HRevolution

Why is it important about using the concept of leverage as it relates to employees? It sounds clinical, but has several impacts on the business. Let's look at a low level example of an employee in an ice cream parlor.

We don't expect a lot from employees in food service. What you'd expect from the average (disengaged) employee at an ice cream parlor is a few polite sentences - What flavor? One scoop or two? That will be $2.50. And, a polite "thank you." This person was hired to scoop ice cream. At least that's the perception. A job description might focus on duties like lifting ice cream buckets, being polite to customers, and making change. A skills matching engine would focus their scooping abilities. Most people in such jobs are disengaged, paying just enough attention to keep busy and glide through their shift.

An employee who is leveraged - meaning the whole person is mentally engaged- creates an entirely different experience. People are greeted as they enter. Customers are complimented on their dress or appearance ("that's a lovely blouse"). Polite inquiries are made ("what sounds good to you today?") and their choice of flavors is complimented ("excellent choice - that's my favorite"). The customer becomes engaged as well. The greetings and banter create a quasi-social exchange which adds to the experience. These customers get more than just ice cream - they get attention. They are welcomed. They are complimented. They are likely to return. Employees who behave this way with customers are also more likely to keep the shop clean, tables from leaning, and keep chairs in good repair. Leveraging an employee in this manner creates repeat business and builds a strong brand.

The bottom line is that the structure in which we work does not leverage people well. Job descriptions focus on skills, not on qualities that capture (or appropriately challenge) whole people. By focusing on such a small facet of a person we harness very little of their energy. We limit the task, the definition of success, and consequently, productivity. We all but guarantee underemployment. We might pay individuals and take up a lot of their time, but we don't engage them. We have an opportunity for leverage, but the way we structure employment works against us.

This structure - the way jobs are organized in companies - evolved during a period when human capital was cheap, and financial resources were scarce. It spread during the industrial revolution, and finance was at it's center. Understanding finance was very important and it evolved into a sophisticated discipline. Human capital was deployed in support of financial investments; and the science of utilizing human capital evolved very little.

Today we are faced with a reversal - financial capital is available while human capital is becoming scarce. This would be a good time to re-design business structures. A shift in perspective is required where value is created by focusing on leveraging human assets first, and supporting them with financial investments.