Achieve Results Because of People, Not Through People

We briefly addressed the myth of "accomplishing results through people" in a previous post that dispelled common misconceptions about People First Leadership, but we have since encountered a couple of recent articles that perpetuated this misunderstanding further. Although the articles in question accurately portray other facets of the leadership style, the concept of achieving results through people is antithetical to People First Leadership. Here's why.

In short, people are not a means to an end. Conceptualizing people in this way dehumanizes them and creates a problematic perspective which results in perceiving people as assets and not as people. When you frame People First Leadership as accomplishing results through people, it implies the organization is using people rather than truly valuing them.

Semantics of Results Through People

One could argue that saying "achieving results through people" is another way to articulate the concept of focusing on people and not results. In other words, when you take care of your people, they take care of the business. And that's true. One of the principles of People First Leadership is building your employees so they can build the business; however, what we encountered was the opposite—building your business by building your employees. This subtle but significant distinction adversely transforms People First Leadership from a management framework to a tactical strategy.

Commitment, Not Strategy

People First Leadership is not merely a strategy to achieve organizational goals, it's a commitment to your organization and the people with whom you interact. The leadership style is how you conduct business, not how you achieve results, at least directly. Although practitioners may experience short-term success by employing People First Leadership as a strategy, if the leadership style does not emanate from a place of truly valuing people above everything else, there will be harmful long-term consequences.

The People First Leadership style developed as a response to traditional management frameworks that define employees as resources and assets. In contrast, People First Leadership acknowledges that people bring exponentially more value to organizations than anything else—strategy, property, cash, patents, brand, etc.—not to mention the inherent value of a human life far exceeds any other aspect of a business.

Someone who uses people to achieve results is not a People First Leader, they are a results-first leader. It's right there in the name. You have to prioritize people. You have to commit to doing the right thing by your people no matter what. People are first.