Everybody Matters

Now revised and expanded with five new chapters for the 10th anniversary of its 2015 publication, the beloved classic on truly human leadership

“Bob Chapman, CEO of the $1.7 billion manufacturing company Barry-Wehmiller, is on a mission to change the way businesses treat their employees.” – Inc. Magazine

Starting in 1997, Bob Chapman and Barry-Wehmiller have pioneered a dramatically different approach to leadership that creates off-the-charts morale, loyalty, creativity, and business performance. The company utterly rejects the idea that employees are simply functions to be moved around, “managed” with carrots and sticks, or discarded at will. Instead, Barry-Wehmiller manifests the reality that every single person matters, just like in a family. It’s not a cliché on a mission statement; it’s the bedrock of the company’s success.

It’s natural to be skeptical when you first hear about this approach. Every time Barry-Wehmiller acquires a company whose team members have experienced more traditional management practices, the new team members are skeptical too. But they soon learn what it’s like to work at an exceptional company where the goal is for everyone to feel trusted and cared for—and where it’s expected that they will justify that trust by caring for one another and putting the common good first.

Chapman and coauthor Raj Sisodia show how any organization can reject the traumatic consequences of rolling layoffs, dehumanizing rules, and hypercompetitive cultures. In this tenth anniversary update to Everybody Matters, Chapman and Sisodia share new statistics and analysis on the leadership crisis that continues to plague modern businesses and that only Truly Human Leadership—pioneered at Barry-Wehmiller—can fix. Packed with additional insights gained over a decade as the company has evolved, weathered a pandemic, and grown from $1.7 billion in annual revenue with 100 acquisitions to $3.6 billion with more than 140 acquisitions, this updated classic is needed now more than ever.

As Chapman says, “The way we lead impacts the way people live.” Once you stop treating people like functions or costs, disengaged workers begin to share their gifts and talents in service of a shared future. Uninspired workers stop feeling that their jobs have no meaning. Frustrated workers stop taking their bad days out on their spouses and kids. And everyone stops counting the minutes until it’s time to go home. This is the journey documented in Everybody Matters; now it’s time to transform your own workplace."Profit matters, but people matter more. Bob Chapman and Raj Sisodia use real-world examples to illustrate how the humanity so often absent in today’s boardrooms is actually a direct path to sustained growth. It’s a message that should be taken to heart by business leaders everywhere."
—RON SHAICH, founder, chairman and CEO, Panera Bread

"Bob and Raj beautifully illustrate the important intersection of business and the true essence of the human spirit. One company, one employee at a time, Barry-Wehmiller is changing the world—and the world of business! If this model can be successful in manufacturing, it can be successful anywhere."
—KIP TINDELL, chairman and CEO, The Container Store

"It is almost impossible for me to adequately convey my admiration, excitement, and incredulity. . . . To give people the power and freedom to care for each other, to trust that people want to do well and be good . . . and to see how these things create value for everyone—it doesn’t get better than that. I have (happy) tears in my eyes as I write this."
—AMY CUDDY, associate professor, Harvard Business School

"Is it possible to run a successful business without treating people like numbers? Can a corporate culture of mistrust and insecurity be transformed into one of caring and fulfillment? Everybody Matters answers these questions with an enthusiastic ‘Yes!’ If you’re ready for a new way of doing business, this is the book for you."
—DANIEL H. PINK, author of To Sell Is Human and Drive

"When it comes to maximizing potential, Chapman and his team at Barry-Wehmiller have it figured out. This deeply moving and practical book will have you asking yourself ‘Why haven’t we been doing this?’ Now you can begin tomorrow!"
—JACK CANFIELD, coauthor of Chicken Soup for the Soul® at Work and The Success Principles™

"Everybody Matters simply blew me away. This is THE book that practically every corporate CEO in North America has been breathlessly waiting for . . . even if they don’t yet know it!"
—BOB BURG, coauthor of The Go-Giver

“‘Everyone is someone’s precious child.’ Has there ever been a more inspired guiding principle for encouraging deeply ethical, responsible stewardship of those entrusted to our care in the workplace? Bob Chapman is a modern-day prophet and Everybody Matters is his prophecy for our ears—and for this challenging leadership hour.”
—DEREK VAN BEVER, senior lecturer at Harvard Business School

“In a world still struggling with disengaged workplaces and disconnected leadership, Everybody Matters remains a transformative call to action. Chapman and Sisodia show that putting people first isn’t just good for morale, it’s essential for sustained business success and employee well-being. This updated edition proves that truly human leadership isn’t a lofty ideal—it’s a practical and urgent necessity.”
—JOHNNY C. TAYLOR, JR., SHRM-SCP, president and CEO of SHRM

“Having taught many executives and MBA students about Barry-Wehmiller, I can tell you, the lessons of Bob Chapman’s journey will both challenge and inspire you. Prepare to rethink the purpose of leadership, the value of values, the right way to measure success, the roots of human motivation, the link between strategy and culture, and the potential of business to improve the world.”
—JAN RIVKIN, professor of business administration at Harvard Business School

“Bob Chapman gets it exactly right—leadership is about people, not just profits. His updated edition of Everybody Matters is packed with heart, wisdom, and real-life stories that show what happens when leaders put people first. If you want to be the kind of leader who truly makes a difference, this book is for you.”
—JOE HART, president and CEO of Dale Carnegie

“Discovering Everybody Matters as a twenty-something business leader has saved me heartache and, more importantly, given me a road map to make an enormous difference in countless lives. This book is a must read for anyone leading people, especially up-and-coming leaders!”
—AARON WITT, founder of BuildWitt

BOB CHAPMAN is the chairman and CEO of Barry-Wehmiller, a global capital equipment and engineering consulting company. A combination of almost eighty acquired companies spread among ten operating divisions around the world, Barry-Wehmiller’s vision is to use the power of business to build a better world. Chapman blogs about leadership and culture at www.trulyhumanleadership.com.

RAJ SISODIA is the FW Olin Distinguished Professor of Global Business and Whole Foods Market Research Scholar in Conscious Capitalism at Babson College. His most recent book is the Wall Street Journal bestseller Conscious Capitalism (with John P. Mackey, cofounder and co-CEO of Whole Foods Market).

Foreword

“Our people matter,” says nearly every CEO on the face of the planet. “Without our people,” so the logic goes, “we would not achieve our goals.”

Rare are the leaders of organizations who will tell you that their people don’t matter. However, there is a big difference between understanding the value of the people inside an organization and actually making decisions that consider their needs. It’s like saying, “my kids are my priority,” but always putting work first. What kind of family dynamic or relationship with our kids do we think results?

The same is true in business. When we say our people matter but we don’t actually care for them, it can shatter trust and create a culture of paranoia, cynicism, and self-interest. This is not some highfalutin management theory—it’s biology. We are social animals and we respond to the environments we’re in. Good people put in a bad environment are capable of doing bad things. People who may have done bad things, put in a good environment, are capable of becoming remarkable, trustworthy, and valuable members of an organization. This is why leadership matters. Leaders set the culture. Leaders are responsible for overseeing the environment in which people are asked to work . . . and the people will act in accordance with that culture.

Culture equals values plus behavior, as my friend Lt. Gen. George Flynn, USMC (ret.) says. If an organization has a strong and clearly stated set of values and the people act in accordance with those values, then the culture will be strong. If, however, the values are ill-defined, constantly changing, or the people aren’t held accountable to or incentivized to uphold those values, then the culture will be weak. It’s no good putting “honesty” or “integrity” on the wall if we aren’t willing to confront people who consistently fail to uphold those values, regardless of their performance. Failure to do so sends a message to everyone else in the organization—“it doesn’t matter if you’re dishonest or act with questionable integrity, as long as you make your numbers.” The result is a culture of people who will drive for short-term results while systematically dismantling any sense of trust and cooperation. It’s just the way people react to the environment they are in. And without trust and cooperation, innovation suffers, productivity lags, and consistent, long-term success never really materializes. The worst-case scenarios often end in crimes being committed, sleight-of-hand accounting practices, or serious ethics violations. But the more familiar scenarios include office politics, gossip, paranoia, and stress.

I admit I am an idealist. I understand that it is a lot easier for me to say and write things like “put your people first” than it is to actually put it into practice. Financial pressures, pressure from the competition, pressure from the board, the media, Wall Street, internal politics, ego . . . the list goes on . . . all factor into why sometimes well-meaning leaders of organizations don’t (or can’t, as some say) care about their people like human beings instead of managing them like assets.
That’s why Bob Chapman matters.

If you ask Bob what his company does, he will tell you, “We build great people who do extraordinary things.” If you ask him how he measures his results, he will tell you, “We measure success by the way we touch the lives of people.” It all sounds rather fluffy and mushy. But for the fact that he means it—and it works. Because if you ask Bob what fuels his company, only then will he talk about the financials. And on that level, the amount of fuel Chapman’s companies are able to produce would be the envy of most CEOs.

When I first met Bob, he told me he was building a company that looked like what I talk about. Again, I’m an idealist. I believe it’s important to strive for the things I speak and write about . . . achieving it is an entirely different thing. And so I told Bob, the very first time we met, “I want to see it.” And see it I did!

We crossed the country visiting various offices and factories and in all cases Bob let me wander around and talk to whomever I wanted. I was free to ask any questions. He stayed out of all the meetings and he wasn’t with us when we took the factory tours. And what I saw was nothing short of astounding. I saw people come to tears when talking about how much they loved their jobs. I heard stories of people who used to hate going to work, who didn’t trust management, who now love going to work and see management as their partners.

I saw safe, clean factories, not because of some management-imposed safety or cleanliness program. The factories were safe and the machines well looked after because the people who worked there cared about their equipment and each other. I could go on and on . . . but it’s probably better if you read the book.

I’ve since taken others to see Barry-Wehmiller’s offices and factories, and the results are always the same. People are blown away by what Chapman has created. As for me? I can no longer be accused of being an idealist if what I imagine exists in reality.

It begs the question, if what I talk and write about can exist in reality, if every C-level executive acknowledges the importance and value of people, why is Bob Chapman and Barry-Wehmiller the exception rather than the rule? The reason, once again, is pressure. Though nearly every CEO on the planet talks about the importance of doing things for the long term and the value of long-term results, an uncomfortably high number don’t seem to run their companies that way. Forget about ten- or twenty-year plans, the quarter or the year is king. Even if a five-year plan exits, odds are it gets changed or abandoned within those five years. It’s hard to make a strong argument to defend the way so many leaders of organizations conduct business today.

Though a lot of leaders talk about this stuff, in Everybody Matters you will see what happens when you actually do it. You will learn what happens when leaders care about the lives of the people inside the company as if they were family, Truly Human Leadership, as Bob Chapman calls it. You will also learn about the remarkable power unleashed when leadership is aligned with a long-term vision. That single ability is what allows for the patience to do the right thing. That combined with a desire to do right by the people is what makes companies great. And I think we need a few more great companies in the world today.