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Welcome to week six of the current volume at the Educated Leadership blog!

This week we are looking at the idea of having, or crafting, meaning at work. There is an article in the Harvard Business Review that provides a concise look at the topic called “Getting Beyond Engagement to Creating Meaning at Work.”(Ulrich, 2010)

They discuss the finding that people who succeed at creating meaning tend to work harder, more creatively, and with more tenacity. (Ulrich, 2010) The companies that employ these people benefit, the customers that interact with the employees benefit, and the shareholders, in turn, benefit.

The question then, is how important is it for leaders to help employees to craft meaning at work? As we have seen in our lessons during this class, one of the leader’s most important jobs is to create and communicate a vision for his or her team.

 If done correctly, each member of the team will find something in the vision they can build meaning into their work.

The simplicity of that one sentence belies the difficulty in making the connection across a work group. Remember that each person will interpret the communicated vision through their cultural and experiential lenses. Communicating the vision to reach all team members will take careful consideration and probably, multiple versions of the same story.

Why is getting the vision communicated so important, because that information will provide the building blocks for each person to craft meaning into their part of the work. As we noted above, when they craft that meaning they, and the organization, thrive.

Additionally, empowering the members of the team is a very important part of being a transformational leader. “Psychological empowerment involves a combination of meaningful work, high self-efficacy, self-determination, and an ability to influence relevant events.” (Yukl, 2012) If the meaning of what they are doing has not been made evident to them, their attitudes and performance will suffer.

When we are presented with the opportunity to lead a change at work, providing the tools to realize meaning is mandatory. Reviewing the reasons for accepting or rejecting change (Yukl, 2012), providing a clear meaning for the change will impact the opinions and beliefs of the affected parties. Whether or not the employees decide the proposed change is necessary, feasible, cost effective, would cause personal loss, or is inconsistent with the company or personal values can be directly influenced by the meaning the employees derive from the vision of the leader. The last point in Yukl’s list refers to the leaders not being trusted. (Yukl) If the leader can help impart meaning to the change, trust should be at least maintained, if not bolstered. Supporting the idea of acceptance of change, “An additional requirement is an acceptance of the need to change and a positive willingness to engage in processes that may be difficult and challenging. Change agents can build this in two ways: first, by empowering participants, and second, by encouraging them to broaden their perspective with regard to the nature of change and its purpose and benefits.” (Chapman, 2002) That perspective is a powerful building block of meaning.

Since the dawn of man, people have searched for meaning in what they do. Leaders should act as catalysts for their workers in forming the meaning they desire at work. Great leaders will understand that and be especially aware that times of change require a dedicated focus on giving the workers opportunities to derive meaning form the situation they face.

Chapman, J. A. (2002). A framework for transformational change in organizations. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 23(1/2), 10. doi: 10.1108/01437730210414535

Ulrich, D. a. W. (2010). Getting Beyond Engagement to Creating Meaning at Work. Harvard Business Review, 4. https://hbr.org/2010/06/getting-beyond-engagement-to-c

Yukl, G. (2012). Leadership in Organizations (S. Yagan Ed.): Pearson Education, Inc.