Why is a people-first approach important across all sectors, industries and indeed activities?

Why is a people-first approach not a ‘nice-to-have’ but a ‘must-have’ for organisations across all sectors?

In today’s fast-paced and competitive world, it is easy for organizations to prioritize profits, efficiency or innovation – entirely forgetting that none of these goals can be achieved without catalysing the biggest assets that organisations have at their fingertips, which is people. Like it or not, the foundation of any successful initiative in any sector or industry is people whether they are employees, customers, partners, or suppliers. In this blog, I will use three real-life examples to illustrate why it is crucial for organisations across industries and sectors to adopt a people-first approach and how doing so can lead to avoiding unnecessary costs and achieving more sustainable, and indeed profitable success.

Story: Warnings Ignored, Trains Stop (Related to employee)

Between 2015 and 2023, London’s underground transport network was rocked by a series of major strikes. These weren’t isolated incidents; they were systemic symptoms of deeper dissatisfaction within the workforce. Station staff, train drivers, engineers, and maintenance crews raised the alarm about increasing workloads, shrinking support, and unsafe working conditions. They warned that proposed changes from pension reform to overnight service extensions would create unsafe environments and erode work-life balance. But TfL leadership pushed forward, often without negotiation. They introduced pay cuts, contract changes, and station closures without union agreement. Over time, the message to frontline workers became clear: "You're not being listened to." So, they walked out and London came to a halt.

What Went Wrong: A Breakdown in People-First Leadership

In 2022, train and bus workers went on strike over wages and conditions, unions said the underground strike was in response to TfL's lack of job and pension guarantees and TfL employees said their employers tried to violate the terms of previous contracts or provide unqualified compensation, and employees' trust in TfL gradually eroded. Many TfL workers were forced to resign due to the enormous pressure of their lives.

The Consequences: When a City Stalls

Multiple strikes between 2015 and 2023 paralyzed the city’s transport. Each strike day cost London an estimated £50–£100 million. Especially tourism and hospitality industries suffered major disruptions. TfL incurred £13 million in additional costs from overtime pay, replacement buses, and lost revenue. In one 24-hour strike alone, over 4 million journeys were disrupted, the scale that showcased just how deeply transport affects daily life and economic health.

Story: Patagonia’s Value-Led Strategy (Understanding Customers)

Patagonia sells outdoor clothing, which is especially suitable for mountain hikers, adventurers and nature lovers. The company has built a loyal customer base by aligning its business with its customers’ values like environmental sustainability, ethical practices, and social responsibility. Instead of focusing purely on profit, Patagonia invested in building a foundation that is built on public trust and transparency, which ensured that its customers remained loyal to the brand despite its premium product prices, and even through global crises like the recession and the COVID 19 pandemic.

What Went Right:

Patagonia took bold actions to align the company with what its customers truly cared about. Patagonia understood that is core customer base was made up of nature lovers and people committed to environmental and social sustainability. For example, 69% of Patagonia customers said they like their products to come from sources that were ethically and socially responsible, 67% believed in protecting the environment, and 54% preferred buying Fairtrade products.

Therefore, Patagonia improved labour practices in its supplier companies in Asian countries and enforced socially responsible employment practices. Also, Patagonia used only organic or recycled materials, reducing adverse environmental impacts. Furthermore, every year Patagonia donates 1% of its profits from annual sales to environmental causes through the “1% for the Planet” initiative.

Financial Impact:

Patagonia’s annual revenue exceeds $1 billion, despite premium pricing. In 2022, it was ranked #1 in the Axios Harris Poll of most reputable companies in the U.S. Patagonia maintained strong profitability and growth even during economic downturns. It has a Net Promoter Score (NPS) of over 60, which is far above average for the retail industry - all as a result of Patagonia’s careful investment into the brand’s integrity and building customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Story: When Cultures Collide – Uber and Didi’s China Partnership Failure (ignoring partnership)

In 2016, Uber, the American ride-hailing giant, entered into a strategic partnership with China’s Didi Chuxing, aiming to combine their efforts to dominate the Chinese market. On paper, this alliance seemed promising: Uber brought global scale, and Didi had deep local knowledge. But the two companies never truly worked as one team. Uber’s aggressive, data-driven, fast-growth culture clashed with Didi’s relationship-focused, regulatory-savvy approach. Instead of collaborating smoothly, the partnership was marked by distrust, misaligned priorities, and poor communication.

What Went Wrong: No Real Effort to understand cultural worldviews

Both companies suffered from a lack of cultural understanding and differing business practices. Uber’s Western-centric aggressive expansion tactics didn’t align with Didi’s careful navigation of China’s regulatory environment. Leadership styles varied greatly, with Uber’s fast-paced start-up mindset at odds with Didi’s relationship-based approach. Different worldviews, mistrust, communication issues and competition for market shares escalated and caused a breakdown of human relationships. Uber’s failure to fully appreciate local worldviews, practices and regulatory norms ultimately undermined the alliance.

The Consequences: Uber Exits China with Heavy Losses

By 2016, Uber had to exit the Chinese market entirely, selling its China operations to Didi in a deal valued at $35 billion. Uber reportedly lost over $2 billion trying to compete in China and gave up control to Didi, effectively ending the partnership. This move allowed Didi to dominate China’s ride-hailing market, while Uber was forced to refocus its efforts elsewhere.

As the above stories illustrate, people construct meaning in different ways – whether it is employees making sense of leadership agendas, or customers ascribing meaning to a particular brand, or business partners making sense of a strategic collaboration. It is this meaning-making that subsequently motivates behaviours. Behaviours turn into habits and, later on, become established practices. This is why people’s subjectivities critically influence how they respond to new initiatives, strategies, or tools, software or products. Unless an initiative fits into their existing systems of meaning and connects with what they see both cognitively and emotionally as ‘meaningful’, people are unlikely to commit to anything – sometimes consciously but often also subconsciously. If they are employees, they will not adopt the new software or new strategy. If they are potential customers, they will not warm up to a product or service. If they are partners, they will not buy into a coalition or partnership.

This blog was written by Zhen Pan, who is a Marketing and Communication Expert at Mindset Dynamics.