In the interest of brevity and clarity I promise this essay will not exceed 450 words. This is going to be brutally forthright and fourth-grade simple. Just answer this question: “How long would you keep your job if your performance was effective, useful, productive, or successful a mere one-third of the time?”
To further simplify the proposition, let’s frame the question using specific examples. How long would you keep your job if you were:
1. VP of Purchasing, and 2/3 of materials and supplies arrive late for production.
2. VP of Engineering, and 2/3 of the manufacturing equipment designed or purchased failed to meet performance expectations.
3. VP Marketing, and only 1/3 of your promotion and advertising produces effective or persuasive results.
4. VP of Logistics, and a mere 1/3 of shipments to customers arrive complete and on-time.
5. VP of Manufacturing, and 2/3 of products produced had to be reworked or discarded.
Had enough?
If you answered “indefinitely” or “what’s your point?” to any of the above examples, you are completely missing the point and you are excused.
If you answered “not long” then I’m guessing you are as puzzled as I that C-Level execs of virtually every Fortune 1000 company are allowed to keep their jobs when on average only one of three employees is engaged and fully productive.
I will not bore you with numerous citations, but oodles of studies now confirm that roughly two of three employees are passive, detached, or actively disengaged. This unfathomable waste of creative energy my friends is a monumental failure of Leadership –- pure and simple.
How do hundreds of thousands of senior executives keep their jobs when their leadership results in such an abysmal waste of creative capital?
“If people don’t want to come out to the ballpark, nobody’s gonna stop them.”
— Yogi Berra
The saddest and most devastating waste of resources in corporations today is the untapped creativity, enthusiasm and discretionary effort, lying dormant in the hearts, minds and spirit of the workforce.
Discretionary effort may neither be bought nor coerced, but will be given freely by an inspired, engaged worker. Inspiration and enthusiastic engagement in the workforce are the fruits of Visionary, Conscious Leadership. Until we break completely free of the Industrial-Age-Management paradigm and learn to embrace introspection, self-awareness, sustainability, feminine leadership energy and pursuit of higher self, we will continue to squander the most valuable corporate assets of all.
By the way, in case you weren’t paying attention, the correct answer is, “Not long.”
Please email me at: [email protected]
Follow me on Twitter: @Altrupreneur
Visit my Website: Altrupreneur.com
Connect with me on Linkedin
Or visit our Linkedin Discussion Group at Altrupreneurs Creating Enthusiastic Engagement
