Keolis Downer

Nikki Klinkert

Recognizing Nikki Klinkert’s deep expertise in human resources at Keolis Downer, this exclusive feature provides invaluable insights into the complexities of meaningful work in the modern workplace. Klinkert explores the challenges of aligning identity and community to foster employee fulfillment, and offers strategies for leveraging workplace culture and diversity to create a more engaged, connected and purpose-driven environment for employees

“An old day passes; a new day arrives. The important thing is to make it meaningful…” This beautiful quote was published by the Dalai Lama XIV long before the concept of meaningfulness in the workplace was born. People have been focussed on finding meaning and living meaningfully since the earliest of times.

More recently the concept of meaningful in the workplace has come into the spotlight. The Work Health and Safety (Psychosocial Risks) Amendment Regulation of 2022 states that businesses have a duty of care to manage psychosocial risks by identifying and eliminating or minimising psychosocial hazards as is reasonably practicable. One of the more complexed psychosocial hazards is meaningful work or essentially lack thereof. The conundrum is that it’s a subjective experience involving cognitive and affective elements. It’s not measured in units and differs between employees.

“Your efforts today will affect people you will never know. It is your choice whether that effect is positive or negative. The choice is easy. And it is yours to make.”

Many variables impact what an individual perceives as meaningful work. Past experience, personal relevance, value alignment, autonomy, the ability to make decisions, competence, connection, and impact all play a role. These are our lenses that overlap and contort, like a kaleidoscope and shape our belief of what is meaningful.

This is further impacted by the scale of diversity in the workplace. Right now, we potentially have 5 generations in the workplace simultaneously and they each may find different work meaningful. Our Traditionalists (1925-1945) found meaning in service, family values and contributing to their communities. The Baby Boomers (1946-1964) found meaning in achievement, careers and contributing to society. Gen X (1965-1980) found personal fulfilment and contributing to their families to be meaningful. The Millennials (1981-1996) find meaning in making a difference, pursuing impactful careers and connecting with others. Lastly, our Gen Zs (1997-2012) find meaning in expression, pursuing passions and creating a better world.

Even though these generations lived in different times with unique opportunities and challenges, for me, there is a common threads formula to what they find meaningful: Identity + Community = fulfilment.

The Oxford dictionary defines identity as: “The fact of being who or what a person or thing is”. Simply put, my identity is the sum of the things I do each day that make me, me. The secret is finding employees whose identity matches the job and then give them a great place to do it. A good example is our Customer Service team. These employees are true service masters. The passenger experience is at the heart of what they do. We provide them with a safe and supported place to do this important work which further builds their identity in the workplace.

The Power of Community: Creating Connections that Drive Purpose

As humans, we have always had a biological need for community because it was vital to our survival. Today this need is less driven by the fear of wild lions and more by the need for belonging and acceptance. At workplace this is more than being part of the operations or finance team. It’s a sense of connection and shared purpose. It’s contributing to something bigger than just myself. When we encourage community in the workplace it improves cooperation, engagement and ensures retention. It results in more employees staying for longer and contributing to the overall goal of the organisation.

The result of our equation is fulfilment or Selfactualization. This is the process of reaching your fullest potential by pursuing growth, creativity, and fulfilment. It’s the peak of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, where our focus shifts from the basic survival type needs to achieving self-expression, purpose and a meaningful existence. It’s the place where your identity and community together result in a meaningful life.

To everyone in the workplace, find what is meaningful to you. Perhaps the type of work you do does not have a big scope. Maybe the meaning lies in the peripheral. The conversations with colleagues in the lunchroom. Maybe you are the go-to person, or the confidant. Perhaps your spreadsheet and reliable data contributed to a very successful outcome down the line. By looking at your work as the collective of many pieces you do that matter, you may come to view your overall work that more purposeful. You may find the “Me” in “(Me)aningful”.

In his book, The Happiest Man on Earth: The Beautiful life of an Auschwitz Survivor, Eddie Jaku said: “Perhaps you do not love your job, or you work with difficult people. You are still doing important things, contributing your own small piece to the world we live in. We must never forget this. Your efforts today will affect people you will never know. It is your choice whether that effect is positive or negative. You can choose every day, every minute, to act in a way that may uplift a stranger, or else drag them down. The choice is easy. And it is yours to make.”