When Purpose Drives Organizational Culture 

The realization that a company’s bottom line is deeply connected and impacted by the overall human experience within the organization is foreign to most business owners and managers. Happy employees drive better results, everyone knows this. What seems to be not so clear to everyone is what exactly drives happiness itself.

A company’s culture is often mistaken with cool employee perks, big salaries and/or great health benefits when in reality these are just conveniences and nothing more. What drives happiness within an organization then if not money or great benefits?

Purpose.

Purpose is a powerful driver of confidence, growth and ultimately happiness. It is often said that doing what you love everyday makes you a brighter and more conscious human being. It is true.

When an entire team is empowered to grow and work with a sense of purpose a level of synergistic consciousness is created. It is this sense of collective purpose and awareness the cornerstone of organizational culture.

It is my belief when teams reach this level of collective awareness they also reach some levels of personal fulfillment and happiness. This is the very reason why a team member would feel enticed to work overnight, do more than what he is asked to, or walk the extra mile. They feel they are achieving something important, not only for themselves, but for the greater good of the team or the company. There is an invaluable sense of belonging that allows them to feel responsible for anything that happens to the company, good or bad.

Elevating team members to their highest potential means you have to nurture their professional goals, aspirations and dreams. Employees will care about the company they work for just as much as the company cares for them. If the company cares for their professional growth then they will also care for the growth of the company. If the organization is willing to share profits with its team members, then they will feel motivated to work longer hours and put out better work.

All the perks and benefits that a company can offer amount to nothing if they don’t ultimately elevate their employees to their highest potential. This is the premise behind organizational culture driven by purpose.