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Our mission should be “People First”.
In a published article, I discussed the Batho Pele principles and what it includes.
For those
who haven’t read the article; The Batho Pele principles is the mission
statement of the Ekurhuleni Municipality which means people first in Sesotho.
People First is
not an African slogan to be used when you are calling for solidarity or to use as a
political mantra. There is a definite responsibility that comes with that. People first is a cultural concept that means much more than
we have believed until now.
It carries a cultural weight that implies action and has
become a corporate value within global companies including Marriott, American
Express, Apple, McDonald’s, Ford, the US Army, Pushpay, issuu, and Capita.
Duplications like “We Care for People So They Can Be Their Best” (Hyatt), the
conscious culture focus at Cisco, “Customers First,” and “Team First,” are also
abundant.
But why?
Why are so
many large organizations declaring this a value and making operational choices
to display it?
In an article by Deb Calvert, 26 January 2022, What Does “People First” Mean in Business and Why Does It Matter?
It Is a Smart Business Strategy
Richard
Branson, founder of The Virgin Group, has attributed his success to people. He
says, “When it comes to business success, it is all about people, people,
people.” He explained that creating success starts with bringing people
together… that it’s the people who will define the vision and deliver the
results.
Marriott’s
philosophy is “If we take care of our people, they will take care of our
customers, and the customers will come back.”
The United
States Army built “people first” into its strategy, officially adopting this
philosophy in 2020. They wrote that “By prioritizing people first, the Army is
signalling that investing resources in our people initiatives is the most
effective way to accomplish our mission.”
In an
article by Ramus Hougaard, 5 March 2019, he examined the people first
organizations and summed it up this way: “The leaders of people-centric organizations understand that
it’s people who make their company successful. These companies realize that
when people feel valued and cared for, they do their work with stronger
intrinsic motivation, a deeper sense of meaning, and a greater level of
engagement. They go the extra mile simply because they want to contribute to an
organization that cares about them.” The Power of Putting People First
(forbes.com) The
Power of Putting People First (forbes.com)
The following points have been adapted from the above-mentioned article.
In short,
putting people first drives results from start to finish. It translates into
long-term success. It gives people a reason to work for and buy from the
municipality.
People
includes employees, co-workers, customers, community, and vendors.
Here are a
few benefits of putting people first in each of these groups:
• Employees (Public Servant): Putting
people first boosts employee engagement. Improved employee engagement drives
improvements in job satisfaction, quality, productivity, and customer
satisfaction. Employees must understand the objective of the Ekurhuleni
municipality and speak from one mouth. An employee cannot bend the rules to fit
him/her.
• Colleagues: Employees must work
together, edging each other on to better performance within their workplace.
They must be willing to learn a new skill to better their capability. Working
harder, caring more, and doing a better job will make them valuable for the
community.
• Customers: Providing great service and
competitive prices isn’t good enough anymore. They must continually look for
the “it” factors that give us a good experience. If you’re not showing the
community that you genuinely care, their experiences will be negatively
affected. To remain competitive, you’ve got to provide superior customer
experiences.
• Vendors: Sellers are people, too!
What’s more, every seller is also a potential customer and has relationships
with others who might be your employees or customers. Treating vendors
disrespectfully isn’t necessary and could result in blemishing your company’s
image. Pay them on time.
• Community: Whether you see yourself as
a local employer or a global citizen, what you do has a ripple effect on
others. When you give back to your community of interest, local community, or
philanthropic cause, you’re letting employees and customers know that you care
about community. Caring is contagious and causes others to see you in a
different light.
In various
ways, when you put people first, you reap financial rewards.
What Does “People First” Mean When It Comes to Actions?
The people
first philosophy drives actions that demonstrates that service is your top
priority. The foundation of this philosophy can be summarized with 5 E’s:
1. Enablement: You’re equipping employees
with the education, processes, resources, and autonomy needed to do their jobs.
You’re making it easy for customers to reach you and get answers to any
questions/problems they may have.
2. Engagement: You engage with colleagues
in all parts of your business. You’re asking vendors for their opinions and tap
into their networks. You enlist customers in evaluating product quality or new
product designs. You genuinely value, appreciate and seek employee input.
3. Ennoblement: You make people feel worthy
and important. You do this because you believe every person is worthy and
important. You’re not impatient, brusque, or dismissive because you want to
hear what employees, colleagues, customers, vendors, and community members can
offer.
4. Entelechy: You look for ways to unleash
hidden potential. You support personal and professional development, and you
challenge people to step outside their comfort zone in pursuit of their
passions and potential.
5. Empathy: You care enough to empathize
with others. You listen and care. You see people as people… imperfect, not
always “on”, and just trying to do their best with what they’ve got. You seek
to understand and meet them where they are.
10 actions that demonstrate your seriousness when putting people first:
• Leaders and managers take time to know
others and allow themselves to be knowable. You interact with people
human-to-human vs. boss-to-subordinate.
• You value input from others and
actively seek diverse points of view. You avoid making unilateral decisions and
show genuine interest in each individual’s opinions and ideas. You listen well,
ask probing questions, and mine for more.
• People development is a priority and
learning opportunities include stretch assignments, candid feedback, job
shadowing, mentoring, training for next-level roles and transferable skills,
and frequent discussions about career progression. You help people find these
opportunities and take advantage of the ones that fit their development needs.
• You proactively conduct stay
interviews (rather than merely reacting to too-late exit interviews). You also
have regular 1:1 meetings that centre on employee development and goals vs.
project updates and work tasks alone.
• Expectations are clearly set and
consistently applied. You’ve provided the what, why, and how related to work
you’ve assigned to others.
• Success is celebrated, effort is
encouraged, and achievement is acknowledged. You take time to notice and
recognize people’s contributions.
• People are united by a common purpose
that is bigger than the work tasks they do. You provide context that helps
connect the dots rather than barking out orders for tasks that seem meaningless
and mundane.
• You take time to explain changes,
policies, decisions, and assignments. You understand that accelerating change
requires understanding people’s emotional responses to it.
• You think about the impact of your
words and actions on others BEFORE you speak or act. You put yourself in the
other person’s shoes and consider how they will be impacted (mentally,
physically, and emotionally) by choices you make. You value the happiness and
well-being of people, and you take it into account when making decisions.
• Despite job titles and positional power dynamics, you view everyone as a leader in their own right. You set aside ego, hierarchy, and expedience to engage others and involve them in decisions that will affect them. You believe in leadership at every level and remove real and perceived barriers that would keep people from stepping into their full potential as leaders.
Common Misunderstandings: What People First Is NOT
This is
where a lot of people get it wrong. These common misunderstandings about
putting people first cause them to execute poorly or to expect something
different than what’s intended.
1.1 People First Is NOT person first.
Inside an organization, individuals will initially believe that putting
people first means “me first.” They’ll be inclined to think that this
philosophy gives them liberties to take advantage of an employer’s good nature.
They’ll ask for extra time off, for example, and lash out with “that’s not
putting people first” when the answer is “no.”
The distinction you need to make for them is that “people first” is not
about individuals. While there will be some benefits for all individuals, this
is about taking a Spock-like approach: “The needs of the many outweigh the
needs of the few… or the one.”
1.2 People First Is NOT about doing
other people’s work for them.
A common misunderstanding of people first (and of servant leadership) is
that doing work for people is a kindness. For example, a manager takes back
delegated work when an individual seems to be struggling with it. The manager,
meaning to be kind and wanting to serve others, does not realize that this
signals impatience and a lack of faith in the individual. It’s like saying
“well, I guess you can’t do this after all.”
Putting people first is about empowerment and giving people
opportunities to grow, not about depriving them of learning and growth
opportunities.
1.3 People First Is NOT fiscally
irresponsible.
Since it’s not profit first, many misunderstand and think “people first”
suggests profit is not important.
On the contrary!
To put people first, you’ve got to be profitable. And to be profitable,
you’ve got to put people first.
Healthy, profitable organizations are better able to provide training
and development opportunities. They’re more likely to invest time in
considering people’s input and in explaining the how’s and why’s of whatever
they’re asking people to do.
1.4 People First Is NOT something you
can fake.
You can’t fake putting people first. Your actions will betray you.
That’s why “people first” shouldn’t be a buzz phrase in your values. It
shouldn’t be a platitude in big, bold words on your website or wall. It
shouldn’t be a part of your business at all unless it’s a core, driving force
for your business.
1.5 People First Is NOT about emotions.
People first business still have to make business decisions. They still
use logic, critical thinking, analysis and common sense to operate day-to-day.
They don’t allow emotions to interfere with good decision making and planning.
Taking people into account is a logical process. Emotions and personal
connections are considered alongside the business needs and greater good.
This isn’t about putting everything to a popular vote. It’s not about
caving to others’ demands when those demands are bad for the business (or for
other people groups). Sometimes, people won’t like what’s been decided. But,
having been a part of the decision, they will be more likely to support it.
1.6 Finally, People First Is NOT meant
to stand alone.
People first is not measured by a single event, interaction, or
decision. People first organizations sometimes have to take actions that don’t
feel much like putting people first… but business realities (for the good of
all vs. the good of the few) may necessitate shifting the benefits plan, laying
people off, discontinuing a popular product, or making changes that disrupt
routines.
Even people first organizations sometimes disappoint some people.
Doing it transparently, after other options have been exhausted, is the
people first way to proceed at these times.
