Evolving values, new technology, and the development of our society will change both how we work and why we work. Our working life is blending together with the rest of our lives. Working is becoming an integrated part of living.
However, our organizations do not meet today's needs. Organizations are still built like machines with separated, well-oiled parts where people are supposed to be squeezed in to fit the “role descriptions”. The organization is a consequence of securing predict-and-control. And it's not working. What to do? There is no silver bullet, but a few cornerstones need extra attention to design our future organizations.
Autonomy; we all want to organize our own work, and we want goals that are inspiring, non-conflicting, and in our circle of control. Competence; Mastery and continuous learning, as well as growing as human beings, make us feel good. Relationships: We all long for connection, inclusion, and authenticity. If we to that add a higher purpose for the organization, there is a seedbed for freeing our natural intrinsic motivation and creating meaning in our working lives.
Meaning is the new hard currency.
