Employee Engagement Series
Previously, we published an article titled “Simplifying Employee Buy-In…” (click the link to read), which was great overview of some of the typical components in a company culture that facilitate positive employee engagement. This article is the second in a series intended to unpack those concepts a bit further.
Employee Involvement & Continuous Improvement
The original article referenced these two concepts separately, but we are putting them together in this article because they are so tightly linked. You can’t create a culture of continuous improvement without getting your team involved in the improvements. If you don’t believe us, try dictating every process change without giving your team any say in it and see how effective those changes are. Having said that, you wouldn’t be reading this if you thought you already had it all figured out, so let’s kick this off in three “simple” steps.
Three Steps to a Culture of Continuous Improvement
- 1.Hire To Your Core Values – Unrelentingly
a.There is a great book written by Bo Burlingham called Small Giants. In it he outlines similarities of leadership approach among companies who chose to be great rather than big. All of the concepts in that book are killer, but there are two that apply here:
i.First, leaders in these companies brought a clear passion to what the company did. They made the “why” the forefront of every decision and used it as a litmus test regarding when and how to approach problems.
1. Putting the “why” in front of our teams as we discuss process changes, decision making or even simple things like time entry and documentation will help people buy in and participate. Hiring people that can also get excited about your “why” is also a great way to know you are going to tap into passion as a motivator.
2.The “why” can’t be “because I said so”. Your “why” should be the big picture that demonstrates who specifically you serve (clients) and how you make an impact in their lives. It can also be about what makes your company different from everyone else out there.
3.If you pay attention to it faithfully, so will your team.
ii.Second, these companies created an intimate work setting where employees were treated as human beings. This sounds simple, but it’s so easy to get stuck thinking of our people as tools in the toolbox rather than people with emotions, goals, hopes and sufferings. Caring deeply about people is critical for buy-in and we can’t be half-way in on this. It’s either you are all in, or you are faking it; and no one trusts a faker. The old adage of “slow down to speed up” applies here. It takes time to care for people, but it pays off in the long run.
b.A similar and very well-known book written by Jim Collins, Good to Great, says, great companies start by getting the right people on the bus and in the right seats AND they get the wrong people off the bus, quickly!
i.Right people. Values alignment should trump technical skill (even though you need both). Being patient in hiring, even if you have a big hole to fill will be better for you in the long run, so don’t settle! Also, getting the wrong people off the bus quickly will make everyone perform better. So often, we know where the trouble spots are, we just fail to act quickly enough to prevent big damage. This damages our reputation with clients and often demotivates our high performing employees when they see us “hanging on” to bad actors / poor performers.
ii.Right seats. Sometimes people have the right values, but they still underperform because they are in a place where their natural skills aren’t aligned with their work expectations. Careful evaluation of strengths and weaknesses matters. For instance, maybe someone is highly technical and can solve big problems, but their “bedside manner” is horrible. It might be possible to train for this, but sometimes it’s just better to call a spade a spade and re-direct the role to something less client facing. The sooner you do, the more the employee will thrive. Your clients will appreciate it as well. This is a great place to use “Radical Candor” – outlined below.
2.Set Clear Goals
a.Once you have hired the right people and have them in the right seats, you have an opportunity to create momentum by setting clear individual goals. It’s even better if those individual employee goals are aligned to the overall company goals (remember the “why”). Here are a few examples we would suggest that support almost any customer service-related mission:
i.No ticket goes untouched for more than 48 hours.
ii.Everyone accounts for 8 hours of time per day.
iii.We want 90+% of our CSAT scores to be 5 out of 5.
iv.We want our technicians to be 70+% utilized.
- 3.Arm Them with Data
a.Once you have these goals defined, you can leverage Connectwise® PSA and BrightGauge® to put this data in front of your teams. You will be surprised when you put the right information in front of the right people, how quickly and aggressively they will attack process and performance issues, often without you even having to ask.
b.If you have questions about how to get your systems set up for this or want some help with setting up Brightgauge® dashboards for this, reach out. We would be glad to help you get there in the best and quickest way possible.
Provide Opportunities for Feedback
A lot of companies survey their clients and in doing so gather feedback on their employees’ performance; but many aren’t doing much to survey the employees’ perspective on how the company is treating them. A culture that is continuously improving starts with a motivated and aligned workforce. You can’t expect exceptional service from employees who feel their basic needs are going unmet. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs tells us that you can’t expect people to project confidence, reputation and purpose driven action if they feel they aren’t secure or that they don’t belong. So, here are some tips on how you can help people move up the scale.
- 1.Conduct formal and informal employee surveys. This could be as simple as developing some targeted Teams® survey questions or leveraging a tool like Energage to do a deep dive on employee sentiment. The key is to listen to what they say and act on it.
a.It’s critical also to show your work! If you are working on addressing a concern identified in a survey – let them know what you are doing. A mind left to wonder will assume the worst. If you are aware of something, but can’t address it right now, explain that to them. At least they know you didn’t just ignore it.
2.Have your leaders practice the concept of Radical Candor. This is probably one of top 3 must reads of all time for managers. There are so many great concepts in this book that it would be impossible to unpack them here, but here are some key nuggets:
a.Build Radically Candid Relationships – This starts by bringing your whole self to work. It requires you to care deeply and know what makes your people tick before you engage in feedback. Don’t start dishing out criticism before you have shown that you can take it yourself. Ask for criticism, then you have a platform to give it.
b.Get, Give and Encourage Guidance – Everyone is expected to give AND RECEIVE feedback. Owners included.
c.Balance Praise and Criticism – Worry more about praise, but above all, be sincere.
d.Clarify – Practice the art of speaking back to the individual what you thought you heard them say. “So, what I think I hear you saying is… …did I get that right?” This simple question makes it so much easier to act on the feedback in a productive way. It’s also a way to make sure a person feels “heard”.
e.Don’t Wait to Give Guidance – Good guidance has a short shelf life. If you wait too long, it becomes less effective and actionable. Also, unspoken criticism explodes like a dirty bomb eventually. (Pro Tip: always praise publicly and correct privately.)
Take One Step Now
There is a lot here to take in and a lot of great resources to digest but take one step at a time. Start by identifying and/or clarifying your “why”, then leverage your “why” to determine the core values you are going to hire / fire on. Once you have those elements in place, you can start to create the culture of continuous improvement with the help of your team. Remember, when employees buy in, everybody wins!
