The past few years have been a roller coaster ride for employers. The mass exodus of employees has come and is being felt by everyone. On top of record-low unemployment, these departures have resulted in major shifts in workload, a need for increased communication between departments, and the obligation to handle the workload with fewer people. Meanwhile, you are doing what you can to hire additional skilled talent. This is enough to drive you crazy, and if you’re not careful, it will put you further behind if priorities are not set.

Recruiting talent to sustain and grow your business is a priority. But what are you doing to truly pay attention to the existing talent you have within your organization?

Recent data shows that over half of employees plan to leave their jobs this year. Yes, 50%! Larger percentages of employees are more disengaged now than prior to the pandemic. Most employees say they would be more engaged at work if their employer improved company culture.

WHAT TO DO?

If employees point to “culture” as a priority that must be addressed, what does this mean?

“Lead with culture.” Culture in the industries we serve should be something easy to define. As a leader or an owner, ask yourself, “why do we do what we do?” Start with a blank sheet of paper and document this. Sometimes, this is displayed as a Mission Statement or Company Vision document. If you do not have one of these documents, take the time to produce one. Possibly you’ve lost track of why you do what you do. If this is the case, clearly putting it on paper should help you start down the path of building and improving the culture within your organization.

For employees to become more engaged, productive, and retained, they need to understand what the company stands for and why they put the effort in on a daily basis. Most people want to do great work. Talented employees want to know what the results of their efforts are producing.

Employees’ emotional connection to their work is often downplayed or simply forgotten. It feels good to be part of a team that’s on the same page, producing positive results and working to support the Mission.

Leading with culture on a yearly, quarterly, monthly, weekly, and daily basis helps you, helps your employees, and helps the company achieve beyond your wildest expectations.

Communicating the culture, what you stand for, and how you go about your business will allow most to buy in and grab hold of a purpose larger than themselves and therefore be a valid reason they are working day to day. This communication is up to you, from the time you interview and hire people through the daily challenges of doing business.

Just like a multi-outboard setup on an offshore boat, if one engine isn’t firing on all cylinders or isn’t exactly in sync, then the rig suffers. If everything is working together and set up perfectly, the performance can be exhilarating!

Not everyone will buy into the culture or mission. Pay attention to this and understand these areas need extra attention or effort.