By Herb Escher, Dale Carnegie Training
Employees who are passionate about what they do and who they work for are natural brand advocates. Give them a chance and they’ll tell everyone the great things that are happening with the company, both in person and through social media. These people are the employees any organization would love to have. Here are five ways to create this enthusiasm within your business.
Culture. Senior leaders need to be aligned with everyone else in the organization, all working towards the same goals. Management needs to be passionate; the workers will pick up on this and infuse their work with the same passion. This kind of company culture, rich with energy and enthusiasm, is a natural breeding ground for brand advocacy. If you take care of your employees, they will give the highest level of service to the customers, which in turn, is the best way to add to the organization’s bottom line.
Support. Show your employees that you care about them and the business with regular training seminars. This means getting everyone together to go over the latest products and services as well as helping them grow as people. Empower them to make decisions and give them the tools they need to execute them. Follow up with sincere appreciation for the results produced. Employees who know they are trusted and supported will often goes the extra mile – not only for the customer, but for the company, too.
Community. Make the workplace a fun and exciting place to be – a place where people look forward to coming to work. Some businesses have put in game rooms, complete with foosball, ping pong or bags. Others take a different approach and have ice cream Thursdays, softball teams or a company band. The idea here is to find ways to bring people together in a fun way. Not sure what they want? Ask them. Make a contest of it or try a different idea a month or quarter until you come across the best fit for the organization.
Transparency. Be honest and transparent with all employees. Trust them to come to you when things aren’t going as planned. In turn, people need to know they can ‘put the skunk on the table’ and not automatically be made out as bad guys. Be there to help them through the difficulties. Try to see things from their point of view and walk through scenarios to fix the problems. In turn, they will see you as an ally – someone they are working with, not just working for.
Communication. Honest, open lines of communication are essential. This means truly listening to each other. For instance, if one department needs a new piece of equipment, but it doesn’t fit in the budget, say so. Resentment breeds if the issue is simply ignored because management knows it cannot be resolved immediately. Chances are good that if you start a discussion about the problem, a solution or compromise will be found. It may lead to better sales down the road and get them the piece of equipment they wanted.
These five tips work off of each other and can improve other areas of the company, as well as creating a happy workforce. Employees are the face of your brand to customers, the community and prospective employees. Engaged, enthusiastic people who feel they are an important part of the company share that feeling, whether through social media or in their private lives.
Herb Escher has been with Dale Carnegie for 13 years and is the new vice president of development for Dale Carnegie Chicago. By encouraging entrepreneurial thinking on all levels, he leads a culture of empowerment and success where individuals pursue their full potential. Find out more about Dale Carnegie Training at www.chicago.dalecarnegie.com.