Treating people how you want to be treated ‒ operating using this golden rule.

For many companies, an investment in innovative technology is critical to survival. Many consider it the primary path to a competitive advantage. However, it would be a mistake for executives to take their eyes off the human component, according to a recent Gallup study.

The Gallup research found a disturbing trend in the global workplace: Only 15% of full-time employees consider themselves fully engaged at work, which was defined as “highly involved in and enthusiastic about their work and workplace.”

As Gallup puts it, that figure represents “a stunning amount of wasted potential, given that business units in the top quartile of our global employee engagement database are 17% more productive and 21% more profitable than those in the bottom quartile.”

Employee engagement also is a contributing factor to social sustainability — the company’s overall relationship with people. Companies that score high with social sustainability are ethical in their treatment of employees, clients, and the community.

An inside look at The Shepherd Color Company, where it’s not uncommon for employees to stay for 10, 20, 30 years or more, demonstrates the power of its socially sustainable culture.

Shepherd Color President John Marten said treatment of employees has been among the company’s differentiators. “The owners have always operated by the golden rule — treating people how they would want to be treated,” Marten said. “We give our employees opportunities and we give them the tools to do their jobs well.”

Read on to find out how we build a foundation that supports a social sustainable culture in the workplace by downloading the rest of this article.