What is HR’s purpose and what makes us feel good at work?

Jan Hills explains that struggle and recognition are part of the answer

Does your HR team have a clear purpose? Many HR people I talk to say that they have not clearly defined their purpose. This is always a surprise to me.

How can you really make decisions and measure performance if you are not clear about your purpose?

When considering ‘purpose’, the question: ‘What is the job that needs to be done?’ is often asked. It was highlighted by Harvard professor Clayton Christenson in an interview I read recently, which got me thinking.

I’m sure that this is the question you will be asking yourself. Not as a task but as the reason for being in your role. The purpose that makes you get up on a cold morning and brings a smile to your face even when you are very tired.

Professor Dan Ariely says that we are too simplistic when we think about purpose in our job and, indeed, in life as it is purpose that gets people through tough times.

He suggests that the challenge of achieving something that is difficult is what makes us feel good rather than actually doing the work.

Ariely’s other point is people need feedback on their purpose and the contribution they make. Even a small amount makes a difference.

He also found that purpose was much more important than people predicted.

When people had their efforts destroyed in front of them, they gave up more quickly. When people received no recognition, even if the task was something they loved, they had no satisfaction. The lack of recognition killed the sense of purpose suggesting ignoring peoples’ effort is like destroying their work.

For more from Ariely watch this video

For people who manage others it is important to remember that when we recognise people we get a free boost to productivity and discretionary effort.

Ariely says that an even bigger boost to purpose comes when we struggle with a project. Apparently when this happens we like what we do even more than if it is easy.

He called this the IKEA effect and draws the link between struggling to assemble flat pack furniture and liking the end product more than if it had been easy or come ready assembled.

This theme of struggle is one also advocated in a new book Leadership and the Art of Struggle by Steven Snyder. You can read my blog on the book here.

In the training we offer, I often use the story of the butterfly breaking out of the chrysalis. The struggle pushes blood and fluids into the wings and produces the beauty as well as the functionality. When people work hard they value what they are doing. This has implications in team leadership, development and training. The message is don’t make it too easy. The struggle is part of the purpose and looking back on a struggle creates a sense of achievement, attachment and satisfaction.