How to keep your team inspired at work

The lockdowns imposed during the pandemic have pushed many businesses to manage their teams remotely. Now that restrictions are easing, and the world is starting to return to some form of normality, some have embraced the “new normal” with people going back to face-to-face activities but with certain safety protocols imposed. Others still work from home, while there are others that have adopted hybrid working arrangements.

Regardless of the work set up in your organisation, it is undeniable that your employees’ happiness and mental health are important in keeping your team together. It also helps them to be motivated and engaged in your business and immersed in their jobs. Apart from your regular catch-ups and meetings, it is helpful to come up with some activities and initiatives that also cater to their other needs.

Reach out to them individually

Letting your staff members know that you value them as part of your organisation will also enable them to put importance on their relationship with you. Since every staff member may be going through different situations and may have varying concerns, it is helpful to reach out to them one by one and check on their circumstances.

When the pandemic happened, Ben Beattie, Managing Director of True Blue Plumbing Australia, dedicated time to check on his team. “I took the time to call every staff member individually, asked them how they are coping and if there was anything True Blue Plumbing Australia could do for them and what their thoughts were on how the company has handled the pandemic,” he stated.  

Clayton Cross, Head of Strategy at Expia, shared a similar sentiment. “We reach out to them to know where they are at, individually,” Clayton remarked. This simple gesture matters to every member of your team, so it’s beneficial to do this every now and then,

Gather feedback and address issues

Whether during individual calls or at regular group huddles, make sure to gather feedback from your team members and address immediate concerns. “Taking on their feedback and addressing any issues was a great way to make all staff feel heard,” Ben iterated.

Such feedback will provide you with insights on how you can further strengthen your team, improve your systems and services, and grow your business. When team members feel that their input and ideas are being considered by the company, the more they become engaged and involved in the business.

Host a dinner or socials and do activities that build the team

The pandemic was challenging to most individuals and businesses. However, people have become more creative in keeping their teams together. Many have come up with virtual get-togethers and other fun and enjoyable activities, big or small.

During lockdowns, Ben and his team at True Blue Plumbing Australia gathered online for some lighthearted moments. “We held an online social and paid for dinner and drinks for everyone. This really helped morale and eliminate the feeling of disconnect,” Ben shared.

Team lunches or dinners, fun games and team-building activities are initiatives that will get your people to strengthen their bond as a group and reinforce their teamwork. 

Jeremy Chen, Managing Director and co-founder at Good Things, has tapped experts for their team-building activities. “BeChallenged runs a great course that is fun and the enchanted adventure garden in Mornington peninsula has some fun scavenger hunt/ropes courses, but nothing beats a good internal dinner and drinks.”

Give them some pampering

Allow your staff members to enjoy something that can help them relax and de-stress. Clayton has come up with some initiatives that could bring delight to the team. “We offer them something that meets their immediate needs, such as a massage or a quality home-cooked food delivered,” he said.

These are things that will make your team appreciate being part of your organisation and inspire and motivate them to be engaged in your business. 

Encourage continuous growth

People always yearn for growth, such as skills upgrade, advancement in their career path or bigger roles in the organisation. Provide them with an opportunity to thrive and learn more, wherein they can apply such learnings to their personal and professional development as well as to the growth of your business. Training, seminars, workshops, conferences or additional education would be beneficial to them and your organisation. 

When it comes to continuous learning for your key executives, EO has a Key Executive Program, a program that permits an EO member to have a key executive from their business to participate in EO learning events and EO Accelerator learning events and become a member of a Key Executive Forum. Learn more about it at https://www.eomelbourne.org/key-executive-program. 

Strengthening your 2iC as a way of strengthening your business

One of the long-term goals of many business owners is to be more focused ON the business rather than to be IN the business. This means that they evolve from doing job execution and daily operations to heavily leaning towards setting strategic directions and vision achievement of the company. To do so, entrepreneurs have to free certain space on their plate so that they can concentrate on growing their business. This is where having an effective 2iC becomes critical.

A 2iC or second-in-command is the next in line after the CEO. The 2iCs may have different position titles but they have two major roles, which are to help manage the business, especially during the absence of the CEO, and manage their relationship with the CEO. Having a strong 2iC is important to build and develop your management team.

Entrepreneurs share the key things they do to ensure that they have a reliable 2iC that can help them in their business.

Hire a trustworthy person fit for the role

The first thing to do to make sure you have a trustworthy 2iC is to find the right person fit for the role. It has to be someone with whom you share similar vision and values and who has the right skillset needed for the job.

“Employ someone you trust,” said ​​Clayton Cross, Head of Strategy at Expia. “Employ someone with better skills in complementary areas of business. Employ a hard worker,” he went on. It is important that you are able to hand the management of the business to your 2iC so that you can focus on the macro parts of your company.

The relationship between you as the CEO and your 2iC is extremely significant because it will hold your whole organisation together. Otherwise, if there are gaps and cracks in your business relations, it will affect the entire team and, eventually, will have an adverse consequence to your business.

Spend more time with them

Having a 2iC doesn’t mean that you will live in two separate worlds. You may have your respective areas to focus on but will still have constant communication with each other because you will have to work together to attain what you have set to achieve for your business.

This is why for Ben Beattie, Managing Director of True Blue Plumbing Australia, “I think the key thing for me is to spend a lot of time with them and encourage them in their personal development. The more time you spend with them, the more likely they will take on your approach to the business. Also, don’t be scared to trust them with responsibilities before you think they are ready.”

Similarly, Rob Roy Rankin, Principal and Founder of Rankin Business Lawyers, makes sure he spends time with them regularly because he believes that communication is paramount. “We have a standing weekly meeting to ensure we are on the same page, where we catch up on what is happening in each other's lives. We identify, discuss and resolve any issues. We also discuss business strategies and project plans,” he shared.

Define roles and support them in their roles

Understand that a 2iC is not a “spare tire” but someone who only functions in the absence of the CEO. Rather, they take an active role in the company, alongside the CEO. You have to have definite functions and specify which responsibilities you will handle and which ones you will delegate to your 2iC. That way, you have a clear delineation of roles and a smooth system and process on how to run things.

For Rob Roy, he finds it useful to put careful thought into this. “We read Rocket Fuel by Gino Wickman & Mark C Winters and used this to define our roles, what was expected of each other and how we work best together,” he revealed. On a day to day basis, Rob supports decisions made by his 2iC and they both make sure that neither undermines each other.  

Even if your 2iC is advanced in experience and have leadership capabilities, it is still important to look after their professional growth and development and their other needs. Allow them the opportunity for ongoing Executive Education. The more you build and strengthen them, the more they can be productive and do better for your organisation.

You and the 2iC onwards the future of your business

As you pilot your business towards your targets, goals and vision, your 2iC is the co-pilot that will provide you with the added skill and support to steer your company towards the direction you’re heading. And even without or with less supervision from you, you are assured that someone trustworthy can lead your business forward.

Work together on how you’ll fly your business in the altitude and distance you aim in your entrepreneurial journey. Equip your 2iC with tools so that both of you can look after your team more efficiently and drive your organisation at an accelerated pace that will have long-term benefits to your business and everyone in it.

Managing conflicts within your business

Disagreements, miscommunications and misunderstandings are never absent in any organisation, even in business teams. There will always be varying opinions and work styles because each individual is different and you cannot always control how they respond to certain situations. But when all these arise into a conflict, how do you handle them so that the entire team is not affected and work will not be jeopardised?

Before a conflict can escalate into something uncontrollable, it is better to nip it in the bud, come up with a resolution and review ways on how you can avoid such situations in the future. These are some tips and insights on how you deal with conflicts and ease the tension within your team. The aim is that differences and problems will be resolved, build better working relationships and lessen similar instances going forward.

Have an open and honest dialogue

The first thing to do when there are misunderstandings and opposing sides on certain issues is to come together and have a dialogue between the parties involved. A mediator can help neutralise any agitation and encourage a calm and genuine discussion. It’s good to see each other’s side as to where they are coming from, where the gap happened and where both parties can be heading after the dialogue. 

“For us, open and honest conversation is the key to conflict resolution; overseen by a third party if it cannot be resolved between team members,” shares Nitasha Badhwar, Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Sunpower Renewables.

Nitasha explains, “Company culture is very important in instilling a strong sense of ownership of a common goal within the team and our shared common objectives act as a strong unifying force. We do have a lot of passion and enthusiasm within the team, which sometimes leads to frayed nerves and strongly differing opinions. Ultimately, as team members with a common objective and compassion for the environment (being a renewable energy company with a focus on sustainability) and one another, it is easy to find our way back to a resolution. The understanding of each other’s roles and responsibilities from the ‘buddy days’ also creates a better understanding of each other’s perspectives while working towards resolving the conflict.”

Clarify intentions and interpretations

Conflicts sometimes happen due to communication errors. It could be that the message was not conveyed clearly, the message or the feedback was misunderstood, or there were gaps along the way, such as lack of information or delay in communication. People may perceive things at one angle only, and thus, often arrive at a different conclusion, which may raise antagonism or discord. This is often a challenge nowadays, especially with the lack of face-to-face communication among colleagues and co-workers.

John Bevitt, Managing Director at Honeycomb Strategy, acknowledges this as a concern to having effective team communication. “I would say that the majority of ‘conflicts’ that happen within the team occur because of a miscommunication or misunderstanding – which has only been enhanced during COVID-19 and lockdowns when everyone’s working remotely and predominantly communicating through email and Slack.”

So, how do they address such concerns? Here’s what John imparts. “With 93% of communication being non-verbal, you miss all the cues that help to understand someone’s intentions when you communicate through text. So the first thing we do now whenever we feel there’s a risk of a misunderstanding is jump on a Zoom or phone call to discuss. Once something has been discussed, having the other person playback their interpretation of what’s been covered and clearly communicate next steps and actions help further minimise the chances of miscommunication and make sure that the team is in alignment.”

Create a culture of care and compassion

There’s a saying that “prevention is better than cure”, and it’s the same with conflict. It’s better to mitigate things and prevent them from escalating into a full-blown dispute. This is what Karl Simity, Managing Director of Canopy, tries to achieve within his team by having a corporate culture where members extend kindness and understanding to one another.

He illustrates, “Our focus is on making sure that it never gets to ‘Conflict’. I believe that a major contributor to this is having the value of first-class communications embedded within our culture. First-class communications to us are anticipating concerns and communicating any problems before they become an issue. We pride ourselves on always being clear and honest in the way we communicate with one another. In being authentic with our communication, we avoid any conflict and challenges are dealt with head-on and resolved from a place of care and compassion.”

How do you handle conflict in your workplace? Share with us your tips and experiences.

Best practices on building good teamwork while working remotely

In this era of working remotely, getting your team to stay constantly connected and building a stronger relationship and dynamics among them are important to keep everyone going and motivated. The big question, however, is how? What are the things you need to do to enable you and your team to work together to achieve your business goals despite the challenges and limitations of distance and time?

Learning from the best practices of other businesses can help you look into what would be suitable for your team set-up. Entrepreneurs Clayton Cross (Head of Strategy, Expia), Ben Beattie (Managing Director, True Blue Plumbing Australia), and Rob Roy Rankin (Principal and Founder, Rankin Business Lawyers) share some tips on what they do to keep their team stronger together.

Communication system and technology

Technology plays a major role in keeping everyone connected and allowing things to continue to operate despite the limitations of physical and face-to-face interactions. Many transactions are done online, including getting teams to perform their duties and deliver their outputs.

Ben Beattie highlights the importance of “having an internal phone system that is capable of being used from home.” While it’s easy to set up communication systems in an office setting, it is quite a challenge when your team members have varying tools and resources at home. Your business must be able to support their communication needs so that you can contact each other when needed.

Similarly, Rob Roy Rankin makes sure that his team has “Mobility through the deployment of technology and by using tools like Office 365, including Teams, which supports collaboration and social interaction, ActionSteps and NetDocs. Everything is available to everyone at all times,” he stressed.

Regular online meet-ups

How often do you and your team meet online? Meetings are necessary to update each other and to check on every team member. It is also to ensure that every person receives the support and assistance needed from the team, giving them that sense of belonging to a group.

Having regular connections is one of the best practices that Clayton Cross keeps with his team, something that most businesses recognise as an important thing especially when team members are not physically together in the same space. 

This was echoed by Ben, “We up the level of communication (among our team) and ensure all meetings are still held weekly. Everyone in the team needs to still feel part of a team.”

“Connection and belongingness” are important factors for Rob. “Rankin operates with a flat structure and creates opportunities for lots of interaction, such as weekly kick-off meetings, one-to-one catch-ups, quarterly company updates and social events,” Rob said.

Flexibility and innovation in meeting styles

Flexibility at work and being considerate to the needs of every team member is also something that Ben implements in his business. That is why one of their best practices is “Being flexible. It can be nearly impossible to work from home with young kids there sometimes. Working with your staff to come up with a schedule that will allow them to achieve what they need to in a week while juggling home life is key,” he said.

Clayton, on the other hand, shared, “we change up meeting styles.” There’s something that people nowadays call virtual fatigue, so it’s good to make your meetings sometimes fun and more relaxed.

As Rob has mentioned, social events create a sense of belonging among team members, and this also applies to the virtual space. Put a bit of play into your work, to get your team hyped and motivated whenever they come online for a virtual meet-up.

Positive reinforcement

Finally, “be positive,” Clayton remarked. Positivity can go a long way in cheering someone up, giving hope to others, and encouraging your team to do their best. 

Rob also recognises that the mental well-being of team members is important. “From mindfulness training to acknowledging employees and showing appreciation for their contribution, Rankin is all about celebrating wins, big and small. We also support and champion employees’ passions and causes outside of work,” he shared.

Building your team through a strong corporate culture

Having a strong and desirable corporate culture helps attract and retain exceptional talent. Every company has its own values, and an inclusive and healthy culture can assist you to attract high-performing and engaged team members.

It’s time to look into your internal environment and assess what particular aspect of your culture keeps your team going and even brings in impressive recruits. To help you get started, some EO Melbourne members share their experiences and best practices when it comes to maintaining a culture that supports the growth of their business.

Nurturing relationships with key stakeholders

Having good relations with people you work with is a major factor for wanting to stay longer in an organisation. The same goes for third-party service providers, which prefer to conduct business with those they have amicable dealings with and those they can trust. This is why Austin Vaughan, Managing Director at Pacific Solar, emphasises strong relationships as part of their corporate culture. “Our core values are towards nurturing relationships with key stakeholders, such as contractors, suppliers, developers, and builders, so that they continue to think of Pacific Solar first when any new or forthcoming opportunities are presented. When something unexpected occurs (and it always does in construction), they have our back to pull us through and vice versa. A good cooperative approach is essential to our success.”

Open communication and encouragement of team members

Open communication helps build rapport with team members. It also enables business owners and HR managers to lessen misunderstanding and address concerns at the onset before things can blow up into serious issues.

Ben Stickland, Founder and CEO of Alliance Software, shared how they do it in his business. “The best corporate culture technique we have is a one-on-one interview with every staff member. We ask the staff member to reflect on challenges and coach them to consider and act on solutions. It's 30 minutes, that's all about them. We always ask the question ‘from a 1 to 10, how happy are you,’ and follow this up with ‘and what would it take to get to a 10’. People become unhappy for many different reasons and the key is to get to people early in their ‘unhappiness’ cycle and coach them to a good outcome rather than pretend there are no issues. Look for issues, don't avoid them.”

And for Dion Castle, CEO of Struber, it’s all about having “High-performance behaviours + high-performance habits”. A culture that fosters behaviours and habits that help increase productivity and create positive energy will encourage team members to always do their best and aim for the utmost results in all they do.

Building mutual respect and a sense of belongingness

Trust and respect are strong foundations of a good relationship and a positive corporate culture. But how do you achieve this? According to Steve Jackson, Director at PurpleMonky and Founder of Moon & Back Co., “People on the team respect each other, have fun with each other inside & outside of work, but most importantly, they support each other daily. No one is in it for themselves, and the ability to produce a shared vision where ‘when one person wins, the entire team wins’ is invaluable.”

Similarly, for Nyree Hibberd, CEO of Koh Living, it’s all about promoting a safe and healthy environment where those in the organisation feel they belong to the team. She explained, “We had a guest speaker in a recent EO forum, Fiona Robertson, who wrote ‘The Rules of Belonging’ and we applied it immediately in our business by asking each of the staff what they felt the rules of belonging and being accepted within Koh were. It was an amazing exercise to get clarity on the culture or rules of belonging, and we now use that not only in the interview process by selecting more carefully but also in the induction process by outlining those rules of belonging to help new staff slide in and feel more comfortable a lot faster.”

Culture is important in the longevity of a business and an organisation. Share with us below what particular culture you uphold within your company that strengthens your team and helps it go forward.