Online Reporter
Rutendo Gwatidzo
Changing Perspectives
Happy new month to you all! Today, being the first Saturday of the last month of the year, allow me to remind or educate someone about the importance of loyalty.
Let me start by defining loyalty according to general understanding and widely accepted interpretation.
Loyalty is the quality of being faithful and devoted to a person, organisation or cause. It involves consistent support even during challenging and difficult times.
Loyalty can be demonstrated through actions, dedication or commitment showing trust, respect and allegiance.
It does not come from money or power, it is earned, not bought. You cannot force, bribe, manipulate, or threaten it into existence. Loyalty grows where people feel seen, valued, and respected.
As former Ghanaian President Kwame Nkrumah once said, “The forces that unite us are intrinsic and greater than the superimposed CV influences that keep us apart.” The statement reveals that true loyalty is an intrinsic force. It is rooted in relationship, trust, and shared purpose, not in salaries or rewards. Loyalty becomes the glue that holds people together during turbulence. When it’s absent, no amount of incentives can fix the cracks.
Organisational status
Many organisations assume that loyalty is transactional through paying more, giving bonuses, or offering allowances for people to stay. But the modern workforce, especially younger professionals, are no longer moved by money alone. They want development, fairness, respect, balance and meaningful work just to mention a few.
I know of an organisation that kept increasing salaries to plug a high staff turnover. Yet, people continued resigning. Why? Because toxic leadership was driving them away. A better pay cheque could not compensate for a culture that suffocates dignity.
People may tolerate a difficult environment temporarily, but they will never give their loyalty to it. Real loyalty comes from inspiration, not intimidation.
I also know of a major retail company that faced one of its most turbulent times when it operated at a loss for almost two consecutive years.
Sales dropped, markets shifted and competition increased. Yet, despite the storm, the employees stayed committed showing up, innovating, and working with a spirit of resilience.
The senior management at some point suspected that the employees were somehow stealing because they could not understand how they continued to work faithfully.
The executives later discovered the reason: their leaders had invested years in treating people well. Managers listened. Communication was open.
When mistakes happened, people were corrected with dignity, not shame. This culture created loyalty that no crisis could buy. When leadership invests in people, people invest in the organisation.
What chases loyalty
Loyalty does not disappear overnight. It erodes slowly, in predictable patterns like broken promises, for instance, when leaders say one thing and then do another. Favouritism is also another killer of loyalty when for instance, some people get promoted without merit.
Abuse of power contributes significantly also, when authority becomes a weapon instead of a tool. We also have leaders who silence honest voices where speaking up leads to punishment.
Lack of recognition is also another killer of loyalty, when people give their best and get nothing back. It only takes a few negative cultural signals to break the emotional bond people feel towards a leader or organisation. I encourage management in different organisations to trade carefully and avoid killing loyalty.
Loyalty grows through leadership behaviour, not through financial transactions. People follow leaders who keep them informed and engaged. Lead by example because people imitate what leaders prioritise – behaviour speaks louder than policy documents. These are not complicated actions. They are daily disciplines.
Loyalty that money can’t buy
A senior administrator at one of my clients’ organisation received an attractive offer from a competitor – a better salary, better benefits and bigger title. Management thought she was going to leave. Instead, she declined. Her reason was simple, “My loyalty is not for sale. This organisation stood with me through my hardest time. They developed me when no one else believed in me.”
Loyalty in family and community
The same principle applies beyond workplaces. Children become loyal to parents who listen, guide, and protect them. Church members become loyal to ministries that serve with integrity. Communities remain loyal to leaders who put people first. Loyalty is emotional, spiritual, and relational but, never commercial. Even in marriage, loyalty is not a product of wealth. It is built through presence, care, and mutual respect.
The hard truth
If a leader or organisation must entice people to stay, it’s a clear sign that the relationship is already broken. Money can attract talent, but only healthy culture can retain it. Money can motivate for a moment, but shared purpose motivates for a lifetime.
Cultivate what money cannot replace
Loyalty is one of the rarest assets today. It’s powerful, priceless, and deeply relational. When you nurture it, you build communities, families, churches, and workplaces that stand the test of time.
But remember, you cannot buy loyalty. You can only earn it through character, fairness, empathy, and visionary leadership.
And once you earn it, protect it. Because in a world full of quick transactions and short-term commitments, real loyalty is one of the greatest treasures a leader or organisation can ever have. As the year is about to end, think deeply around the area of loyalty and align accordingly where you have to.
Rutendo Gwatidzo is a human capital executive as managing consultant at The HUB HR Consultancy. She is a multi-award winning leader, Speaker and Coach. She is also an Author of Born to Fight and Breaking the Silence books. Contact detail –0714575805/ [email protected]/ Rutendo Gwatidzo_Official FB public page.
