The problem with "people first".

I’ve been thinking a lot about the phrase “people first” lately.

I keep hearing leaders in professional services firms throw it around like it’s a unique strategy or use it as a qualifier so that any growth opportunity doesn't compromise their ability to put their "people first".

On the surface, it seems smart. I mean, every business should put its people first, right? If we take care of our people, good things (results) will follow.

Sure, it sounds good, but what I've come to realize is that what most people think "people first" means vs what I believe it should mean are two very, very different things.

What people think "people first" means

In many firms, I find "people first" ends up being a buzzword—there's not a whole lot of substance behind it.

Leaders will suggest that being "people first" is a key part of their strategy, or even worse, they'll object to aggressive growth opportunities for the sake of protecting their ability to be "people first"?

Then I’ll ask what: “What does people first mean?”

And you know what’s funny… a lot of times, people don’t even have an answer!

When I press leaders on how they define it, I usually get responses like:

• “It means preserving our culture.”

• “It means treating people well and creating a nice place to work.”

• “It means providing perks like unlimited PTO, pet insurance, or gym stipends.”

I'm not saying those are bad things, but they definitely aren't differentiators.

Culture is just how two or more people connect and the rest is simply building a nice environment for people to exist.

That’s not putting people first…

The reality is, many of the same firms claiming they are "people first" are operating in ways that put people's careers last.

What people actually want

“Culture”, being treated well, office happy hours, and unlimited PTO don't get to the heart of what I believe people truly want out of their careers.

People want to:

Learn. Develop. Grow. Be challenged. Advance. Be valued.

People want to build a career, and you, by hiring them, should be enabling them to do that.

And while you may be nodding your head along as you read this, I wonder how many of you can confidently say your firm acts in ways that enable this reality for your people?

Because, from my experience, there are a lot of firms that claim to support these ideas, yet their actions communicate something totally different.

Think about it...

For the accountants reading this...how many tax returns have you completed in your career?

Having grown up as a tax guy myself, I'd say that number totaled over 300 for me. 300!

After I'd done 50 of them, how is that helping me develop my career? It's not.

So, many of the leaders who maintain the importance of being "people first" are the same ones making people perform hundreds of repetitive tasks and complete one-size-fits-all training and development programs that don't add value to their careers.

That doesn't make sense at all...

Real "people first" firms focus on stripping away the repetitive tasks and replacing them with career-value-added opportunities.

What “people first” really means

To me, it's all about intentionality.

People first firms help people be the best professional version of themselves, and a huge piece of that is getting rid of all the career non-value-added tasks.

It’s about asking:

Are we designing roles and work around real career acceleration? Or are we just plugging people into the same system, which allows us to record revenue like we always have for the sake of consistency and familiarity?

For example, these are some shifts I'd like to see more firms make:

Stop: Making accountants complete 300 tax returns
​Start: Automating the work to minimize human touches so people can focus more on advising clients

Stop: Offering the same buffet-style, pulled training and development to everyone Start: Providing tailored, intentional opportunities in certain skillsets, designations, or capabilities to support people's growth journeys

Stop: Being more focused on production than development and outcomes for every new associate and senior associates
​Start: Designing work weeks (or seasons or some other term) around experiences and learning meant to help people gain exposure to different parts of the business

So, the question I'd ask any firm leader is:

What will it take to ensure your people can invest a majority of their time working on career-value-added tasks that enable them to advance?

If people are doing repetitive work for the sake of checking a box or hitting a budget, they aren't growing.

And an environment where people are required to do work that doesn't enable the growth of their careers is not a "people first" environment.

The bottom line

You don’t put people first by providing office perks or stating you want to “preserve culture”.

You put people first by understanding where and how they want to grow in their careers and providing intentional opportunities to support that journey.

It starts with eliminating the repetitive career-non-value-added tasks that bog down people's development and replacing them with intentional opportunities that support their career aspirations.

As a profession, it’s time to BREAK THE MOLD™ of the way we've always done things and enable new, rewarding paths for people.

That's being "people first".

With intention,
Alan D Whitman