Value-addition.....and enablement -101

In a recent training session that I was conducting on the subject of motivation, one of the participants asked me to explain the concept of "value-addition". Initially, I thought that the query was rather naive, but on reflection, I realized that she had posed a profound question.

In contemplation, I sat down in the balcony, doodling away over a steaming cup of coffee the next morning, and came up with a laundry list to define "value-addition" that was pruned to a reasonable length. I thought I should share it here for the benefit of students and entry-level or early-stage career aspirants and for anyone else who may be interested.

I would like to introduce a disclaimer at this point: in my view "value-addition" is not absolute in itself; it is a relative and perceived construct, that lies (like beauty) in the eye of the beholder. Also, the concept can be domain-agnostic, being portable across fields. Value-addition however, does imply a change from the status-quo.

Following could be some of the basic generic examples of value-addition cutting across situations, professional or personal:

1. Saving time and/or effort
2. Relieving pain, agony or discomfort
3. Making something easier, faster or more efficient, for example: automating and speeding up a manual process or workflow
4. Generating and/or implementing an idea that fulfills a hitherto unaddressed need
5. Teaching or enabling another to learn a skill, technique, procedure, concept or philosophy from scratch to an acceptable degree of proficiency
6. Making something...anything...safe, strong, secure and/or sustainable
7. Detecting and fixing an error, anticipating and preventing mishaps and accidents, eliminating or mitigating risks
8. Saving costs or expenses or generating profit, all towards financial gain
9. Improving or enhancing quality of a process, product or the environment, incrementally or radically

One or two of the above may lie at the cusp of value-addition and value-maintenance i.e. prevention of value erosion, possibly no.2 and 7, because they imply the return of the situation to the desired "normal" steady-state in life i.e. restoration of the earlier acceptable status-quo.

The other side of the value-add coin, "value-enablement", is less noticed in the "perception of value" game. Similar to Herzberg's theory of motivation, which describes "hygienes" and "motivators", where restoring the former to the desired "normal" state prevents dissatisfaction (but does not necessarily motivate people), value-enablers are the unsung heroes who are often castigated when there is erosion of value, but relatively receive few bouquets in comparison for ensuring continuous uninterrupted value preservation. The reasons for this perceptual dichotomy between "value-creation" and "value-enablement" are not far to seek.

One could debate on whether the rewards for "value-creation" and "value-enablement" should be differentiated, acknowledged equally or recognized equitably. I will leave it to you, dear reader, to mull on this question and share your thoughts!

Note: The above article/post, with its contents is purely the personal view of the author, expressed purely in his personal capacity and is not related to any specific existing organization, institution, group or individual. Any such perceived resemblance or derived linkage or relationship is purely coincidental and unintended.