Creating superior business results through a Thriving state of mind Through a collaborative study with three prominent U.S. business schools, Senn Delaney discovered that people who operate from a unique set of three core principles consistently perform at the top 10 percent of performance ratings. The joint study and subsequent research and surveys led to creation of our evidence-based practical performance model that can be taught, practiced, reinforced, applied, and measured.
Why do some leaders seem to struggle while others seem to thrive and in turn lift their organizations up to outstanding levels of performance? During more than three decades of working with leaders of Fortune 500 and Global 1000 organizations to create healthy, high-performance teams and cultures, we ve searched for that answer. Here is what we learned about a set of three principles that create the business leadership state of Thriving Senn Delaney, the culture-shaping firm of Heidrick & Struggles, is the most widely recognized and successful practitioner of culture shaping in the world. Our insight-based culture-changing principles and methodology remain at the top of our field as a critical first step in healthy, high-performance culture shaping. We continually explore new approaches and findings to advance the field of organizational leadership and move companies to higher levels of performance. The university researchers had already compiled evidence that counters the belief that work depletes people. They found that when people are Thriving in their work when people are living at their best they are energized and enriched. That s why they feel so alive, professor Spreitzer says. Work is not just something where they re getting deplettain the high-performance culture once established? In essence, is there a principle-based mindset? We discovered our answers through our partnership in the Organizational Performance Study with the Center for Positive Organizational Scholarship at the University of Michigan, the University of Southern California Marshall School of Business and University of California, Irvine, Graduate Business School, and through subsequent Senn Delaney research, interviews and survey data. There is a set of principles that once learned and implemented cause the preferred values and behaviors of a high-performance culture to automatically show up. We call this next evolutionary step in business leadership the state of Thriving. A principle-based approach grounded in evidence The state of Thriving is a breakthrough model grounded in evidence. It offers an exciting new way of looking at high performance at an individual management leadership level and in building an organization. It is a practical and teachable approach toward learning and sustaining healthy cultural behaviors and high-performance practices. The state of Thriving also enlivens individual and group fulfillment and accomplishments. It has universal application in home and work life. It provides a common reference and a common framework that is unrelated to personal preferences, personal style or history. It is a simple, principle-based approach to leadership and culture shaping involving the innate balance of three psychological states of mind (like a three-legged stool): Vitality Learning mindset Purpose and direction These three core principles of the state of Thriving show up in people as the follow- Naturally, we wondered what makes leaders some leaders so successful. We were curious to discover whether there are principles that these leaders intuitively share. Is there a set of simple principles that could be learned and understood by people or teams so that those preferred values and behaviors automatically became the organizational norm? Is there a direct and intuitive way to susing feelings, attitudes and behaviors: 1) Vitality: aliveness, enthusiasm, energy, vibrancy, well-being 2) Learning Mindset: creativity, curiosity; sense of growth and development, wanting to get consistently better at their craft 3) Direction and Purpose: sense of clarity and alignment, personal vision When we interviewed several leaders considered by their peers to display the characteristics of super-thrivers, and conducted other surveys of organizational high-thrivers, we found that they balanced these three principles in their daily lives and work almost unconsciously. How the state of Thriving model emerged For years, the primary focus in organizational studies has been on diagnosing dysfunction and implementing effectiveness remedies. The university researchers were interested in trying to understand the more positive aspects of organizational health. Gretchen Spreitzer, PhD, founder of the Center for Organizational Scholarship and professor at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business, elaborates. What does it mean to really bring out the best in employees and help them become their best selves? We believe it s not just the absence of negative things that get us to that positive deviance. Creating superior business results thorugh a Thriving state of mind [2]
ed over the course of the day, over the course of the week, but where they re actually producing resources that enable their Thriving to continue and be sustained. The purpose of our joint study was to provide insight into how organizations and leaders create environments that support healthy, high performance. We also wanted to understand how individual leaders create and foster a state of mind that impacts high performance. One of the strengths of our study with Senn Delaney is that in addition to performance ratings, we got citizenship behavior ratings (healthy cultural behaviors), says Christine Porath, Ph.D, assistant professor at University of Southern California s Marshall School of Business. These would be what we d call objective outcomes. For instance, people who are in a Thriving state are more likely to engage to help other employees with work-related problems. They fill in for managers who are sick. They take steps to prevent problems with others. They encourage others to do their jobs well, keep up with company development and actively participate in company meetings. Thriving Index Survey reveals predictors of performance Over their years of study, the university researchers had determined that a healthy organization can be health producing, but they wanted to test their theories in the real corporate arena. Senn Delaney had access to dozens of Fortune 500 and Global 1000 organizations, their leadership teams and management. In an effort to determine whether a person s state of Thriving is linked to sustainable performance, Senn Delaney implemented a unique organizational study. We employed our Thriving Index Survey to measure the individual team members levels of Thriving. In addition to embedding the Thriving measures Vitality and Learning Mindset, this study Three dimensions of state of Thriving Learning mindset Vitality Sense of growing and getting better at what we do. Being curious and having a thirst for knowledge also contained a wide array of traditional organizational metrics, high-performance behaviors and individual motivational metrics. Individuals as well as their immediate supervisors participated in the study independently. The results dramatically support the idea that a person s state of Thriving predicted in a linear fashion his or her performance.the findings demonstrate that: The majority (nearly three quarters) of people who live and learn at the highest levels of the state of Thriving also consistently perform better than their peers. Eighty percent of the time, people deemed to be high-thrivers those who scored high in all three principles of the state of Thriving automatically model the high-performance cultural behaviors that are found in the best, highest performing organizations. What are the implications of these results Sense of being energized and feeling alive. Being in the moment, engaged Thriving Purpose and direction Clarity and alignment of meaning and the journey for organizational leaders? Leaders who operate from a Thriving state and who model those principles in the leadership shadow that they cast over their organizations can create Thriving cultures beneath them. Thriving balance or imbalance can be measured This balance of the core principles, or lack of balance, can be easily diagnosed. Individuals who score high in all three legs of the stool show certain attributes and behaviors, says Brian Reger, Senn Delaney senior vice president of metrics. When they have Vitality, they are energized, optimistic and confident, they also have a high level of trust with other people in the organization. When they have a Learning Mindset, they characterize themselves as life-long Creating superior business results thorugh a Thriving state of mind [3]
learners and they see their jobs as part of their source and inspiration for learning. When they have a strong sense of Purpose and Direction, that often goes beyond the mission of the company itself toward a larger community or global vision. Through our proprietary diagnostics tool, it s easy to see which principles are in full force and which are lagging or not as prominent. Because of the integrated nature of the state of Thriving, the weaker elements of the three-legged stool can be strengthened by coaching a person through one of their stronger Thriving principles. Consider people who are weak in the area of Learning Mindset and feeling bored or disconnected with the department status quo. Tapping into their beliefs, attitudes and commitments in a stronger area of Purpose and Direction can propel them to be open to creativity and want to learn something new in order to sustain their alignment of personal direction and purpose. The lagging principle is automatically called into action. If the weaker area of Learning Mindset is strengthened, it supports and encourages the other two legs of the stool. The link between Thriving and high performance Our joint findings show strong evidence that there is a direct link between the state of Thriving and high performance. We also know that individuals who operate in a state of Thriving put out more resources for the organization than non-thrivers. Our research has shown that people in a Thriving state perform much better as rated by their managers and go above and beyond the call of duty, says professor Porath. They do things that really benefit other members of the organization and the organization itself. The idea of being in a Thriving state, of being your best self, actually is very beneficial to those around you in the organization. Thriving: a state of mind Individual Thriving significantly predicts job performance The state of Thriving is an achievable, positive psychological state of mind, regardless of a person s profession or management level. The improved organizational environment automatically becomes more beneficial to the individual and the team. Their resulting higher performance and elevated moods (states of mind) encourage and support a healthier, more efficient and optimal environment. The concept of the state of Thriving is simple, direct and easily and intuitively grasped. Once the three core principles are understood and balanced within the individual, the integration of the state of Thriving as a lifestyle takes place naturally and automatically. At one time or another, we have all experienced a Thriving state of mind. By tapping back into that personal moment of high energy, excitement to learn and clarity of direction and purpose, people can easily understand that the state of Thriving is an inside-out experience rather than outside in. They can connect with that personal experience of Thriving and remember how it feels to be living at their best either personally or professionally, to A few key discoveries Performance Scores 80% 60% 50% experience that sweet spot of high energy, confidence and creativity. But how does someone turn that feeling into a full and complete integration of the three state of Thriving principles so that they become a lifestyle? How can that state of mind be tapped into and sustained? Approach to integrating Thriving principles Thriving Index Senn Delaney People and Organizational Performance Study, 2007 The state of Thriving is an internally-driven process, which has universal application. It can be applied to any personal or business situation. If the team is not functioning, if an initiative is not working, if a personal goal is not being reached, the diagnostic aspect of the state of Thriving can reveal which of the principles is less prominent than the others. A developmental process is then used to strengthen the weaker principle through appreciative coaching. This helps the person or team put the fully integrated principles into practice. Looking at the first principle, Vitality, an individual s level of energy, enthusiasm Creating superior business results thorugh a Thriving state of mind [4]
and resilience can easily be determined. The person can be coached to understand the thoughts behind his or her state of mind in the moment, in the now. Thought, then, is the underlying principle behind the psychological state of Vitality. Reflecting on the second principle, Learning Mindset, a person can quickly identify thoughts of curiosity or lack of it, a sense of growth and discovery, or a feeling of moving forward in life. The underlying principle of the Learning Mindset is the notion that life is a journey to be lived and enjoyed. Each person can develop or reignite that principle through a simple developmental process. The third principle, Purpose and Direction, can be easily analyzed. We all have personal stories that detail a powerful sense of clarity and meaning at some point in our lives and a strong impulse toward authenticity. The question becomes, is the way someone lives his or her life in line with his or her own personal mission? And in personal and business relationships and environments, is that personal mission aligned with those of others? Identification and clarity around personal Purpose and Direction can be taught, fostered,and reinforced. The next step in highperformance culture change Benefits of the state of Thriving Thriving is the natural state of super-high performers in the workplace. Our evidence shows that when individuals integrate and achieve a balance of the three principles of the state of Thriving, there is a more than 70-percent predictor of sustainable high performance. And when a person scores high in all three areas, it is an 80-percent predictor of high-performance cultural attitudes and behaviors. The challenge is in how to create a bridge between the intellectual understanding of the state of Thriving and the day-to-day application of the principles. The test is in The state of Thriving is an achievable, positive psychological state of mind, regardless of a person s profession or management level. The improved organizational environment automatically becomes more beneficial to the individual and the team. Their resulting higher performance and elevated moods (states of mind) encourage andsupport a healthier, more efficient and optimal environment. The organizational benefits of a state of Thriving environment involve the following three elements and corresponding values, attitudes and behaviors: Trust and respect: gratitude and generosity, connectedness with others, non-contingent well-being, resilience Global information sharing: humility, impersonal curiosity, sense of growth and sharing, experimentation and exploration, discovery and moving forward, collaboration Task-focused accountability: inspired certainty and confidence, clarity of direction and meaning, authenticity transcending ego and pettiness, common sense and wisdom the measure of sustainability a person has in the Thriving state. Leaders who are engaged in a Thriving state shadow those high-performing cultural behaviors to their teams. But to achieve sustainable, super-high performance results throughout the organization, leaders and individuals need to be aligned to the same Purpose and Direction, continually open to new ideas and learning and have energy and Vitality to propel them forward. In other words, your entire organization needs to be in a Thriving state. A new leadership standard for optimizing performance Senn Delaney has redefined the game of leadership and culture by moving toward a simple, principle-based approach as opposed to the prescriptive, observational and behavioral models, which have limited effect. The Thriving state drives three-dimensional way of thought where new, creative options are realized and clarity around Purpose and Direction is attained. Our Thriving Index Survey diagnostic analysis will determine where your organization, team or leaders are now relative to the state of Thriving benchmarks. An insight-based learning, application and reinforcement process will help leaders connect with and internalize the principles of the Thriving state to make them an integral part of their leadership mindset. The state of Thriving becomes a journey for each leader and organization to greater levels of understanding leading to consistently higher performance. In these times of corporate upheaval, global impact and constant, disruptive change, a Thriving state can greatly benefit individuals, teams, leaders and entire organizations. Through achieving a full and simultaneous three-dimensional understanding of the Creating superior business results thorugh a Thriving state of mind [5]
Thriving cultures drive business results Our evidence shows that when individuals integrate and achieve a balance of the three principles of the state of Thriving, there is a more than 70-percent predictor of sustainable high performance. And when a person scores high in all three areas, it is an 80-percent predictor of high-performance cultural attitudes and behaviors. culture measures the aim defined / understood / shared business results* industry percentile 75% 70% top-tier culture adapting and flexing action to meet market need 65% 60% Thriving people developing / engaging / aligning 55% 50% 45% bottom-tier culture living by standards values / behaviors / systems Source: 2007 Denison Research year 0 year 1 year 2 year 3 *Business results refers to return on assets, sales growth, market-to-book ratio state of Thriving principles, Thrivers spontaneously create an improved workplace environment. Higher levels of Thriving relate to personal fulfillment, better job performance and efficiency, and, therefore, greater organizational performance. About the authors Mike Marino is president and CEO of culture-shaping subsidiary Senn Delaney and executive vice president and managing partner at Heidrick & Struggles. Ian Johnston is managing partner EMEA, based in the London office. Acknowledgements We thank our university partners and former Senn Delaney President and CEO Jim Hart for their valuable input and collaboration. Gretchen Spreitzer, PhD: Gretchen Spreitzer is professor of Management and Organizations at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business and a founder of the business school s Center for Positive Organizational Scholarship. The co-author of three books, professor Spreitzer s research focuses on employee empowerment and leadership development. Christine Porath, PhD: Christine Porath is an assistant profession in the Department of Management & Organization at the University of Southern California s Marshall School of Business. Her academic focus is on workplace incivility and individual self-management. Her research has been published and featured on television, radio and in newspapers, business journals and books. Creating superior business results thorugh a Thriving state of mind [6]
Creating superior business results thorugh a Thriving state of mind [7]
About Senn Delaney Senn Delaney, a Heidrick & Struggles company, is widely recognized as the leading international authority and successful practitioner of culture shaping that enhances the spirit and performance of organizations. Founded in 1978, Senn Delaney was the first firm in the world to focus exclusively on transforming cultures. More Fortune 500 and Global 1000 CEOs have chosen Senn Delaney as their trusted partner to guide their cultural transformation. Senn Delaney s passion and singular focus on culture has resulted in a comprehensive and proven culture-shaping methodology that engages people and measurably impacts both the spirit and performance of organizations. Corporate offices Los Angeles 7755 Center Avenue Suite 900 Huntington Beach, California, 92647 t (562) 426 5400 London 40 Argyll Street London W1F 7EB United Kingdom main office line: +44 20 70754260 (from the U.S.: 011 44 207 075 4260) Web site: www.senndelaney.com Video channel: sdtv.senndelaney.com 2014 Senn-Delaney Leadership Consulting Group, LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this may be reproduced in any form without written permission of Senn-Delaney Leadership Consulting Group, LLC Creating superior business results thorugh a Thriving state of mind [8]