By Lisa Purichia
Partner, Director of Accounting & Retirement Plan Services
[email protected]
Given the hundreds of home runs he hit, you might not think legendary baseball player Babe Ruth would value teamwork. But he said: “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success. You may have the greatest bunch of individual stars in the world, but if they don’t play together, the club won’t be worth a dime.”
Listed below are some ways to strengthen your team and steer your business toward success.
Encourage transparency and listen closely! Encourage staff members to speak up, point out the company’s weaknesses and offer suggestions for improvement. Don’t let them think they’re going to hurt your feelings, face some type of retaliation or undermine your authority. Remind them that, while everyone has different duties across various departments, you’re all working toward the same goal of running a successful business. To that end, creating an open, honest and collaborative environment is vital. Reward their candid, constructive feedback.
The best way to inspire your employees is to make them feel like their goals within the company are part of your own vision for its future. Where do they hope to see themselves next month or next year? Raising these questions will let them know you have their best interests at heart and that they aren’t simply serving your needs. Encourage their independent thinking and empower them to act!
Promote and practice diversity. In the recruiting and hiring process, be cognizant of the benefits of increasing your team’s diversity in all its forms — gender, ethnicity, life backgrounds, talents and skills, etc. Diversity brings different perspectives on how to approach challenges to provide solutions and reach certain goals. As this Forbes article states: “A team that has a variety of worldview perspectives can educate employees and clients and reach untapped customer demographics. This opens the conversation to new, unexplored and different ideas. In fact, companies with greater diversity are 70% more likely to capture more markets.” Keep these statistics in mind and be sure to raise awareness of them within your talent management system. Maybe start including diversity presentations among your monthly meetings. Now would be a good time to start as we’re in the midst of Black History Month, and Women’s History Month is in March.
Invest in your people. Make sure they have all the necessary resources, including tools and training — not just in the beginning, but continuously throughout their time at the company. As more businesses are embracing a hybrid model of working remotely and in person, now is a great time to catch up on webinars, training programs, etc. The current workplace environment mandates continuous leaning and improvement, and your staff should evolve and advance in their respective fields. Coach your employees and motivate them to keep growing and thriving. But also be patient and give them the proper amount of autonomy and time to blossom. Focus on building upon each individual’s established strengths — don’t try and fit that square peg in a round hole!
Identify strengths and weaknesses. The most successful businesses have an effective talent management system for finding the perfect fits for each department. If competency gaps are opening up within your organization, perhaps you need to rethink recruitment campaigns, provide more training or delegate certain tasks to different employees. Many times you may find an employee who struggles and under-performs in one area, but they may thrive in another area of responsibility more suitable to their skills and behavior style.
Don’t try to carry the business on your shoulders. You don’t have to be the home run hitter. Running a business isn’t a one-person show — it’s an ensemble piece! A successful business owner will surround themselves with team members who have complementary skills that enhance the enterprise.
If we can assist you further with achieving success in your business or personal affairs, please contact Lisa Purichia at (317) 608-6693 or email [email protected].