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Business Owners Must Invest in Their Employees to Insure Future Growth & Success - Money & Time Well Spent
by Melissa Vokoun - © Melissa Vokoun - 2007

Employee passion for their work is critical to insuring that your business will grow and succeed. If your employees are not giving your company their all, your business growth potential will be greatly harmed. Be sure that your employees understand the corporate mission statement, philosophy, and the ethics and commitment that you have developed as a business professional. If they believe what they are doing is important and that you appreciate their efforts, you are going to insure that you have lower employee turnover and greater enthusiasm and inspire a sense of team in your organization.

If you feel that employee loyalty, enthusiasm, and drive are dwindling or not up to the standards that are needed for company success, you must consider how you can improve your work environment to encourage employees to work with energy and enthusiasm. This will be particularly important should the business face difficulties due to an economic downturn or other circumstances that are out of your control.

There are several ways that you can impact your employees' performance.

Take a Survey The best way to discover if your employees have everything they need to do their jobs is to ASK. Develop an anonymous survey and simply ask each staff employee, "Have we given you everything you need to be productive and successful in your job?" Be willing to act upon the responses. Do not be surprised if some of the answers surprise you! (I was.)

Provide Training It is important that employees not only be trained on internal systems and products, but that you INVEST in your employees by establishing training programs for sales, customer service, reception, administrative assistants, collectors, and accounting personnel. When you make this type of investment in your employees, you gain more than the cost of the training in performance and appreciation. Especially in small organizations, when the owner makes this type of investment in training, the entire organization benefits from the programs. Additionally, cross-train employees in a variety of jobs when possible. This productivity and builds cooperation and appreciation when employees understand the challenges and workings of other positions in the company.

Set Company Expectations Clearly communicate what you expected of employees, what the company value system is built upon and how the company defines success. Employees need to understand their roles in the company, how they fit in the big picture, and why their performance is directly attributable to making the company more successful.

Share Company Goals and Information Provide as much information as possible about the company. Explain where the company is profitable, discuss of there are areas of the company currently losing money but why you believe in the investment of resources and time to make it profitable. Discuss how your products are doing in the marketplace, what new initiatives are being considered and why and how employees can contribute. Even when the news is not encouraging, people will appreciate your openness.

Include your employees in planning and decision making. They may see issues differently than you, and if you encourage this type of open communications, they will offer ideas for working smarter. Whenever you use their ideas, give them credit for the innovation and the courage to offer their opinion and view. Too often, employees see themselves as merely a "cog in a wheel" and do not feel particularly empowered within an organization. You can change that with an environment of openness and trust.

Know Who Works for You This is especially critical in a small business. Even if the Office Manager hired the Receptionist, you must take the time to get to know your employees. Have a monthly or quarterly "Breakfast with the Boss" for new employees and with a simple cup of coffee and bagels or donuts in your conference room, your new employees will feel like you care that they are there. If you show a genuine interest in your employees, it is well documented, they will show a great interest in the success of YOUR company. P.S. Before the first "Breakfast with the Boss" for new hires, have one for the current employees to alleviate any future resentment and show your appreciation for being one of the "old timers" on the staff!

Prioritize Employee Appreciation No matter how busy you are, you must take the time to personally thank an employee for a job well-done. Specify what was good about their accomplishment and why you appreciate it. Always take the time to celebrate effort as well as accomplishment affording employees working on long-term goals a boost and show of support.

The cost of rehiring and retraining is becoming more costly. For the fraction of these costs, you can invest the financial resources and your personal attention to insuring that you have the long-term employees who are integral to the type of success and growth that you are trying to achieve. You will look back in future years as this money and your time BOTH WELL SPENT!

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Melissa Vokoun is a successful Business Advisor and Trainer. She has dedicated her career to helping provide support and advice for entrepreneurs and small business for over 25 years. She has a diverse knowledge of the issues and needs of business owners obtained from 1983-2005 as co-founder of a national telecom equipment distributor. She started working with organizations offering Business, Marketing, Operational, Financial, and Administrative support with an experienced professional team -- NuVo Partners, Inc and Successful Business Advisors. For more information, please visit the website at: http://www.nuvo-partners.com or call 847-392-6886 for more information.

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