You’ll Find Our Company Is Different November 5, 2010

Photo by Garth Roberts

It’s a phrase I hear in almost every company I work, “you’ll find our company is different”. I hate to burst your balloon, your company isn’t different. Your work may be different but the operation of all companies relies on one common denominator, people. The success or failure of your operation is directly related to the effectiveness of your people and how you, as a leader, treat them.

Common denominators for all companies are:

• if you’ve hired correctly, your people are motivated
• employees want to do a good job
• everyone wants to know what’s happening in the company
• people need to know what impact their jobs have on the company’s success
• employees want to be recognized for jobs well done, and held accountable for ineffective performance

In turn, employees get turned off when:

• lack of shared plans leave them wondering what’s going on
• there is limited or no communication from the top down or from the bottom up
• there was no follow-up on projects
• no one is held accountable

These realities about employees are universal. It doesn’t matter if you are making widgets, building bridges, mining for gold, selling goods, or working in the service industry. Pay attention to the needs of your people and your business truly will be different; it will be profitable, leading-edge, and a great place to work.

Garth Roberts

www.GarthRoberts.com