A question about meaningful work: individual role vs organizational mission vs organizational culture.

I understand how you feel. Having worked for the same company over 25 years, I witnessed the vision, mission and culture change. It also changed depending upon what department I was working in at the time. I used to conduct a workshop for new hotel managers. One lesson in the class was on creating a vision and mission statement. We also spent a fair amount of time on how to create a positive culture and its benefits.

What I have found is that while some businesses have a vision, it either isn’t written down and shared with the team, or it isn’t a true vision statement. The vision should answer the question “Where do we want to be?” It should be clear and concise. Unfortunately, most aren’t.

A mission statement is a broad statement on “What?” will be done to accomplish this vision. If the company has different departments, each one should have their own vision and mission statement that supports the company’s. Both a vision and mission statement should be reviewed every year or so and changed if necessary.

Once the vision and mission statements are decided upon, the next step is to create a plan on how to carry it out. This is where it gets broken down into goals, strategies, and tasks. Each person on the team should be involved in understanding this. It makes it simple for them to see what they are working towards and how they are being measured.

Culture is a whole other topic. When I was a hotel inspector, I could walk into a hotel and pretty much tell what the business’s culture was like within 15 minutes. A company doesn’t have to have a written vision and/or mission statement to create a positive work environment.

The company I worked for conducted a survey of 40,000 line level employees asking them what would compel them to leave their job. I used to ask the new managers in our class what they thought the #1 reason was. They always said, “More money.” This answer actually ranked #10. “Lack of Recognition” came in first place. Isn’t that interesting? It’s not though, when you think about it. Everyone starts out at a new job hoping to be a success. If it isn’t recognized, even for the small achievements, most people start to feel unappreciated.

Other reasons in the Top 10 were: lack of training, poor scheduling (meaning not enough people to do the job effectively), lack of tools needed, poor management style, etc. These are all things that set an employee up for success. If they succeed, then so does the manager, and ultimately the company.

So…advice for looking for the ideal situation as you start searching. Keep in mind that you are interviewing the company as much as they are interviewing you. If the business has a vision and mission statement, great. Ask how this position supports it and how success is measured. Ask for permission to talk to people in the same position about the job and have them describe it.

Good luck with your search. Please let us know how it goes.

I recently came across an article in the NYT that had some great insights into what makes work meaningful. It looks at the work of a brilliant young prof at Penn’s Wharton School whose central thesis is that job satisfaction—and productivity—comes from focusing on how your work helps others.

That certainly resonates with my own work experience. My current work has been the most satisfying by far, and it’s because the mission, the culture and the individual role all clearly relate to improving people’s lives. The easier it is for a worker to see a direct connection between what they do and someone’s well-being, the more satisfied and motivated they will tend to be.

A healthy culture tends to flow naturally from this “giving” orientation. Coworkers are less concerned with their own status, petty politics and rivalries. They’ll want the best possible outcome for those they’re helping, and that’s typically going to come from working cooperatively.

I need a bit more time to think about this question really but here is my take on it. I’ve recently been out of work and went through 5 months of job seeking. I looked for companies and institutions that had good work ethics, culture and mission statements but it was difficult to find part time jobs for administrators within these types of companies.

I did however, find a job. What struck me more than anything in the interview was how nice my to-be co-worker came across and how professional and friendly my future boss appeared. The pay isn’t great, but it is close to home. Financially I don’t have the freedom to be picky so this was really a god-send.

The company mission is really quite simple, to carry out effective work. It seems to regard their workers highly and so couldn’t be better. However, having gotten into the job I would say that mission doesn’t really come into it. Culture does, but only at grass roots level. I can’t say much but needless to say appearances are not indicative of how things really ‘work’.

Conversely I once went for an interview with a company that were aligned perfectly with all of the things I sought for in terms of purpose, mission values etc… it was a really strong organisation in terms of helping people but within the job itself you had low paid people doing hard labour and not appreciated. Swings and roundabouts.

Of course, if you have the freedom to choose and are not desperate for a job – go for all three!! But be warned as I say, things are not always as they appear to be anyway…and you can’t tell that from an interview.

If not happy in current job, perhaps one can start there own business?
An at home business to start.
Lots of companies started this way.
Free Lance.

Unlike you, a lot of us are in survival mode, so our choices are limited to what will pay the bills right now.

Corporate & even independent jobs are about money for the company, not the employee or the community, those are by-products but not necessary, generally speaking. Researching all of that, like @nebule implies, is a good idea, but doens’t always give you the whole story. Talk to current employees.

I’m the last person who would discourage you from looking for a job with a company whose core mission really rocks your boat.

But most companies do something mundane but necessary. ...or maybe not even necessary.
A lot of us working for companies like those will take satisfaction in a job well done, and in supporting our colleagues, even if at the end of the day the final product does not inspire.
The phenomena of teamwork and accomplishment are useful ends in themselves.

Also, recall the classic story of the zen monk who attains enlightment. Somebody asks what life was like before enlightenment and he says, “I would chop wood and haul water”. And now after enlightenment, what is life like? “I chop wood and haul water”.
There is meaning where you put your attention and your intention.