There is a fine line between “helping people” and “bringing value to the business”.
Both could be a great symbiosis but not without a number of compromises.
Long story short, your company is not a charity. It’s a viable business with a monetization strategy in place. Jeopardizing the viability and strength of the company would lead to losses which result in layoffs.
Helping one employee just for the sake of being the Good Samaritan may lose the jobs of several people or an entire department.
When you get it just right, everyone wins. Your team is happy and works hard, which then helps the business do better. But it can be challenging to get there.
Sometimes, you have to make tough choices. The business needs to spend money on new equipment instead of a team outing. Or it’s the other way around, and you decide to invest in some extra training for your team, even if it means not hitting a financial target right away.
The trick is to find a balance where the team feels taken care of and the business keeps moving forward. It’s about making compromises and figuring out the best way to keep both sides—the people and the business—growing together.
While your intentions are clean, not everyone needing a job is a perfect culture fit or a productive employee. I’ve met unemployed people who have no intention of contributing to a business. I’ve had conversations with beggars who wouldn’t work an office job if that would lead to securing a shelter and food on the table.
Inevitably, you will interview candidates who appear to be in need but unwilling to put the time and effort to bring results and earn their paycheck. Some would be outright transparent but others would go out of their way to land a job and slack professionally in order not to get caught.
While it’s not all dark and gloomy, you need to accept the fact that people need to help themselves first in order to get a chance for employment. Some applicants need a hand and a good word in order to start their career. Others may not be the right fit and hiring the wrong staff member could bring chaos to the organization.
If you are able to put your noble cause behind the company’s interests, go for it. There will be some overlap and you will help some interviewees. But be prepared for some applicants who need to prepare properly before landing the dream job.
