How to use Purpose to Engage Employees

Operational Execution and Purpose Alignment: Eliminating the Friction Between Executive Vision and Frontline Delivery

This Fast Leader Show episode covers how to use Purpose to Engage Employees. Here is what the conversation covers, then the key insights.

Index cards were distributed, smartphones were put away, and the answers were collected. Dozens of cards came back blank or marked with question marks.

Executive Summary: Key Insights
The Alignment Gap:
Strategic mission statements fail when organizations rely on human memory and passive communication rather than supportive operational architecture.
Functional versus Essence Behaviors:
Competency covers tactical duties, but true performance requires embedding purpose into daily, observable routines.
Systemic Reinforcement:
Frontline disconnects stem from outdated administrative designs that prioritize transactional output over environmental guidance.

When author Steve Curtin gathered 222 senior corporate leaders in a Chicago ballroom for an exercise, the client executive predicted nearly everyone would know their corporate mission statement verbatim. Index cards were distributed, smartphones were put away, and the answers were collected.

Dozens of cards came back blank or marked with question marks. One senior executive even wrote that he did not believe the company had a mission statement at the time.

When the dust settled, only four leaders out of 222 provided the correct statement.

That is less than 2%.

Now, really think about that.

These were not frontline staff members isolated from corporate communications. They were senior executives flown in from across the country to align on corporate strategy.

And I will be honest with you, I missed this exact distinction early in my career. We assume that because strategic intent is defined in the boardroom, it naturally flows through the operational levels into daily behavior.

It does not.

When organizations experience this disconnect, it is rarely due to employee indifference or leadership failure. It happens because human capacity reaches its limit under high operational velocity, causing leaders to revert to their Biological Autopilot.

When systems fail to provide real-time guidance, daily routines default strictly to basic job functions. Steve highlighted this using the example of a barista. Making the drink is a functional duty, but taking a second to explain that “macchiato” means marked or stained in Italian is a voluntary behavior that reflects job purpose.

When operational environments only measure transactional throughput, those voluntary actions disappear.

This silent degradation creates massive Execution Drift across entire business units. The problem is not a lack of training or leadership development. The constraint is an outdated operating system that expects human biology to sustain alignment without environmental scaffolding.

Now that you see the bigger picture, what will you do differently?

Operational Alignment and Strategic Execution: Frequently Asked Questions

Why do executive mission statements fail to drive frontline behavior?

Mission statements fail at the frontline because traditional operating systems treat purpose as an informational announcement rather than a structural constraint. When operational complexity increases, human cognitive load forces workers to prioritize immediate tactical tasks over abstract corporate statements. Without real-time alignment mechanisms embedded directly into daily workflows, strategic intent disintegrates as it cascades through management layers.

How does organizational drift impact financial performance and operational throughput?

Organizational drift creates friction across cross-silo handoffs, increases rework, and degrades the customer experience. When employees focus strictly on transactional job functions rather than job purpose, service quality becomes inconsistent and customer retention drops. The financial impact manifests as secondary spend required to fix operational errors and replace talent lost to workplace frustration.

What is the difference between job function and job essence in enterprise operations?

Job function refers to the mechanical duties, tasks, and tactical skills required to execute a role. Job essence represents the alignment of those daily tasks with the higher purpose of the organization through voluntary, value-adding behaviors. While job functions can be mandated and monitored through basic management, job essence requires an operating environment that reduces cognitive friction and reinforces voluntary alignment.

The Power of Purpose for Engaging Employees

The capability to engage employees is one of the most vital components for business success, especially today, when globally distributed workers are embracing multi-functional working structures. Through employee engagement, businesses are able to attract and retain more talent as well as increase corporate commitment to their goals.

In this episode, Steve addresses job functions, job essence, and how to make core values a part of these functions so that they are sustained, evolving, and progressing towards achieving these goals.

Steve Curtin was born in Schenectady, New York, where his father was a tire salesman, and his mother stayed at home with him and his sister. In the early-1970s, his father was relocated to Overland Park, Kansas, where Steve grew up.

He has one older sister who lives with her family in Wesley Chapel, Florida, outside Tampa. She is the local support for their mother, who lives in an assisted living facility in the area.

Growing up, Steve had a creative streak for which he used drawing as an outlet. Over time, his hobbies and interests evolved, and he began to do more reading which led to more writing.

Steve began working at Marriott in 1986 as a bellman for a summer job while in college. That led to an internship in human resources, leading to a manager in training (MIT) role in sales and marketing at the Overland Park Marriott Hotel.

From sales and marketing, Steve shifted back to human resources, this time in a training role at the New York Marriott Marquis in Times Square. After four years in New York City, Steve accepted a position with Marriott headquarters training and development, where he worked until October 2006. In 2007, Steve launched his consulting company to speak, write, and consult on customer service, customer experience, and customer experience management.

In 2013, he published his first book, Delight Your Customers: 7 Simple Ways to Raise Your Customer Service from Ordinary to Extraordinary. In May 2022, he published his second book, The Revelation Conversation: Inspire Greater Employee Engagement by Connecting to Purpose.

Steve is proud of his contributions to the ongoing conversation on how to raise customer service quality and inspire greater employee engagement. He lives in Denver, Colorado, and is married with four children and a Goldendoodle named Nugget.

Tweetable Quotes and Mentions

Listen to @enthusedget over the hump on the @FastLeaderShow – Click to Tweet

“Corporate decapitation:The top of the head of the organization is going one direction,and the feet are going somewhere else.” – Click to Tweet

“Anyone who is in the supervisory level role has the responsibility to reveal the totality of the employee’s job role.” – Click to Tweet

“Most are focused on delivery and execution.” – Click to Tweet

“Leadership and leadership skills and leadership competencies are not the same as getting the job done.” – Click to Tweet

“Competency is not enough.” – Click to Tweet

“Purpose of work has two journeys.” – Click to Tweet

“There are two journeys, one has to do with work the other has to do with life.” – Click to Tweet

“Purpose and core values are two different things.” – Click to Tweet

“Pursue alignment around core values.” – Click to Tweet

“Reveal, connect, inspire.” – Click to Tweet

“It’s like a North Star, you’ll never achieve it but it’s all about sustainment, movement, momentum, progress towards this aspiration goal.” – Click to Tweet

“Job functions are the what and the how.” – Click to Tweet

“Job essence is job purpose.” – Click to Tweet

“You don’t motivate people, people motivate themselves.” – Click to Tweet

“What is job essence? It’s your single priority at work.” – Click to Tweet

“You can mandate actions but what you cannot mandate are behaviors.” – Click to Tweet

“Exceptional customer service is always voluntary.” – Click to Tweet

“You can’t force an employee to deliver an exceptional customer service any more than you can force a customer to be loyal.” – Click to Tweet

“The single highest priority at work is to make a lasting impression.” – Click to Tweet

“Even with the best of intentions, nothing changes.” – Click to Tweet

Advice for others

Talk about the totality of the job role to improve customer service.

Holding him back from being an even better leader

Time management.

Best Leadership Advice

Listen more than you talk.

Secrets to Success / Tools

Connectivity.

Recommended Reading

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change

Links and Resources

Steve’s website: https://www.stevecurtin.com/

Steve’s email: steve@stevecurtin.com

Steve’s book: https://amzn.to/3zQMiI3

Steve’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/enthused

Steve’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/enthused

Fast Leader Show on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/FastleaderNet

Fast Leader Show on Apple Podcast: https://apple.co/364qAA2

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Fast Leader Show on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/fastleader.net

Check out other episodes on employee engagement: https://www.fastleader.net/people-leadership/

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