Humanising workplace culture: Reflections on “Restored Organization’

I enjoyed reading “Restored Organization’, a book that describes ways to“humanise” workplace cultures and transform results.

- By Prof. Ajantha Dharmasiri

I met the two authors during the Great Place to Work (GPW) Regional Conference held in Colombo recently, and enjoyed the session conducted by Nitin Goil on the same theme. Today's column is a reflection on the contents of it in connecting with SriLankan context.

Overview

"The Restored Organization" written by Nitin Goil and Sebastian Anthony provides practical advice on how to lead with empathy and vision to build a thriving workplace culture. It highlights the philosophy for transforming a dysfunctional or toxic workplace into one where employees feel valued, supported, and motivated. The authors emphasise the importance of empathy, inclusion, and ongoing adaptation to create a positive culture that drives innovation and engagement.

They candidly share that the book was inspired by their personal experiences with toxic workplace environments and highlights the staggering cost of employee disengagement.

Nitin is a global leadership advisor with more than 25 years of experience working with senior leaders in the USA and Asia. His expertise is in the area of culture transformation, talent development and employee engagement. Sebastian has over 30 years of experience working in learning and organisational development in three major industries, healthcare, hospitality and consulting. The collective wisdom of both of them is amply shown in the book.

As stated in the book, according to Gallup's 2024 State of the Global Workplace, 62% of employees are disengaged from work, costing the global economy $ 8.9 trillion in productivity losses. The engagement referred here is simply the physical, mental and emotional involvement of an employee towards one's job.