It’s pretty important, in any business, that everyone is on the same page. When all your employees are on the same page, it could be said that they are in sync. That you’re promoting powerful synergy in the workplace. If this isn’t occurring in your office, then the negative effects are going to be clear. It may not be obvious at first. But over time the problem will reveal itself.
If your employees aren’t all working towards common goals or don’t work well with one another, then your productivity will take a hit. In fact, if you haven’t been taking important measures to keep everyone in sync, then the problem may already be there in your company.
So many business owners get used to doing things in a certain way. They’ve been doing things in this way for as long as they can remember. Perhaps since they started the company. And if they haven’t taken stricter measures to ensure that their employees are more in sync, then they won’t be aware of its benefits. They won’t know that there’s a better way of doing things.
So, assuming you’re running at least a small- to medium-sized business, this article is for you. If you’re at all worried that your employees aren’t all on the same page, these are some of the suggestions you should consider.
Have frequent company meets, if possible. The amount of people working in your office is going to affect how feasible this is for your company. For many companies, the number of people in a given office is usually around the 30-70 range. This is a pretty good number for compatibility with frequent meetings.
So what do we mean by “company meets”? Basically, if there’s a big room in your work building that can fit everyone, then you should get everyone in that room once a week. If this seems to frequent, you could consider doing it once every two weeks. In these meets, you can discuss how well you’re all doing towards your business targets. If your office is split into teams that are working on different projects, this is a good time to have a little “show and tell”.
Make sure the goals are clear. It’s surprising how many companies out there have employees who don’t know what the business goals are. This usually isn’t the fault of the employee, though. Generally, an employee is given some specific tasks and are made to get on with it.
If all of your employees know the specific goals and desires of the company as a whole, then this can do great things for their output. Be creative with showcasing your goals. Think of those neat cafe barriers and why not create one for your office which states your goals in a fun, clever way? Your team will get a smile and they will put more effort into making sure the work they produce is conducive to this goal.
Keep everyone using the same software. If your employees are all using different software, then this could pose a problem. Of course, some employees are going to need certain pieces of software that others won’t have to use. But in every company there are certain things that everyone in the office uses.
Think, for example, about your communication software. What email provider are you using? Employees should all be using the same platform for work emails. This should also go for any instant messaging software your company uses. If you’re all using the same programs, then you’ll be able to communicate more efficiently.
Foster consistency in design and style. Your company has a particular image in the eyes of the public. Is it the image you want the public to have? If so, then you should be doing everything you can to make sure there’s consistency in that particular image. And the things that are going to help you do this are design and style.
Whatever your employees are doing, they should all be consistent with each other in how they do it. Tying in quite heavily with the last point I made is the software you use to maintain this consistency. Think, for example, about the templates of all your work copy and communications. If everyone is using the right document management platform, then this consistency can be kept.
Align employee interests with company interests. Let’s face it: employees are going to want to prioritize their own interests over those of the company. Many business owners find this hard to fathom. The thing to remember here is that the interests of business owners are usually tied directly to the company. Aside from simply keeping their job, employees are less likely to feel the same way.
Make sure the compensation they’re getting for their work is sufficient. You should also make sure that hard work from your employees can help them get more compensation for their time. This can be in salary or company benefits. This helps align everyone’s interests.
Photo by Ienetstan | Shutterstock
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