Compelling Cause
“People are becoming increasingly intolerant of companies without a ... Compelling Cause."
~ Roger Fairhead
What's the difference you want to make?
When I was growing up, my dream was to become an Engineer and much of my early career was spent managing engineering projects. A key lesson I learned in that role was that you can manage things, but you need to lead people. I discovered that a key differentiator between success and failure usually had a lot to do with effective leadership skills; with leading people well. I found that you can get the best out of people when you can turn “have-to” into “want-to” because then people inspire themselves to be great.
The next step in discovering my purpose came some years later during an exercise that I now use with my clients. I call it a "life sentence" exercise and it involves looking back at your life and learning what your life history can tell you about your life's purpose. As Steve Jobs said at his Stanford University commencement address in 2005, "You can only join the dots looking backwards.". I discovered that everything I've done well I've taught, and that I just love helping people learn.
The final piece of the puzzle came when I thought about the clients I love working with most, and the main thing we all had in common was that we are all passionate about a purpose that is bigger than just making a profit. Initially, that was in the charity sector, but it son extended well beyond that to helping leaders at all levels and with people delivering a valuable, sustainable outcome wherever they were; people who wanted to make a living from making a difference; people who were difference makers.
In summary, the purpose of my business, my "Compelling Cause", is to help difference makers make a difference; a sustainable, measurable, worthwhile difference.
So, how do you find the Compelling Cause for your business?
How do you find your Best SERVE?
STRENGTHS
First, what are your Strengths? “What are you good at"?
In his book "Good to Great", Jim Collins and his team researched over 1,400 companies and found just 11 that became the subject of his study. These were all companies that were considered "good", and managed to transition from good to "Great", and stay there.
He used an analogy of the business being like a bus, a bus that's going somewhere. He then used the expression "getting the right people on the bus" to describe a key element of the journey from good to great having the right people involved and working to their strengths.
So, the first place to start in finding your compelling cause is to explore your strengths, the strengths you have in the people in your organisation, and the strengths you have in your reputation.
What are you good at? Write down your strengths and make a list.
ESSENTIAL
Second, it’s got to be Essential (for someone).
"The times they are a-changing"
~ Bob Dylan
Today we are living in a world that has changed significantly from that we left prior to the Covid Pandemic. We are starting to experience the full impact of several forces that will change the nature of doing business in significant ways. These include the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR or Industry 4.0) and a more ethical focus on the Triple Bottom Line (TBL).
The Fourth Industrial Revolution is bringing about significant changes to the way we work as we encounter an increasingly interconnected world and advances in smart automation and the growth of Cloud Computing and the "Internet of Things". This is leading to an increase in Artificial Intelligence (AO) and Intelligent Assistants (IA). These will inevitably have a significant impact on the nature of the work we do, with robots increasingly taking on repetitive and knowledge-based work, and leaving increasing space for more meaningful and creative work. We are going to see demand increasing for people to be engaged with good interpersonal, creative and social skills.
The Fourth Industrial Revolution, 4IR, or Industry 4.0, conceptualises rapid change to technology, industries, and societal patterns and processes in the 21st century due to increasing interconnectivity and smart automation.
~ Wikipedia
We're experiencing a well overdue change to business ethics, moving away from the Friedman doctrine that says that doing business is exclusively about increasing profits to maximise (short-term) shareholder returns, and moving towards embracing a purpose that includes all stakeholders and being ecologically sustainable as well as making a profit or generating a surplus. This change has become known in many places as embracing these additional two areas of People and Planet as well as Profit, generating the term the Triple Bottom Line, or TBL.
The Business Roundtable (BRT) in the US has members who are chief executive officers of major United States companies. In 2019, the BRT redefined its definition of the purpose of a corporation to include participating in stakeholder capitalism, putting the interests of employees, customers, suppliers and communities on par with shareholders.
Here in the UK, the Better Business Act has been formed with the purpose to change UK law to ensure that every company in the UK aligns their interests with those of both the wider society and the environment.
Alongside that, we have the rise of organisations that offer an analysis and certification process to demonstrate adherence to the idea that business is about a purpose that is bigger than just making a profit, surplus, or personal gain. Organisations such as B-Corp and the Good Business Charter are two of the first to emerge in that landscape.
"What the world needs now".
What does the world need now? How will that have an impact on your business?
REVENUE
Third, there needs to be a source of Revenue to finance your Compelling Cause.
I love helping people learn, and over the years I've earned an income helping people to learn things I love to do, like how to skate, how to play the violin, how to use and get the best out of various IT and tech skills, Systems Analysis, Project Management and how to improve leadership skills.
I've also spent many happy hours playing in my local symphony orchestra, playing bass guitar in a band, getting qualified as a Cycling Coach and helping others improve their cycling skills, however, I've yet to earn an income from any of those activities.
Where will you get revenue to finance your Compelling Cause? What can you be paid for?
VALUES
Fourth, what are your Values, what do you love doing (and others do too)
The things that you love doing are usually related to your values. You can identify your strengths, find something that is essential and for which you are going to get paid, but to find your sense of purpose, your reason for living, it needs to resonate with your values too. You may be able to tick the first three boxes, but leave this one unfulfilled and you'll soon find that life has become unfulfilling and meaningless, and that your cause is not truly compelling.
However, once we have identified and uncovered the key values and articulated them in a meaningful way then our cause becomes the compelling cause we've been seeking, and one that will be intrinsically rewarding.
Some years ago I identified three particular values that I hold dear, and that I wanted to strengthen in my personal character, and I explored that in my blog about a Collaborative Culture. I remember them using the acronym PIE.
Passion: I have a clear purpose, coupled with an eager desire to make a sustainable, measurable, worthwhile difference
Integrity: Genuine integrity leads to the sort of influence that makes a difference.
Empathy: I recognise, and I seek to understand and value different perspectives.
What do you love doing, and what are the values that underpin that?
EXPERIENCE
Finally, what is your Experience telling you; what's your Life Sentence? What's your legacy going to be, and what will people say about you and your business when you're gone?
Recently I spent some time researching remarkable leaders who have left a strong legacy and I'll be exploring and unpacking the legacy each one left further in future blog posts. They all have an interesting story to tell about leadership and they all made a difference in the organisation they led. Among many others, my list includes:
Gordon Bethune: Continental Airlines CEO 1994 ~ 2004
Carly Fiorina: Hewlett Packard CEO 1999 ~ 2005
Tony Hsieh: Zappos CEO 1999 ~ 2020
Alan Mulally: Ford CEO 2006 ~ 2014
Bob Iger: Disney CEO 2005 ~ 2020
Indra Nooyi PepsiCo CEO 2006 ~ 2017
Ursula M. Burns: Xerox CEO 2009 ~ 2016
Mary Barra: CEO, General Motors CEO 2014 ~ today
Karen Lynch: CVS Health CEO 2021 ~ today
Rosalind Brewer: Walgreens Boots Alliance CEO 2021 ~ today
What do you want your Life Sentence to be?
When I look at my business, these five areas all overlap and that's my sweetspot, that's where I find my Best SERVE:
"Helping difference makers make a difference"
My Best SERVE
Here’s the point: be intentional and find your Compelling Cause; Identify and Own Your Own Awesome!
Own Your Best SERVE.
