General wisdom holds that customers want to know that brands care about something more than their bottom lines. Although corporate purpose is often discussed in boardrooms – and rightly so – this doesn’t always translate into internal company culture. So, how can leaders empower people to do meaningful work that aligns with the company’s corporate purpose?
In a rapidly changing landscape, innovation and creativity are must-haves for businesses wishing to be on the cutting edge of customer trends and embed themselves within the current zeitgeist. But without fostering a positive culture, companies will find it hard to make the impact they wish for.
A lot of this boils down to one thing: happiness. The happiness of employees; the happiness of clients; and the happiness of an organisation. That’s according to Angela Tangas, chief executive of UK and Ireland at advertising and marketing services giant dentsu.
The pursuit of happiness
On the surface, the pursuit of happiness might appear an unattainable goal for businesses. This is particularly true given that many factors that determine happiness – financial wellbeing, health, personal relationships, to name a few – are outside of the remit of a corporate entity. But that doesn’t mean it’s a goal which should be sacrificed in favour of performance metrics, clicks or ROI.
In simple terms, a happier society can create real benefits for corporate and economic growth, and businesses attempting to future-proof themselves would do well to consider integrating wellbeing into both their internal and external strategies.
Recent research from dentsu underlines the importance of consumer happiness for a company’s bottom line, examining the correlation between consumers’ happiness and financial wellbeing and their attitudes to spending.
With 70% of Gen-Z consumers wanting brands to demonstrate emotional intelligence and understanding in their advertising, compared with just 45% of Baby Boomers, it is clear that the brand expectations of younger buyers differ significantly from older generations – and businesses need to respond to this.
“Happy customers make long-term customers,” says Tangas. “But it goes further than that. You also need happy employees because they become long-term employees who want to put in the good fight to help drive the growth agenda of the company. That discretionary effort is a big differentiator between winning and losing.”
For brands, nurturing happiness can be both a challenge and an opportunity, believes Tangas. But those brands that fail to consider people’s wellbeing – whether their customers’ or their employees’ – will get left behind.
Sanpo Yoshi
Tangas cites dentsu’s commitment to the Japanese concept of “Sanpo Yoshi,” or “three-way satisfaction,” as a cornerstone of the agency’s people-centric strategy. It’s an ethos – centred on treating people well and nurturing strong, trustworthy relationships – that is integral to dentsu’s vision.
“It’s all about actively working towards our goal of being a people-centred transformation company that shapes society for the better,” says Tangas. “We already naturally influence the behaviours of brands in some way, shape or form through the way that we show up as a company. But to have a positive influence, we need to ask ourselves how we can show up in the right ways with and for customers.”
Get this right and the wins can compound, believes Tangas. Embracing a people-centric approach is, of course, good for people within the business – but it can also have wider benefits. Embody this mentality in an externally facing capacity and, says Tangas, businesses can have a significant impact on their clients too.
“That’s good for society, because every one of us has a responsibility, particularly in these roles, to be custodians of a better tomorrow, in terms of their role and responsibility,” adds Tangas. “And this underlines the importance of being a trusted partner – whether between a brand and its customer, or a brand and its people.”
This approach helps the company embrace the three-way satisfaction of “Sanpo Yoshi” and keeps people at the heart of everything the firm does, now and in the future.
Preparing for the future
Tangas says dentsu is proactively preparing the business and its people for what comes next with the recent appointment of a chief future officer for UK and Ireland – a first for the group globally.
Tasked with helping to shape everything from talent development and engagement to being the eyes and ears of the consumer, the chief future officer is a role with a broad remit. Tangas hopes the successful candidate will act as a people-centric, strategic advisor and “the voice of the next generation on the inside of our company”.
“What do our employees need to see more of to make them feel like they’re part of something bigger and to feel that they want to stay?” says Tangas. “Our people are the key to happier clients and better business performance, so we want the chief future officer to help inspire both retention and professional development in people. Likewise, they will play a big role in shaping products and services for our customers.”
What’s clear is that a positive organisational culture is needed to realise organisational purpose. With its people-centric philosophy and forward-thinking approach, dentsu is forging a path that many enterprises can look to as an example to follow.
