Meaningful work drives engagement, retention, and performance. Yet every employee interprets “meaning” in their own way, a definition that is constantly evolving. What inspires an early-career professional differs significantly from what motivates a mid-career manager or a seasoned executive. It’s up to leaders to support and inspire team members regardless of life stage or career level.
To understand these shifts, leaders need to build strong, trusted relationships with their employees. Regular meetings and one-on-ones cover work objectives, but effective managers also ask about priorities and challenges outside the workplace. When leaders take time to discover what meaning looks like for each individual, they cultivate better performance, deeper engagement, and stronger organizational cultures.
During the “The Power of Purpose: How to Drive Performance through Meaningful Work” webinar, three leaders at different career stages offered insight into how meaningful work can change—and what it takes for organizations to support that evolution.
Early Career: Building Connections
For Kayla Merriweather, Chief of Staff at the NYU Furman Center, meaningful work centers on relationships. “I compare my career to building a garden,” explains Merriweather, who is in her fifth year of full-time work. “Right now, I highly value every interaction I have with people, whether it’s internal or external. Cultivating rapport with my colleagues and collaborating effectively with outside partners allows me to plant relationship seeds that can blossom into meaningful connections over time.”
This relational approach to meaning is characteristic of early-career professionals who are still establishing themselves in their field. Merriweather is less focused on climbing the professional ladder, but the meaningful connections she is cultivating now will help her advance in the future.
Early-career professionals also need clarity about expectations and their role within the organization. Merriweather emphasizes the importance of transparent communication. When managing part-time workers, many of whom are students, she makes a point to convey that “they are students first, and that I consider it a privilege to have their time working together.” This simple reframing validates her team members and helps them show up more fully in their work.
For Merriweather, who also cares for her grandparents, meaningful work means having flexibility to honor life priorities outside of work. “Being a caregiver while working full-time means that I need trust, flexibility, and open lines of communication with my employer,” she says. When her employer made it possible for her to work remotely, her commitment to the organization deepened. “When I can be transparent with my coworkers about how caregiving affects my capacity, ability, and availability, their support makes me feel comfortable showing up for my grandparents and supporting them the best way I can.”
The lesson for leaders: Early-career professionals find meaning through connection, clear expectations, and the flexibility to integrate their whole selves into their work.
Mid-Career: From Ambition to Impact
As careers progress, the definition of meaningful work often shifts. Josh Haymond, Managing Partner at Vaco Raleigh, describes how his attitude changed: “Early on, meaning came from proving myself, taking on new challenges, achieving new goals and milestones, and building credibility. That mattered then, and frankly, it still does. My drive hasn’t gone away, but it’s no longer the primary driver.”
For Haymond, meaningful work has transformed into impact and stewardship of the team he leads. “For me, it’s knowing that the work I’m doing is creating opportunities for others to succeed, not just for myself,” he says.
This shift from individual achievement to collective success is a hallmark of mid-career professionals who have proven themselves and now find fulfillment in developing others. Yet Haymond acknowledges that meaning isn’t static even within a single career stage. “For one individual, what they’re looking for in that year and season of their life can change year over year.”
His professional guidance reflects this reality. Rather than relying on culture initiatives, leaders ask what people value and align work with those priorities. “I’d encourage leaders to not think about motivational speeches as your go-to for trying to drive meaning in work. It doesn’t happen in the town hall. It happens through relationships with your people, to understand what is important in that moment.”
Haymond also advocates for a nuanced approach to career development. Not everyone wants to be promoted, he says. Some people are satisfied with their current role and want to deepen their expertise; others value their work-life balance. “It’s important that we understand that there are going to be people that want the next peg, the next challenge. There are also going to be plenty of people that really enjoy what they’re doing. We have to still be willing to engage, develop, and coach those people just as much as the people that want to ladder climb.”
When leaders honor these different aspirations, something powerful happens. Employees become more accountable and more efficient. As Haymond explains, when people understand their “why” and know their leader supports them, “they end up holding themselves more accountable than a manager needs to.”
Late Career: Selectivity and Legacy
Michelle McGurrin, a talent acquisition consultant, has become highly selective about where she invests her time and energy. “In this latter stage of my career, meaningful work has taken on an even greater priority for me. It’s much more important now, because I can be selective about what I’m doing, the places I spend my time, and the type of people I’m around.”
Her focus over the last ten years has shifted from personal achievement to creating conditions where others can thrive. “It’s now about taking away obstacles for my employees—making sure they are satisfied and want to come to work every day,” McGurrin says.
Late-career professionals often have the experience and authority to reshape their roles around what truly matters to them. This is a significant advantage, but it also places more responsibility on leaders to listen and adapt.
Advice for Leaders: Ask, Don’t Assume
Across all career stages, a common thread emerges: Leaders must ask what meaningful work looks like rather than assuming they know. As McGurrin explains, “Managers and leaders can’t assume that they understand what someone wants. You have to ask the questions. You have to have a system in order to elicit those responses from your employees and invest time in creating a way to get to know people, to know what they value.”
This applies to recognition as well. What motivates one person may not motivate another. Some employees thrive on public recognition; others prefer private acknowledgment. Some seek advancement; others seek mastery or flexibility. The only way to know is to ask—and to ask regularly, since priorities shift with life circumstances.
Leaders should also model authenticity about their own “why.” When leaders are transparent about their objectives and their boundaries, they give permission for their teams to do the same. This creates psychological safety around discussing life priorities and designing work arrangements that promote performance and engagement.
McGurrin describes her “why” in simple terms: “My goal is 80-90 percent of the time, I want to say, ‘That was a great day working with people.’ For me, that’s what success is now. It’s not about the paycheck anymore.”
The Through-Line: Relationships and Trust
What emerges from these three perspectives is that meaningful work isn’t a one-size-fits-all proposition. Yet across all stages, the mechanism is the same: trusted relationships. Leaders who invest in knowing their people—genuinely knowing them—create the conditions where meaning can flourish. They ask questions, listen with curiosity, and design work arrangements that honor both business objectives and human priorities.
The payoff is significant. When people feel that leadership respects their goals and supports them, they show up differently. Employees are more engaged, more accountable, and more willing to push hard during the time they’re focused on work.
Too many executives struggle to build workplaces where people feel valued, trusted, and empowered to deliver their best. For deeper insights on building employee engagement through purpose and connection, order the The Employee Engagement Handbook: A Leader’s Guide to People, Purpose, and Performance, by Donald Thompson, Managing Director for the Center for Organizational Effectiveness at Workplace Options.
