How Leading Organizations Take Culture to the Next Level
To weather constant disruption and the accelerating pace of change, organizations fight for top talent, drive innovation, and focus on culture. So why talk about belonging? Belonging may be the key to retention, risk-taking, and engagement that launches an organization past the competition.
“Basically, Maslow was saying if you’re starving to death, you’re not going to be sitting around contemplating life—you’re going to be out searching for food. But what we now know is that Maslow may have missed the mark, and that belonging, the human need to connect and be part of the group around us may be, in fact, our most critical need.”
Howard Ross, Founder, Udarta Consulting
Howard Ross describes belonging as a shared sense of identity, destiny and values, a sense of interdependence, all of which allow people to feel fully able to be themselves. He says, “When people ask me for definition of terms, I like to say that if diversity is being invited to the dance and inclusion is actually being allowed to dance, belonging is when you actually have some say about the music. In other words, you are so completely a part of the culture or the organization that your input matters. It’s not just that you’re allowed to be successful in my organization; instead, you actually have something to say about the culture of the organization, our way of being in the organization, the choices we make in the organization.”
Since 1959, the Association of Executive Search and Leadership Consultants (AESC) has set the quality standard for the executive search and leadership consulting profession. Its members are the leaders in executive talent and leadership advisory solutions. AESC facilitates diverse and innovative thinking in global leadership. World-class executive search and leadership consulting firms join AESC to demonstrate their deep commitment to the quality standard AESC represents and to shape the future of the profession. Business leaders worldwide retain AESC members as trusted advisors to minimize risk and gain competitive advantage in their industries.
The BlueSteps Career Management Blog is written with a C-level audience in mind on career management topics ranging from executive compensation, executive resumes, and interview tips to networking, executive job search, and gaining visibility as a professional in one’s industry. The BlueSteps Executive Search Blog links senior executive candidates to actual retained search recruitment insights from AESC member executive recruiters, BlueSteps career advisors and other guest writers.
