You don’t have to be a CEO to know when to take steps for the greater good of your business. You can contribute to the health and wellness of a company even if you are an employee. If you are a small business owner, you might also know it’s time to step up and take action, but don’t have the vaguest idea of what steps to takes to make things better. Focus on putting into place systems that support the greater good, and you will cultivate exactly that as you go forward.
How to Contribute at Your Highest Potential
Every human being has something unique to contribute to their company, but it should always fit into the company culture. Organizations are a conglomeration of talented people, all who must work in tandem for best results. Here’s a few ways to achieve these goals together:
Value Transparent Communication – When you all want to be on the same page, it’s a good idea to document communication. Otherwise, everyone can have their own ideas as to what was said in a meeting or even what an HR “unofficial” policy means in their particular case. Even as a software developer, people can get into the habit of commenting their code, in the event they die or leave the company. Documenting important planning meetings and getting signatures from those present can reduce communication snafus that happen without it.
Continuously Train Your Employees – A focus on training makes sure your employees are up-to-date in their fields. Training also offers opportunities for management and employees to hash out any questions that might arise in the normal course of business.There are steps that can be taken to help with leadership development for your team as well as yourself.
Be Proactive with Your Business – If you see trends towards higher absenteeism or people leaving for better opportunities elsewhere, it’s time to get proactive about retention. If you find you can reduce costs with an innovative idea, no matter if it comes from workers or management, you should have a way to facilitate that information so that it can become a reality.
Motivate and Reward Star Performers – If you are a business owner, this can also include yourself. Have you set proper rewards in place for achieving goals? Maybe you provide bonuses for people who generate more business for you. Maybe, you set aside a dream vacation for yourself after you’ve finished a large project that challenged you. Without rewards, people tend to find it hard to motivate themselves for the next challenge.
To motivate a team of people, it’s often helpful to set up team events and compensate a team based on mutual goals achieved, rather than solely focusing on individual performance. By clearly communicating the expectations you have for a team or an individual in the course of their jobs, it makes things run more smoothly. Another way to do this is to be the example of the perfect worker that you would like to see in your peers and management, especially if you are the business owner, executive, or supervisor. This sends a strong message about what values your company upholds and will reward in the future. It also provides a symbol of leadership that others can emulate easily.
