn and develop. They want their job to fit their life. 

 

Employee Engagement

Only 33% of employees are engaged. That means 67% are disengaged or actively disengaged.

Employee Role Ability

60% of employees say the ability to do what they do best in a role is “very important to them."

Generation Career Goals

45% of millennials vs 31% of Gen Xers and 18% of baby boomers say that a job that accelerates their professional or career development is "very important" to them.

Further Highlights (Gallup)

  • Employees value authenticity and uniqueness
  • If organizations want to engage their employees, the best place to start is by developing managers’ abilities to coach
  • Only 45% of executives are engaged vs. 29% of front line managers
  • Employees who are supervised by “highly engaged” managers are 59% more likely to be engaged than those supervised by actively disengaged managers
  • The largest companies in the U.S. have the lowest levels of engagement 
  • Engagement presents the greatest challenge for companies with 1,000 or more employees. Per the U.S. Census Bureau, 52% of employees work for companies with at least 1,000 employees, making the engagement of these organizations’ workforces critical to economic progress
  • Gallup analysis shows that the 1,000-employee mark seems to be the tipping point for declining engagement within a company. When an organization reaches this size, a smaller percentage of employees strongly agree that they have the opportunity to do what they do best every day and that their organization's mission or purpose makes them feel their job is important

    For someone who has spent 25 years in the employee engagement space, these statistics are depressing to me, yet not surprising. 

    In the spirit of change though, there is always a good side…Something to get excited about, something to have hope for…
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So, Here’s What IS Working…

 

From Firms of Endearment

Today's greatest companies are fueled by passion and purpose, not cash.

They earn large profits by helping all their stakeholders (customers, investors, employees, partners, communities, and society) thrive.

These rare, authentic firms of endearment act in powerfully positive ways that stakeholders recognize, value, admire, and even love.

They make the world better by the way they do business and the world responds.

Sounds great, right? Maybe a little too good to be true? So, check this out:

The Firms of Endearment that are featured in their book reveal that they have out-performed the S&P by 14 times over a period of 15 years. 

From The Evolved Enterprise

Yanik Silver redefines how business is played in the 21st century at the intersection of more profits, more fun and more impact. 

The Evolved Enterprise is about empowering people to create businesses that truly inspire them and make them excited to get out of bed in the morning.

Yanik believes that business can be about much more than just earning profits - business can also be the ultimate lever for making a difference in the world.

"In fact… businesses that are embracing a meaningful cause have discovered that it gives them a significant competitive advantage over their competitors… and that’s why this idea will continue to spread.

We’re now in the midst of a ‘global shift’ in the way entrepreneurs think about business."

As Zappos.com CEO Tony Hsieh has said:

“There’s a transformative shift in business, and what worked before is no longer an option. It’s time for evolved entrepreneurs, visionary creators, and change makers to rewrite the rules of business for the 21st century.”