Give Top Priority to Human Dignity

Give Top Priority to Human Dignity for

Higher Profitability, Social Unity, Prosperity and All-round Amity

All Are Fellow ‘Value Creators’ Engaged in the Overall

Ever-Rising Well-being Movement

 "All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights." 

- The U.N's Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Ideas and efforts to continuously raise the level of customer satisfaction are the sine qua non of business success. There are many strategies to achieve this objective, and yet only a few businesses are fully satisfied with the outcomes. The reason is this – ignoring the fundamental fact that only satisfied employees can create customer satisfaction. Although a few companies have good programmes in place, some have made only cosmetic changes like ‘lean organization’ and changing names from ‘personnel’ to ‘human resources/capital’. The overall scenario in tradition-bound companies, and particularly in the unorganized sector, is dismal.

To term, hallowed concepts like ‘human capital’ as cosmetic might appear hyperbolic to many, but the fact remains that it crudely equates the human spirit with inanimate capital. Such apparently egalitarian euphemisms hide the shocking reality that many still subconsciously nurture feudal mindsets. The word 'servants' is still in common use. A Google search shows that it is derived from the Latin noun servus, which means ‘slave’.

Also, the basic ‘Master-Servant’ concept still very much exists in the statutes and subconscious mindsets. It indirectly, and often inadvertently, influences the decisions, actions, and behaviour of managers/executives and those with authority and high wealth. The egalitarian talks and writings painting the prevalence of a culture focused on liberty, equality, and freedom are one-sided, as the multitude of people still feel oppressed and deprived. It's clearly unrealistic when “according to Oxfam, the richest 1%  has as much wealth as the rest of the world combined”. There are many other non-financial factors that lead to inequality.

There are unmistakable signals of the widespread feelings of deprivation and frustration, like the ‘resignation wave’. According to a survey by the prestigious Economic Times, “Triggers for resignation include: slow salary growth (54.8%), work-life imbalance (41.4%), lack of growth opportunities (33.3%) and lack of recognition (28.1%).” Another survey claims that “approximately 75% of employees are frustrated with their managers, with nearly 1 in 5 saying they experience personal attacks or unkind remarks”.

If this is the scenario at the managerial level, the simmering feelings, rather than anger and frustration among the workers, are beyond imagination.

                                                        

What’s the Solution?

Palmer and Warner provide not only a dramatic and effective solution, but a master key. In their epochal book “Development with Dignity”, they reveal a revolutionary approach as compared to the current ones pictured above. They say that “increased prosperity can only be achieved when people are valued as self-governing agents. Social orders that recognize the autonomy and human dignity unleash enormous productive energy. This in turn leads to the mobilisation of knowledge-sharing that is critical to innovation”.

 

And it will be no surprise if many ask what exactly dignity is and how to tap its enormous powers? The question arises because the word dignity has been predominantly used to refer to aristocrats, nobles, and holders of high political or social offices/positions. Well, before elaborating, let us turn to the dictionaries for precise definitions. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines dignity as ‘the quality or state of being worthy, honoured, or esteemed’.

 

Still, the obvious general ideas have to be applied to the workplace, and a Google snippet is very telling: “Workplace dignity (WPD) is defined as an individual's perception about respect and trust, equal treatment, valuation of one's worth, fair treatment, autonomy and freedom of expression and decision making enjoyed by an employee at the workplace.”

Therefore, in simple practical ways, all that is required is to ensure that people in the organisation feel that they have the autonomy for setting and achieving goals. The autonomy includes choice of work as per one’s aptitude; voice to speak out one's own opinions and ideas; acquiring requisite knowledge and skills; a merit-based promotion system; free access to means and implements to achieve the results in time and within cost limits; facilities to maintain work-life balance; and, most importantly,  getting constant signals and confirmations of being respected and held in esteem by everyone around.

                                                     

Approach

The business world is highly complex and full of risks, and the variety of products/services is mind-boggling and fast-growing. It is not possible to suggest solutions applicable to all. However, readers can get guidelines from the brief reviews (below) of books/papers on a few pioneering companies. 

Here are a few steps to make human dignity the ruling creed of an organisation:

• Develop a charismatic leadership style.

• Create a collaborative organisational culture by demolishing the hierarchy, silos, plethora of designations, and specific job descriptions.

• Make value creation the measure for performance reviews and awards

• Ascertain and cater to self-actualisation needs

• Create affinity to organisation and each other by building emotional bonds

• Minimise stress levels by introducing sports, arts and social activities

• Plan events/programmes (both online and face-to-face) involving families 

• Avoid/minimise bureaucratic rules and ‘heaps of files’ or records.

• Create an atmosphere of trust and accountability

• Introduce own social media platforms 

• Honour and encourage differences of views and opinions. Remember the quote - “if we all agree, we are all probably wrong”.

Some Real Life Cases as Benchmarks

The business world has always been complex and full of risks, especially those of obsolescence. Digitalisation, particularly AI and space avenues, has turned it upside down. The speed of change is described as reality jumping ahead of fantasy. It is very difficult and highly risky to follow anybody and/or any business model.

Nevertheless, basic human traits have not changed so drastically and, as our theme of dignity falls in that area, some lessons can be learnt from the past achievements. Here, we share the policies of a few individuals and companies that have profited from spreading and practising the cult of all-round dignity. We give below brief reviews of books/papers.

FORD

Robert H. Waterman, the eminent author of many bestselling books, observes in The Renewal Factor that “even small actions can act as a catalyst for impressive results”. He cites the example of the first Christmas dinner organised by Petersen, who succeeded Lee Iacocca as the Chairman of Ford. At this dinner, “rather than getting their food buffet style as in the past, employees were waited on - this sharpness of departure from previous parties - sent a reverberating signal that things were truly different.”

When Petersen took over, Ford’s losses had mounted to $3.26 billion. He turned a profit within a single year. Petersen earned $4.3 million per year, which, according to the author, was “four times what Henry Ford ever earned during his tenure”.

What was the secret of this spectacular achievement after the departure of a superstar like Iacocca? Petersen himself answered the question: “We, rather deliberately, do not want stars. We want a team of people who like each other, who work well together, and are very interchangeable.”

The design of a new car is surrounded by secrecy, traditionally. Petersen took the unprecedented decision of revealing the design of the new car Taurus to all staff, put its drawings on walls, and asked for suggestions - what type of car would you want? The collectively and openly designed car, Taurus, was declared Car of the Year.

3M 

Equally, if not more dramatic, are the stories of 3M. We refer to the 'paid free time' for all employees to imagine, experiment, and help create new products even if it was not in an employee’s job description. 3M has 5500 fast selling products. Many, including the famous Post-it Notes, were the results of 'free time' initiatives of employees. 3M is a $32 billion company and has 22,000 patents, many of them secured by the free-timers. The world-famous thinker and management expert, Robert Brands, has explained the free-time concept in his book, "Robert's 10 Rules of Innovation". His message is straight from the shoulder, "Innovate or Die”.

SEMLER

Ricardo Semler is a Brazilian businessman who took over his family’s traditional bureaucratic company in 1984 and unleashed his own out-of-the-box ideas in the business world. He has explained these in his books, “Maverick” and “Managing Without Managers”. Many doubted and expected the company to crash, but he has succeeded in making his company and his name global.

He is the greatest champion of dignity in the workplace. One has to read his books to get the essence/ lessons from his highly successful social engineering experiments. Here are two of the many indicators and practices of dignity in his own words for better effect.  

• Hiring and Firing the Boss

“We developed a programme to ensure that bosses were ratified by the people who work under them. Subordinates evaluate their managers twice a year.”

• Rounding the Pyramid

“Bureaucracies are built by and for people who busy themselves proving they are necessary, especially when they suspect they aren’t. A pyramid is rigid and constraining. A circle is filled with possibilities. 3 circles: Counsellors, Partners and Coordinator.”

                                                              

The Magic Mantra

Dignity in the workplace is the magic mantra for winning the support and contribution of all, particularly Gen Z and Millennials. All that is needed is to develop empathy and trust. An empathic and charismatic leader achieves better results through close bonds with the people who work for him/her. “Business is people” is an empty catchphrase for many in authority. But for charismatic and empathic leaders, it is a cardinal principle or an article of faith. The charismatic leadership style based on workplace human dignity is the most cherished.

 

                                                  

                                        Wizards of the World!

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Wisdom, Inclusivity, Zest, Authenticity to Raise Dignity