By Maria Williams  
27/7/2010  
 
Characterizing his own interests, Dave Ulrich, professor of business at the University of Michigan, said jokingly, “I have OCD—organizational compulsive disorder.” He has written extensively about what makes organizations tick and how to improve them. On the other hand, his wife Wendy Ulrich, psychologist with a private practice, focuses more on personal development. In a recent American Management Association webcast featuring the couple’s work, Dave said, “When we came together [to co-author a book], we wanted to look at ‘How do you build organizations that matter and make a difference in peoples’ lives?’ ” The Ulriches’ book The Why of Work (McGraw-Hill, 2010), blends their findings on organizational and individual development into a systematic, multilevel approach to help leaders make more beneficial meaning for themselves, their employees and their customers.

Why Meaning Is a ‘Must-Have’

Employees are demanding greater meaningfulness in their careers, but some companies have been slow to catch on. According to Dave, business school graduates increasingly prefer to work for socially responsible organizations. In 2009, 30 percent of Harvard graduates signed petitions to “do no harm” to the world. Yet, although large organizations believe they can afford to invest in meaning, and small organizations seem to grasp intuitively that they can’t afford not to focus on meaning, medium companies “sometimes get the idea that they can’t pay for the things that would bring more meaning to their employees’ lives,” Wendy said.

To illustrate that meaning doesn’t require money, Wendy showed a photo of a street that is covered by a sagging tangle of wires and poles that look as if they’re about to collapse onto the street. She revealed that the street is in India “where you call with your technical computer problems,” observing “that’s a little scary to think about for some of us who are used to electricity looking a little more orderly.”

The small start-up companies in India don’t have the luxury of seeing their humble circumstances through a lens of negative, “deficit” thinking, she said—they must focus on opening possibilities and building on strengths. The way they construct meaning motivates them.

“People even in confusing and difficult situations find meaning and purpose and a sense of well-being,” Wendy said. “If you ask [workers] in India, ‘Why do people take their computer problems to you?’ they’re more likely to say ‘because we’re really good at solving those problems, really good at handling those difficult situations’—whereas the people in North America might be more inclined to say, ‘Oh, well—they’re just cheaper.’  [Indian workers] find meaning in the services they’re able to provide and as such are able to grow their companies in a remarkable way.”

Leaders Shape Meaning

“Leaders are meaning-makers because they leverage strengths to strengthen others,” Dave said. To help leaders find and enhance meaning, he identified seven elements of what he called “abundant thinking.” Abundant thinking allows coordination of “aspirations and actions to create meaning for [leaders, employees and customers], value for stakeholders and hope for humanity at large” by connecting to the real needs of communities.

The following are key elements of abundant thinking:

•Identity.
•Purpose and direction.
•Relationships and teamwork.
•Positive work environment.
•Engagement/challenge.
•Resilience and learning.
•Civility and delight.

He displayed a grid of 21 areas, each with sets of questions for leaders to “audit” one of the seven elements of abundant thinking while focusing on one of the three “targets” of these elements—the leaders themselves, the organization and the customers. The result is a multilayered, intensive, holistic system that helps leaders easily identify areas of focus and address the right questions to make improvements.

Maria Williams is a freelance writer based in Arlington, Va.