What if you connect your colleagues to what they care about? How would that wade off the Great Resignation?
People join organizations for many reasons – salary, benefits, training. And if you lead an organization that has a social, economic, or environmental initiative baked into it, you may be fortunate enough to draw top talent that is valued-aligned with your mission.
However, this is not always the case.
by Suzanne F. Stevens, Conscious Leadership and Social Contribution Cultivator,
Founder, YouMeWe Social Impact Group Inc. Part of the Nobody Wants to Work Series.
Whether your mission has a social initiative as part of your DNA or not, your colleagues may not align with who or what issue your business addresses. Without that connection to “who you serve,” they may be an uninspired employee rather than a committed contributor motivated to the mission.
As your colleagues seek to live their purpose, they crave to connect to who or what they care about. I call this a compassion-connection™.
Empathy vs. Compassion-Connection™
You see, unlike empathy, which means you have an understanding or share feelings with another, compassion isn’t as restrictive. Often people will express their empathy toward someone by trying to “walk in their shoes.” And the reality is, if you are of a different race, culture, age, sexual orientation, or ability, it can be challenging to understand another’s experience. Consider the racial injustices brimming to the surface over the last couple of years.
Or the pandemic, no two people had the same circumstances. Without the responsibility of homeschooling, how could I really understand a mother who homeschooled three children while juggling a job?
However, you don’t need to share similar circumstances or feelings towards another to be compassionate.
Consider who or what you connect to, a particular group of people, animals, infrastructure, or the environment. For some reason, perhaps unknown to you, that specific group or issue pulls at your heartstrings. The feeling is unmotivated by a circumstance; it just is. This is what you care about. And this is likely your compassion-connection™, where you feel profound concern or care. Its interest is not passive but active. You don’t only feel for another or a situation; you’re prepared to do something about it.
Engaging non-mission-aligned colleagues
Corporations have many tools at their disposal to connect colleagues to their compassion-connection™ at work, such as:
Paid volunteer days
- Donating time, expertise, and money to what a colleague connects to
- Employee-directed giving programs
- Gift/donation matching
- Group volunteering (run a festival, walk-a-thon, clean the community, sort items from the foodbank, prepare gift baskets, sporting equipment, or kids)
- Company-sponsored volunteer projects
- Mentoring programs – connecting with a beneficiary of a non-profit
When you lead a small or mid-size business, you may not have the bandwidth to monitor the measurement, manage diverse compassion-connections™, or the budget to match donations.
So how do you appeal to what your colleagues care about?
Ways to contribute without breaking the bank.
Well, there are a few strategies to consider. But before we dive into them, don’t view contributing to society as something you add on or do as an afterthought with your leftovers. It is a strategic business and fulfillment decision. With your colleagues’ need for more meaning in a shrinking talent pool, small businesses shouldn’t ignore the opportunity.
And according to Edelman Trust Barometer Special Report: Brand Trust in 2020, 80% of people (your customers) expect brands to solve society’s problems. So, doing nothing is not an option.
As a small business, ways to contribute without breaking the bank.
The colleagues who connect to your mission will likely feel fulfilled by a program that automatically uplifts the marginalized, vulnerable, or underserved. Such as a percentage of revenue donated to a cause or the first payment of a program or membership. (From the moment Shelby Taylor founded Chickapea, she donated 3 cents of the purchase of every package to underserved communities, locally and abroad. Check out her interview https://podcast.youmewe.ca/shelby-taylor-chickapea/. It is so inspiring!)
To allow employees to maximize their meaning, they need connection. Create space for your colleagues to get involved with the who or what your mission benefits.
Some examples:
Can someone who is accounting distribute your allotted food to the foodbanks.
- Or can someone in sales visit Guatemala to learn how to farm alongside the farmers you donate seedlings to?
- Or could someone in management learn alongside the women in Kenya you’re teaching how to sow sanitary napkins?
Colleagues will have more meaning if they experience how your mission impacts your beneficiary.
- One of the most fulfilling contribution initiatives is if the colleague is connected to a non-profit or charity of choice where they can offer their expertise and skills. Many charities can’t afford specific expertise. Incorporating donating one or two days a month into your strategic plan can motivate unconnected team members.
How to connect to a cause while connecting with colleagues
One of the limitations with donations, or individual participation in a cause, is it doesn’t get the overflow effect of connecting colleagues. And if you force the social mandate, then colleagues converge, but they may not connect to the cause.
What is a Conscious leader to do?
Create conscious-contribution circles™. What?
Identify where there is a cross-over of what each team member cares about. Assess if there is an overlap of opportunities to serve together. Encourage employees to initiate a contribution idea to infuse the most fulfillment.
Another option is to embed individual contribution days and group giving days into your business plan. This will offer the best of both worlds.
Another alternative is to join a service club and invest in a company membership. This will allow each teammate to gravitate to what they care about while benefitting from community comradery. Picking the right club will be critical, as some service clubs are more about donations than service.
Can social contributions backfire?
In short — YES!
Compassion-connection™ contributions can back-fire.
Colleagues shouldn’t feel obligated to contribute outside of ‘working hours’ as many have family and other commitments. Nor should they be made to feel guilty if they don’t connect to anything. Nor should the measurement of the impact be more important than the experience.
Contributing is a personal choice that can be encouraged by your business strategy, but I recommend not alienating someone who feels that they have given enough.
We see this among Indigenous and Black colleagues who are constantly put into the position to educate people on their privilege and hold a mirror up to their biases (avoid this situation at all cost). To learn more about Diversity, Equity, Inclusivity & Belonging (DEI&B), subscribe YouMeWe Infusion for a free download of insights based on our interviews with five underrepresented communities ( 7 strategies to create a culture of Inclusion and Belonging. )
Incorporating what your colleagues care about through understanding their compassion-connection™, you will accelerate employee connection, engagement, and loyalty while connecting to the community. As they say, a win, win, win, win, win….
What can you do now to make your contribution count?
Who or what is your compassion-connection™?
- If you don’t know, consider when you read or listen to the news, what pulls at your heartstrings?
- When you hear a story from a colleague or friend, what makes you want to do something about it?
- During the pandemic, who did you feel the most sympathy toward?
- Who or what filled you up when you lent a helping hand?
Download 7 strategies to create a culture of Inclusion and Belonging. inspired by advocates, business, and community leaders on how to engage diverse talent.
At YouMeWe Social Impact Group, we grow conscious leaders and their social impact—sustainably. Subscribe to YouMeWe Infusion to make your contribution count for you, your organization, and your community.
PS do you have a question about growing your social impact.
Let me know in the comment
