A couple of years past, at a long, hot “State of the Companies” meeting, some folks in Lockton’s own IT shop turned me on to a book called Start With Why, by Simon Sinek that has made a significant impact in our consulting practice. The book’s basic concept is while most businesses approach their clients (internally and externally) with their “How” and “What”, they often omit the first and most important step: the “Why.”
On my recent trip to cold and snowy Chicago, I found a perfect example of this concept waiting for me in my downtown Marriott hotel room. As you see in the picture, the “What” of the hotel washing the windows and the “How” of closing my curtains is preceded by a message of “Why” there has to be a disruption at all. This hotel manager believes that as a guest I should have an “unobstructed view and optimal natural lighting.” I have never would have put that need into words or worried about it for one instant. But once she shares her “Why,” I totally identify with and support her efforts.
We’ve taken the book’s lesson to heart in our HR Technology and Outsourcing practice by starting off each introductory call with potential employer clients with a brief story of why we care, why we choose to claim this particular sector as ours and why we want to help. Some of our teammates tell of their previous lives as HR practitioners managing payroll or benefits. Others tell about how working for HR Tech vendors previously has given them a passion around simplifying the unnecessarily complex. This message is personal to each of us, but there are common themes that run through the group. In fact, it’s an observable, documented strength often called “Regulatory.”
I didn’t start out knowing to seek out this particular strength when hiring, but over time I noticed the same trait showing up repeatedly in the candidate screening tests I’d force unsuspecting and innocent applicants through prior to any offer letter. The test is really not to screen out serial killers or the like – we have other methods for that (“Bring me a Shrubbery!”). Our tests are more to let us understand how the potential employee communicates and how our fast-moving team needs to adapt to welcome them and make them successful as quickly as possible.
Here’s how the report describes this characteristic:
Regulatory: Individuals with high regulatory values process information and reality in accordance with the dictates of conventional, external authority. In decision-making they are concerned about right and wrong as defined by a higher authority. They look for certainty and predictability in whatever they do.
Now, doesn’t this sound like the consultant you’d want supporting your business? I’ll admit this description does sound slightly religious with the phrase “higher authority,” but the basic concept of “right and wrong” can be a higher power, and is for us. Paying too much for mediocre technology is “wrong.” Knowing that disaster recovery plans are in place and tested is “right.”
Our “Why” stories often paint a picture of how we (or people we care about) have struggled to confidently navigate organizations through the morass of HR Tech vendors and systems. We’ve seen firsthand the pain of “Integration at the brochure-level only” and sketchy handoffs from sales reps to service teams. 
So why is “Starting with Why” so important to us? It really boils down to fit. If our “Why” matches up with a client’s biggest need, then there’s a great basis for our relationship and a connection over a shared passion. If our “Why” doesn’t match, then there are probably better options out there than our team for what ails them.
Starting off any relationship is hard – and in the business world, it’s often politically murky or deadline-driven in addition just to make things interesting. If we can clearly share who we are and why we care, then we can connect with those people who most likely will love being in partnership.
I’d love to hear if you agree with “Starting with Why.” Do you use this in your business or personal life? Click on the comment link or tweet me at @HRTechKaiser anytime to share your story. And you never know, perhaps your story will be the perfect solution another reader needs to hear today.