By David Harder on January, 25, 2017

The Single Best Take-Away From the Best Places to Work

In 2015, Fortune Magazine’s “The 100 Best Places to Work” issue awarded many of the usual world-class employers like Google, Marriott and others. But they did something new. They studied the firms that had been on that list for over five years straight and they found only one characteristic in common:

Each organization fosters strong and rewarding relationships amongst their employees.

There is a basic drive amongst humans to connect and in some levels merge. We observe this in our two-day engagement program. When people “discover” each other, even after working together for years, their workplace awakens. People want to know the truth, the desires, the aspirations, and ambitions of their colleagues. When we define and language that clearly, a new level of support opens up.

When we are surrounded with people who are helping us get what we want out of life and our work, that one shift becomes a game changer. When we turn our jobs into platforms for learning and growth, we can help each other, often in ways, we never dreamed.

Last week, I interviewed the CEO of a multi-billion dollar tech company for my new book, The Workplace Engagement Solution (Career Press). The organization has one of the lowest turnover rates in the entire tech industry. They reach this because they only hire strongly collaborative individuals and active learners. They grow and retain talent by offering continual opportunities to grow and foster relationships amongst their people.

It is the strength of relationships in organizations that pulls talent through difficult times and also spurs growth and creativity. In the 26 years that I have been doing this work, I have come to the conclusion that humankind’s single greatest source of failure is isolation. For many older workers, that isolation comes naturally. In the industrial based workplace isolation was part of the landscape. Visibility was often a source of trouble. Today, setting up the circumstances to end isolation is not only a good thing, is it critical for everyone’s success. Learning how to connect with others in a broad array of circumstances is key to thriving. Coming to love the people that we work with is a fundamental need in coming to love our work.

Personally, I find it affirming that time-and-time again, people produce greatness by connecting at a deeper level. It is equally affirming that category leaders totally “get it.”

Brought to you by David Harder, President – Inspired Work, Inc. (310) 277-4850