A compass for contribution (the rest is unwritten)

Despite managing change every day (within us and around us) we organise our lives around agreements, promises and commitments. Some formally contracted, most not, and yet they guide our expectations and influence our feelings. Jobs are just the same - interviews culminating in the agreement of contractual terms - location, working hours, salary, benefits, company policies, bonus schemes, etc.

The ‘if you do this, then you’ll get that…’ expectations are set early on and rarely re-visited unless breached. Vroom’s ‘Expectancy Theory’ developed in the 1960s sums this up nicely. He proposed that we are motivated by the extent to which we value a reward, how likely we feel we are to attain this, and how strongly we believe the reward will materialise should the outcome be achieved.?

You don’t have to look too hard to see this theory in action in organisations today: Setting individual KPIs (often linked with overall company goals); reviewing progress; linking individual contribution to reward and recognition.

But I also expected this…

When taking on a new job we are also, psychologically, signing-up to a much longer, unwritten, list of expectations. Like booking a holiday - the hotel website, package and deal are closely reviewed, but it’s the TripAdvisor reviews and conversations with friends who have stayed before which muster images of once in a life-time experiences, incredible food, world class service and the promise of a truly relaxing break. That’s what we expect when we get there.

In work, the psychological contract we establish can be wide ranging. From flexibility and autonomy (ultimately driven by trust), timeframes for progression and how interesting or challenging the work will be, to - who I work for, and with. It is incredibly powerful, and if compromised, is hard to regain. I have seen many people struggle and have felt this tension myself, ultimately resulting in a decision to leave the role after a short period of time.

Breaks in the psychological contract often happen following change, i.e. a different manager steps in, a new function is established, or an individual returns to work following a period of extended leave (as our lives change, priorities and commitments also shift). Having open, on-going dialogue about this is essential. A colleague has helped me to try and embrace a more BeNeLux style approach to giving feedback and sharing feelings of misalignment as soon as they occur. It’s wise because unchecked the small things mount up; and eventually the straw will land and break the camel’s back.

Into the unknown

One of the challenges with how we design and set up organisations – roles, responsibilities, structures – is that nothing stays still in today’s world. The days of clearly defined job descriptions are disappearing; once written, out of date. The pace of transformation and disruption is immense and constellations continually shift. We have all learned that we don’t want to be working for the Blockbusters of today, looking at a sorry collection of videos collecting dust.

What does this mean for how we enable people to contribute, in a clear and visible way, to an organisation’s success?

Many are looking to skills and outcomes. These bring agility because they step away from the rigidity of roles and people tools and systems are emerging to help view capability and potential at a macro level, creating marketplaces to aligning individuals with opportunity. All good and exciting stuff, but we mustn’t forget that as humans, we want to understand how to contribute, to know when we have got this right and to feel valued and appreciated for it.

Whilst the landscape might be continually moving around us - we need a compass, a map to back up our instincts, friend to share the journey with, and a rewarding cake and cup of tea once we reach our destination.

Following the pandemic, research has shown that our motivators and priorities have been re-ordered. Having had the foundations of our lives rocked – health, friendship, security – many are now searching for a new North star. McKinsey’s great attrition report revealed that people are leaving jobs in search of caring leaders and supportive teams, achievable goals, growth opportunities, meaningful and purposeful work, balance and well-being.

Purpose plays a key role and when captured well creates the red thread running throughout an organization, pulling people together, aligning actions and creating meaningful work. Organisational strategy and priorities linking back to galvanizing drivers of purpose work because they bring people together through a shared cause. Today, individuals and managers work hard to continuously review and re-set goals throughout the year, as context changes. Team or functional OKRs could also be beneficial, since they involve collaboration to design and manage, and focus on broader objectives.

Pull the Ripcord!

We also need to establish clear expectations on how work gets done to ensure this is ethical and sustainable. Toxic culture is a huge and growing issue (a topic I will return to throughout this series) as well as providing a compass we must make sure people feel they can pull the ripcord if needed. As building inclusive, sustainable, ethical businesses becomes non-negotiable, communicating behaviours, values and principles to propel a healthy culture is a core expectation. Huel captured this simply in the slogan ‘Don’t be a Dick’ . Over-simple, perhaps, but gets the message across memorably! As humans, we follow people and cues, especially those in authority, as the infamous Milgram obedience experiments in the 1960s showed (participants following the commands of a person in authority to administer electric shocks to others) and Zimbardo’s Prisoner experiment (everyday members of the public seamlessly adopting roles of prisoner and guard), demonstrated deindividuation , a state when you become so immersed in the norms of the group that you lose your sense of identity and personal responsibility.

These experiments might feel dated, but there are many similar modern day instances: The storming of the Capitol in the US in 2021; London Riots in 2011; and every day in organisations cultures of ?harassment, bullying and abuse simmer and people are paid bonuses for results they have achieved in unethical ways.

Not only do we need to feel valued and to know where we’re heading, we also need constant guiding, role-modelling, recognition, and to feel supported and able to flag experiences of poor behaviour (establishing Psychological Safety is a must and something I will come back to in the series). As we head into the unknown, uniting people through a North star and a compass to guide the path ahead will help build resilient, empowered and agile organisations.

?Make it Human

1. ?Understand what you and others are really expecting from a job (beyond the contractual terms) and talk about it, so you can start from the same page and feel valued
2. Take a tip from friends in BeNeLux and don’t let feelings of misalignment fester! Have open and honest conversations so you can keep re-evaluating psychological contracts
3. Find your North star (as an individual and a company) and use this to create a compass for contribution to build unity as we and the path ahead constantly evolve
4. Focus on outcomes and skills more than roles and tasks to create greater agility for when the landscape shifts
5. Communicate both what good looks like and what it doesn’t look like, making sure you reward outcomes driven by positive behaviour and make it easy for people to speak-up when behaviour is misaligned

Happy and sustainable organisations happen when we Make it Human. This article shares the second step in this model – designing the roles, responsibilities and rip-cords so people can contribute in a positive and sustainable way.

Want to read more?

Start with Why , Simon Sinek

The secret ingredient of thriving companies? Human Magic. Hubert Joly, HBR, 2022

How will you measure your life? , Clayton Christensen

How an accounting firm convinced its employees they could change the world , HBR, 2015