Civic relationships and community engagement

Civic Relationship:

Human relations to each other in the society are usually discussed and examined through examining the simplest kinds of relationships between family and friends. It is customary for people to go back to these simplest forms of relationships because they are considered as intimate relationships. These relationships are used as the foundation for learning and extrapolation to the wider and less intimate form of human friendships. This implies that civic relationships are examined on the basis of personal relationships, which are tied together in a long chain of political philosophy. Civic relationship has traditionally been considered as a form of friendship that involves how people relate to each other in the public domain in a well-ordered society. However, Aristotle presents different ideas on civic relationships with regards to virtues, friendship, justice, happiness, and deliberation.

Aristotle's Ideas on Civic Relationships:

Generally, civic relationship is defined as the way people interact with each other in the public domain in a well-ordered society. This implies that for civic relationship to carry some meaning and essence, the friendship must both be civic and involve some kind of interaction. Therefore, the civic component implies that the friendship must involve the civic realm i.e. The way people relate as citizens. On the other hand, the friendship component means that the relationship must contain enough attributes of friendship or interaction (Healy, p.1).

Aristotle presents his ideas on civic relationships through Nicomachean Ethics in which he states that every significant concept, idea, and argument is linked to the notion that each action is motivated by an eventual good. The basis of his ideas on civic relationships is informed by his belief that an intrinsic good is the foundation for human motivation and the pursuit for a good life. Since the meaning of good is different from one person to another, people assume different roles in their daily lives. While people strive to have a good life in their different roles, there is an emphasis on the significance of personal well-being, the well-being of others, and the greater community's well-being.

Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics is regarded as the complete and most investigative classical evaluation of friendship (Pangle, p.2). The concept gives more space to the study of friendship than any other ethical virtues and the greatest philosophical life. Aristotle's concept of friendship shows a direct link between the individual and civic in which he argues that intimate relationships are crucial elements of the prosperous life. In addition, the Aristotelian friendship model also states that civic relationship is an important human good.

In this case, the function of civic relationships is to assist in maintenance of the practice of law and justice in the society. Civic relationships also help in enabling people to cultivate personal friendships or interactions depending on virtue. The reinforcement of virtue-based personal friendships acts as an independent evaluation of probable intrusions and corruption of the state. Therefore, when citizens look at each other as civic friends, they reach a wide agreement on issues of public policy, which are beneficial to the community.

With regards to justice, Aristotle argues that lawmakers are more interested in friendship instead of justice because of the close connection between the individual and the civic. In this case, he states that when people are friends, they do not necessarily need justice. Therefore, lawmakers tend to look for agreements and the removal of any divisions or factions, which is similar to the process of friendship. Justice is not necessary in deep friendships because friends are not only concerned with their individual well-being but are also care about the well-being of their friends because of the pursuit of each other's good. From a civic relationship or friendship perspective, citizens care about their fellows' moral characters because their well-being and prosperity is inter-connected.

In relation to virtues, some of the major features included in civic relationship though they originate from personal friendship are trust, a common history, reciprocity, and a special common concern. Trust is a necessary virtue in personal friendships and civic relationships because of the role it plays in promoting civic life. In civic relationship, this virtue includes social trust that enable citizens to try new methods of working and public trust. Reciprocity and special mutual concern are based on the tendency of friends to help each other during difficult times in order to achieve happiness and promote well-being. As a result, friends carry out certain activities to support each other simply because they are friends instead of the advantages involved in the process. When examined from a wider perspective, reciprocity and mutual concern virtues contribute to social welfare issues to offer the basic level of support. A shared history originates from the tendency of friends to spend time together and carry out some activities together (Healy, p.6).

While these virtues seem to be closely connected to personal friendship or interactions in the civic domain, they do not necessarily need to be the same issues or to be motivated in similar ways. However, the public domain includes every individual despite of personal feelings towards them, which demonstrates the need for equal treatment in a manner that personal friendship does not. This means that it's possible to be friendly towards people who seem like strangers without necessarily having a friendship with them since friendliness is not regarded as friendship itself. Therefore, the basic demand and expectation in the civic domain is friendliness and not necessarily friendship.

The Aristotelian concept of civic relationship is on the basis that our common nature as humans produces an idea of the good man that is applicable to every individual. Aristotle seems to concur with Plato that an ideal society or state would not have any differences between the meaning of the good man and the good citizen (Smith par, 9). In addition, he states that even though this is achieved in certain states, the civic virtues of the good citizen differ based on the nature of the particular state or society. Aristotle seems to imply that there is a possibility for an individual to be a good citizen without having the moral qualities of a good man. He explains most of his ideas on civic relationship through differentiating between the good man and the good citizen. He concludes his arguments regarding civic virtues by stating that state education should be limited to teaching the citizenship about civic virtues.

Traits of the "Best Places to Work":

The Great Place to Work Company partners with more than 5,000 companies every year to carry out a survey that is geared towards identifying the meaning of a great workplace based on the practices adopted by these companies. The company has been involved in evaluation and identification of great workplaces across the globe for more than two decades. Their analysis and identification of the most suitable working environment is based on their belief that it's possible for all companies to develop a great workplace. The Great Place to Work Company states that the process of developing a great workplace starts with an investment to create trust throughout the entire organization. This process will culminate in a more vibrant business that manufactures more innovative products, which enables it to develop satisfying relationships with all stakeholders.

In their analysis, the Great Place to Work begins by stating that any company can be a great workplace, which enables the achievement of more success. The company develops metrics through which business leaders, the public, researchers, and media analysts can create the definitive standard of what constitutes a great workplace. Through these metrics and ongoing annual research, the company has identified several traits of the best places to work. The traits of the best places to work can be understood not only from the workers perspective but also from the employers or managers perspective.

According to reports from employees, the best places to work are developed through building day-to-day relationships with the employees experience instead of a list of programs and benefits. This implies that employees to not view a great workplace on the basis of things-to-do or things-not-to-do but based on daily relationships and interactions that enhance their experiences. These relationships that enhance employees experience are based on trust, which is a defining principle developed through the credibility of the management, respect that guide employees treatment, and the extent in which employees are treated fairly. Therefore, such a workplace incorporates trusting employers or managers, having a sense of pride in the respective job duties, and enjoying meaningful relationships with co-workers ("What is a Great Workplace?" par, 3).

However, managers or employers have a relatively different perspective of what constitutes a great workplace as compared to employees' views. Based on managers' reports, a great workplace is one where organizational objectives are achieved through employees who give their personal best and work as a team in an environment of trust. The achievement of organizational objectives is enhanced through motivating, speaking, and listening to employees, who are thankful and caring, and celebrate and share their achievements with co-workers. Notably, the traits of the best places to work are not only applicable to all organizations but also relevant to companies with increasingly diverse employee demographics. This is primarily because the survey examines the behaviors and the environment, which epitomizes the most desirable and successful working environments throughout the world.

Civic Relationships v. Contemporary Notions of Best Workplaces:

As evident in the traits of the best places to work regardless of the nature of work, civic relationships play a crucial role in the ability of a company have a good working environment, develop meaningful relationships, and become more successful. This is primarily because such working environments are based on perceptions and interactions between employees and their employers or managers. Despite of whether the interaction is between employers and employees, managers and investors, buyers and sellers, it's a relationship based on common business ideas and shared human needs. The significance of civic relationships is highlighted by the Great Places to Work Company despite of some incidents where a company focuses on her business ideas while neglecting the human needs of its employees. Actually, it's been proven that the most successful companies are effective in both maintenance of business practices and taking care of the needs of their employees.

One of the most important ideas of civic relationships presented by Aristotle that is evident in the traits of the best places to work is the civic virtue of trust. Aristotle argues that the basis of every civic relationship is trust, which is not only intertwined between convenience and morality but is also regarded as a means of avoiding the process of finding things out. As a necessity for civic life to occur, trust creates an environment where people depend on each other. Trust seems to be the main component of creating a great workplace since employers and employees depend on it for satisfaction and successful achievement of organizational objectives.

The second idea of Aristotle's concept of civic relationship exemplified in the traits of the best places to work is happiness. Aristotle argues that happiness is the ultimate good without qualification since it does not need any other purpose or activity (McCarthy, p.3). This implies that the end goal of every other activity or motive is to be self-sufficient and feel pleasure. Happiness is an important trait in a great workplace since workers feel pleasure by working in an environment that enhances their experience through developing day-to-day relationships. On the contrary, managers or employers achieve happiness when their employees achieve organizational goals through giving their personal best and working as a team in an environment of trust.