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Bruce Bolger, Managing Director,
Enterprise Engagement Alliance CELEBRATE TEAMWORK
Making Business More 'People Centric'
he Occupy Wall Street movement may have faded, but its legacy • Communicate honestly, consistently and regularly with
is that only about half of Americans in a recent Brookings survey all of their consttuencies, providing useful informaton
Tsay they believe capitalism is working at least “somewhat well.” instead of hype and seeking to align the interests of all their
The efort to raise the minimum wage promises to become an electon external and internal communites, rather than separate
issue in many districts. High percentages of Americans in multple them into silos.
studies have said they are willing to pay more for products made by • Inspire collaboraton and innovaton by invitng all of their
people in “good working conditons.” Given all this, it would seem that consttuencies to provide new ideas for products, services
tried-and-true capitalism is taking a beatng. and improvements, and rewarding those who do.
What’s the soluton? More government regulaton? Mandated • Work closely with their suppliers to make sure the products
proft-sharing? Ironically, the best answer may lie with capitalism itself. and services they provide are up to the standards promised
Labor organizer and union leader Samuel Gompers once noted to their customers. Such organizatons are also more vigilant
about partnering with companies that maintain good
that “The worst crime against working people is a company which fails working conditons and pay.
to operate at a proft.” I couldn’t agree more. With mountng proof
that running a business based on people is more successful over tme • View corporate social responsibility and sustainability as an
than focusing strictly on profts, the tme has come to embrace a more investment, not a cost, because they can measure the long-
‘people-centric’ approach to business. term fnancial benefts of having engaged communites and
avoiding costly litgaton related to environmental and other
A COMMON SET OF VALUES regulatory issues.
There are numerous examples of people-centric companies: Costco,
the Container Store, Nordstrom, Southwest Airlines, Whole Foods, A NEED FOR DEFINITION
Starbucks and Zappos are among the best known – and the list is Make sense? Sure. But by most estmates, no more than a small
growing every day. What do they have in common? percentage of organizatons strategically run their businesses based on
these principles – and it’s prety easy to understand why.
• A focus on long-term, sustainable proftability and return
for investors rather than short-term returns, creatng a First, the subject of people is a “warm and fuzzy” concept – many
beter opportunity for the average investor who can’t play stll claim there’s no proof a focus on people will provide a compettve
the market. advantage. Second, the subject isn’t taught in any business schools, so
there’s no commonly understood nomenclature or framework. Third, Bulova Precisionist is in a league of its own. Created by our team and perfect for yours,
• They keep promises. They make life beter because there isn’t an accepted name to describe it or the companies that
they sincerely want to make customers happy and get practce it. And, perhaps most importantly, it’s easier to make money these premier timepieces are precise to 1/1,000th of a second and accurate to seconds per year.
them engaged. They know customers who become fans in the short term by focusing on profts.
signifcantly lower their marketng costs and help them Treat your employees, clients, or customers to unrivaled performance from Bulova,
create ideas for new products and sources of proft. On the other hand, imagine a world in which the majority of
organizatons were run according to the principles laid out above. The the Official Timekeeper of Manchester United.
• Treat employees as brand ambassadors who can attract need for government and industry regulaton would decline, because
other talent and even customers. They value talent and businesses would realize it’s actually in their best interest not to abuse
provide better benefits and compensation than their people or harm the environment. Prosperity would increase because
competitors. They know that highly engaged employees there would be more higher-paid people with disposable income and
make it better for customers, thereby increasing skills. There would be even more great ideas coming out of business
the customer satisfaction and retention that lowers because more people would be inspired to contribute. Daily living
marketing costs. would be easier, because there would be less aggravaton from poor
• Invest in training and career development because they service or unkept promises and other unnecessary headaches.
know enriched employees will stay and recommend the In a word, Engagement. In fact, we defne it simply and succinctly
organizaton to other talented people. In so doing, they on the cover of each and every issue of this magazine: “Maximizing
reduce recruitment and training costs – and the aggravaton Performance and Profts Through People.”
of turnover – while enriching the benefciaries of newly
acquired skills. Nothing wrong with that, as long as it’s about People frst. ESM www.bulovacorporatesales.com | 1.800.228.5682 | ASI:42427 | PPAI: 133171 | SAGE: 50905
4 engagement strategies Vol.18 Issue 1
4 engagement strategies Vol.18 Issue 1
Bruce Bolger, Managing Director,
Enterprise Engagement Alliance CELEBRATE TEAMWORK
Making Business More 'People Centric'
he Occupy Wall Street movement may have faded, but its legacy • Communicate honestly, consistently and regularly with
is that only about half of Americans in a recent Brookings survey all of their consttuencies, providing useful informaton
Tsay they believe capitalism is working at least “somewhat well.” instead of hype and seeking to align the interests of all their
The efort to raise the minimum wage promises to become an electon external and internal communites, rather than separate
issue in many districts. High percentages of Americans in multple them into silos.
studies have said they are willing to pay more for products made by • Inspire collaboraton and innovaton by invitng all of their
people in “good working conditons.” Given all this, it would seem that consttuencies to provide new ideas for products, services
tried-and-true capitalism is taking a beatng. and improvements, and rewarding those who do.
What’s the soluton? More government regulaton? Mandated • Work closely with their suppliers to make sure the products
proft-sharing? Ironically, the best answer may lie with capitalism itself. and services they provide are up to the standards promised
Labor organizer and union leader Samuel Gompers once noted to their customers. Such organizatons are also more vigilant
about partnering with companies that maintain good
that “The worst crime against working people is a company which fails working conditons and pay.
to operate at a proft.” I couldn’t agree more. With mountng proof
that running a business based on people is more successful over tme • View corporate social responsibility and sustainability as an
than focusing strictly on profts, the tme has come to embrace a more investment, not a cost, because they can measure the long-
‘people-centric’ approach to business. term fnancial benefts of having engaged communites and
avoiding costly litgaton related to environmental and other
A COMMON SET OF VALUES regulatory issues.
There are numerous examples of people-centric companies: Costco,
the Container Store, Nordstrom, Southwest Airlines, Whole Foods, A NEED FOR DEFINITION
Starbucks and Zappos are among the best known – and the list is Make sense? Sure. But by most estmates, no more than a small
growing every day. What do they have in common? percentage of organizatons strategically run their businesses based on
these principles – and it’s prety easy to understand why.
• A focus on long-term, sustainable proftability and return
for investors rather than short-term returns, creatng a First, the subject of people is a “warm and fuzzy” concept – many
beter opportunity for the average investor who can’t play stll claim there’s no proof a focus on people will provide a compettve
the market. advantage. Second, the subject isn’t taught in any business schools, so
there’s no commonly understood nomenclature or framework. Third, Bulova Precisionist is in a league of its own. Created by our team and perfect for yours,
• They keep promises. They make life beter because there isn’t an accepted name to describe it or the companies that
they sincerely want to make customers happy and get practce it. And, perhaps most importantly, it’s easier to make money these premier timepieces are precise to 1/1,000th of a second and accurate to seconds per year.
them engaged. They know customers who become fans in the short term by focusing on profts.
signifcantly lower their marketng costs and help them Treat your employees, clients, or customers to unrivaled performance from Bulova,
create ideas for new products and sources of proft. On the other hand, imagine a world in which the majority of
organizatons were run according to the principles laid out above. The the Official Timekeeper of Manchester United.
• Treat employees as brand ambassadors who can attract need for government and industry regulaton would decline, because
other talent and even customers. They value talent and businesses would realize it’s actually in their best interest not to abuse
provide better benefits and compensation than their people or harm the environment. Prosperity would increase because
competitors. They know that highly engaged employees there would be more higher-paid people with disposable income and
make it better for customers, thereby increasing skills. There would be even more great ideas coming out of business
the customer satisfaction and retention that lowers because more people would be inspired to contribute. Daily living
marketing costs. would be easier, because there would be less aggravaton from poor
• Invest in training and career development because they service or unkept promises and other unnecessary headaches.
know enriched employees will stay and recommend the In a word, Engagement. In fact, we defne it simply and succinctly
organizaton to other talented people. In so doing, they on the cover of each and every issue of this magazine: “Maximizing
reduce recruitment and training costs – and the aggravaton Performance and Profts Through People.”
of turnover – while enriching the benefciaries of newly
acquired skills. Nothing wrong with that, as long as it’s about People frst. ESM www.bulovacorporatesales.com | 1.800.228.5682 | ASI:42427 | PPAI: 133171 | SAGE: 50905
4 engagement strategies Vol.18 Issue 1
4 engagement strategies Vol.18 Issue 1
