Overview
Many leaders are searching for ways to motivate their people, improve employee engagement, and drive stronger performance. Yet despite new initiatives, surveys, and incentives, engagement often remains stubbornly low. The missing ingredient is not another programme or metric. It is passion.
This article explains why people with passion are the fundamental drivers of employee engagement and performance. It shows leaders how engagement is created through feelings, behaviour, and ownership, not pressure or targets alone. If you want people to perform at their best, this is where to start.
People with Passion Are Central to Business Success
Joel was a senior executive with a significant retail organisation when I began working with him. He understood the importance of a safe and inspiring work environment and recognised that people touch everything a business delivers, regardless of sector.
After 18 months in the role, Joel invited me in with a clear intention. He wanted to embed a simple mantra in the heads, hearts, and hands of his leadership team. He believed that performance follows people, not the other way around. When leaders focus on how people feel at work, engagement and results improve naturally.
Together, we worked to help his next-level leaders understand the value of building teams filled with people who care deeply about their work, their colleagues, and their customers. Just as importantly, we focused on creating an environment that strengthens passion rather than eroding it.
Why Passion Matters More Than Performance Metrics
In retail, performance is measured relentlessly. Sales figures, customer service scores, market share, and productivity dashboards are constantly reviewed. These measures are essential, but they only show outcomes, not causes.
Passion, on the other hand, is rarely measured, yet it is one of the most powerful drivers of employee engagement. Passionate people act. They take ownership. These people show up present and attentive. They respond positively to customers and colleagues and continually build their knowledge so they can contribute more effectively.
When people feel passionate about their work, engagement stops being something leaders try to enforce. It becomes a natural state.
What Builds Passion and Engagement at Work
People with passion thrive in environments where values are clear and consistently demonstrated by leaders. Trust, respect, and dignity are present in everyday interactions, not just written statements.
Engagement also grows when people understand the goals they are working towards and how their role contributes to those goals. They are equipped with the right tools, knowledge, and support to solve problems and serve customers well.
Crucially, they are given the authority to act. When people are trusted to make decisions and take responsibility, their sense of ownership increases. Passion grows when employees feel like active partners in the business rather than replaceable parts.
What Destroys Passion and Undermines Engagement
Just as passion can be built deliberately, it can be eroded quickly. Office politics, bullying, and tolerated poor behaviour all damage trust. Unfair workloads or inconsistent reward systems create resentment and disengagement.
Treating people as if they are easily replaceable or constantly telling them they are not good enough diminishes confidence and motivation. Excessive control and lack of autonomy signal a lack of trust, causing people to withdraw emotionally even if they remain physically present.
Over time, these conditions drain passion and make engagement initiatives ineffective, no matter how well-intentioned they are.
The Results of Leading Through Passion
Within 18 months of embedding Joel’s people-first leadership approach, the results were significant. His region achieved a 35 per cent increase in profits. Employee engagement increased by 40 per cent, and customer service improved by 40 per cent.
More challenging targets or tighter controls did not drive these outcomes. They were the result of leaders intentionally cultivating people with passion and creating conditions where engagement could thrive.
Why Passion Is the Leader’s Most Powerful Lever
Motivating people is not about pushing harder or demanding more. It is about creating the conditions where people want to give their best. Passion is what connects people emotionally to their work, their teams, and their customers.
When leaders understand that engagement is rooted in how people feel and behave, not just what they produce, performance improves as a by-product. People with passion do not need to be micromanaged. They care, they act, and they perform.
For leaders looking to motivate, engage, and elevate their teams, focusing on passion is not optional. It is the foundation of sustainable performance.
