It is time for a humanity upgrade in our organisations.
Business is at its best when it is solving problems. Good businesses upgrade their systems and infrastructure regularly so they can problem-solve even better.
It could be an investment in new IT, new technology, new ways of working. It could be an investment in new products and services.
These things are all good, and positive and they equip organisations to better meet the challenges they are facing. They build capacity for organisations to take advantage of new opportunities.
I suggest that the factor so often missing is an upgrade in humanity.
By this, we mean a significant change in the way people are treated within an organisation. A humanity upgrade means putting ‘people-first’ into practice every single day. It means we invest in leaders to develop high EQ and to coach their people to fulfil their potential. It means we keep people at the heart of our organisations and design systems around their needs. It means we eradicate dehumanising processes and behaviour wherever they exist.
Organisations can have the best infrastructure and systems in the world but if the people in the organisation do not feel they matter the full value can never be realised. Success comes when technological and business system upgrades go hand in hand with a humanity upgrade. As Zig Ziglar would say ‘you don’t build a business. You build people, and they build a business.’
