Mark Cuban once said, “Treat your customers like they own you, because they do.” The same can be said for your employees.
Let’s face it: everyone on your team impacts your bottom line. They can make or break the organization. However, you can dodge the breaking point by having employees who are loyal, engaged, empowered, and committed to building a strong and flourishing company. How? It’s done by fostering an incredible company culture.
Here are 6 company culture factors that make just about everyone want to work at an organization:
1. Vision and Values
Every employee should clearly understand the vision and values that represent the company. This includes critical principals, direction, and goals. If these are deeply embedded in the company culture, employees will use them to make smart business decisions.
2. Ownership
Give employees opportunities to be involved in decision making. You’ve hired them because you think they’re the best at what they do. Let them voice opinions and lead projects that may be outside of their normal set of responsibilities. By allowing them to feel like leaders, they’ll act like them, and you’ll be pleasantly surprised more often than not.
3. Communication
A critical part of any organization is communication. From the CEO to the front desk receptionist, everyone should be informed, on a continuous basis, of activities, decisions, objectives, projects, and more. Doing this allows every team member to feel empowered and knowledgable about the organization. There are many tools available to help keep things streamlined and easy to manage, such as Google Drive and Basecamp. Some organizations even use a daily chatroom such as Campfire to keep a flow of communication available.
4. Innovation & Technology Tools
Invest in the best tools and resources your budget allows. Computers and software are the primary tools for employees. Having the best that you can afford will create less stress and more opportunity to innovate and get things done in a timely manner.
5. Recognition and Reward
Never underestimate the power of recognition. If employees know they’ll be recognized and valued for the goals they accomplish, they’ll feel more incentivized to strive for them. Genuine compliments can go a long way, as do creative reward programs. Find out what each employee regards as the perfect benefit and tailor rewards for them, like getting Fridays off or being allowed to work from home at times.
6. Growing and Training
Don’t assume your employees are content on having the same role for the rest of their lives. Talk with them and establish a tailored plan for their training and growth. Understand what motivates and inspires them. Offer opportunities for them to learn the newest techniques in their field, such as attending workshops and conferences. Also, identify ways that they could grow within the company. When employees recognize that you have long-term investment plans for them, it will make them more inclined to stay with the company long-term as well.
Your employees give your organization the steam to plow ahead on the path to success. By empowering them, you empower the entire company.
Publisher’s note: If you’re interested in learning about other ways to create and cultivate an incredible company culture, check out Technori’s upcoming company culture summit, “Beyond the Ping Pong Table“.