Job Bank's growth mindset culture

Growth mindset - is this just another business catchphrase? How does it relate to challenges and skill sets? In this article, we are going to uncover the nature of growth mindset and explain why and how Job Banks work to adopt a growth mindset culture. 

We all take joy when our ideas come to fruition. We're even more pleased when the ideas have an impact by improving motivation, innovation, or productivity in other areas. The spread of an idea benefits many, but occasionally this popularity can also alter and distort the original.

What is Growth Mindset?

Since I was a student at University of Central Lancashire back in 2005, I have been an admirer of Carol Dweck's research. Dweck is a highly regarded Professor of Psychology at Stanford University and the author of several books, including Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. In Mindset, Dweck differentiates a “growth mindset” from a “fixed mindset”.

According to Dweck a Growth Mindset is “the belief that an individual's most basic abilities and skills can be developed through dedication and hardwork - brains and talent are just the starting point”. A Fixed Mindset is “the belief that an individual's basic abilities and skills, their intelligence and their talents, are just fixed traits”. 

Where does the Growth Mindset idea come from?

Carol Dweck has been researching human motivation for decades. Early in her career, Dweck was particularly interested in finding out why some school children got excited about tough problems or challenges, and why others became anxious.

Dweck defined two mindsets that differentiate both types of reactions. Children with a fixed mindset believed that their skillsets and knowledge were innate, and therefore challenges would call out their weaknesses. Children with a growth mindset believed that their skillsets and knowledge could be developed, particularly through challenges.  

Beyond children and education, this theory is now being considered in adults at an organisational level. A team member with a fixed mindset is focusing on being good at what they do. They are constantly trying to prove themselves and demonstrate their strengths. At work, they are competitive and focused on performing better than their colleagues. They often refrain from challenge, fearing that either they will make a mistake or that someone else could do it better.

In contrast, a person with a growth mindset is focused on continuous learning and improvement, and that the constant development of skills and abilities is the purpose of what the journey you are on, as an individual and as a team member. Instead of competing with other colleagues, they are focused on competing with themselves, doing better than they did before, and supporting and developing colleagues. People with a growth mindset embrace challenge and are independent thinkers hoping to develop their skillset in the process.

Why has Job Bank adopted a Growth Mindset Culture?

More and more, organisations are turning to Dweck’s mindset theory, and looking for ways that they can instil the growth mindset as a norm within their organisation. When a value or process becomes a norm at an organisation, it becomes part of the culture. Studies show that implementing a growth mindset culture provides great organisational benefits. Growth mindset cultures are the key to transformation, engagement, and innovation.

Team members at organisations that have growth mindset cultures have 47 per cent higher trust in their company and are 34 per cent more likely to feel a sense of ownership and commitment to the future of the company. They also show 65 per cent stronger agreement that their company supports risk-taking. Organisations that are committed to helping nurture potential see direct performance results.

How has Job Bank adopted a Growth Mindset Culture?

Job Bank has transitioned from simply delivering a product to building a community of over 250 recruiters, supporting hundreds of employers to find talent to support the growth of their business. Our community of trusted recruiters, who all run their own businesses as independent recruitment consultants, are passionate about finding talent to further develop businesses, whilst ensuring they are also there for each business at every step of the recruitment process. Central to each recruitment professional, there is a strong, forward-thinking, risk-taking core team within Job Bank to develop and support each recruiter and each employer.

Multiple Areas of Growth Mindset which have impacted the Job Bank Core Team, Recruiters, and Employers

Agree to the Job Bank Core Team break out of its Day-to-Day Routine. A routine is essential to most kinds of work - but sticking too closely to a routine can limit the perspective that a team member has. If a team member never does anything beyond work that’s directly related to their deliverables and their goals, they may not get a full idea of how their work affects others in the business - and why avoiding risks may be holding other colleagues and the business back. Businesses with a growth mindset often create space for team members to constantly be learning more, personally, and professionally, helping them build a deeper understanding of their own work and the work of those around them. More importantly there is balance and flexibility in work, which allows team members to be thoroughly focused on enjoying their personal lives! Ongoing learning objectives, supporting loved ones, and charity work for example, help team members step out of their daily routine without requiring a major commitment to time off work. Having the opportunity to talk with other colleagues, collaborate, or engage in how we support recruiters and employers can also help team members gain valuable perspective on how the business works outside of their day-to-day work. This perspective can be a huge boost - giving them a better understanding of how the business fits together and what they can do on an individual level to improve their work for others around them.

Always Look for Education Opportunities. Everyone has gaps in their knowledge or their understanding of the business. Each individual probably does not know everything there is to learn about their customers or their competition, or the best strategies and marketing, product design, and logistics. This can be a source of anxiety; however, it can also represent a tremendous opportunity; no matter how well each individual or team is doing right now, there’s always room to learn more, and develop a deeper understanding of their work to further develop the recruitment community and employers. Taking advantage of educational opportunities as they become available is a great way to ensure individuals are always learning and always finding new ways to improve the business. 

Cultivate an Environment Where All Job Bank Core Team and Recruiters Feel Valued. In 2010, Carol Dweck decided to expand her research on fixed and growth mindsets by partnering with a consulting firm to examine how the two manifested in the business world.

She found that the way that a team member felt about their work environment was a key factor in whether the company was focused on business growth and all the risks, challenges, and innovations that entailed - or safety. At businesses with more open and collaborative work environments - one where all team members felt valued, not just high-performers or “star” team members - employees felt more comfortable taking risks and speaking up. S

peaking with the Harvard Business Review, Dweck provided statistics from her research that showed the kind of difference this employee culture can make. Compared to fixed-mindset companies, employees at these growth-mindset companies were 47 per cent more likely to “say that their colleagues are trustworthy”. They were also 34 per cent more likely “to feel a strong sense of ownership and commitment to the company”.

This change in attitude makes a big difference. In that more trusting, open environment, people feel more comfortable suggesting innovative ideas, recommending risky strategies, and having their voices heard. At Job Bank this has a ripple effect in developing our software, business model, recruiters to run successful recruitment agencies, and in turn employers grow their businesses by finding talent from our recruiters. In contrast, a system that prioritises the voices of rockstars only runs the risk of losing out on those perspectives.

That kind of system may also create a work environment that’s a little colder - one that’s less open and where there’s less trust between colleagues. A business culture that instead values all team members perspectives and encourages discussion is more likely to foster a growth mindset company wide.

Embrace Risk-Taking and Failure as Part of the Process. If team members feel secure in their workplace and know that their perspectives will be valued, they may also be more likely to take risks and embrace failure as part of work. At Job Bank, taking on challenges also means understanding that failure is a real possibility. Ideally, as a leader, you can embrace risks and prepare yourself for those potential failures.

This has helped to grow a company culture where the Job Bank Core Team and the recruitment professionals can also feel the same way and approach their day-to-day work differently - willing to take more risks, face challenges head-on, and accept the possibility that they may not succeed in everything they do, but that success has many faces!

Finally… A Job Bank business focused with a growth mindset culture is one where the Job Bank Core Team, recruiters and employers aren’t deterred by failure and take challenges head-on. An individual working with Job Bank, no matter what role they hold, will be excited for the opportunity to learn more, push their skills, experiment, and become independent thinkers with the focus and support of the team around them. There are a few strategies for cultivating this kind of mindset.

Creating room for everyone to break out of their daily routines, for example, can help them build relationships personally and professionally, feel more secure in their work, and acquire new knowledge. Ensuring that everyone connected to Job Bank is valued can also help ensure their voices are heard. Over time, this can make them more stable when handling failure or facing tough challenges. If an individual brings a growth mindset into their role it means they will have a passion for learning and improving, which is crucial in the ever-evolving recruitment industry.

We as a team and community, are continuously learning and growing, this provides us the opportunity to create true innovation, experiment, learn, and succeed together.