Creating a Team that Lasts

TEAM: Teach * Empower * Acknowledge * Motivate with a Mission

Here at Benay we’ve had so much fun creating a strong, powerful team that shares common goals and an unwavering mission: to create a workplace that empowers and supports the individual while exceeding the needs of our clients. To create a long lasting and cohesive team requires everyone’s effort and focus and doesn’t always come easily. In thinking about the unified mindset and workplace structure we created I thought of an acronym for what we do and how we have created a successful workforce, a TEAM:

Teach: There is a proverb that says, “Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.” Teaching your staff the reasoning and meaning behind methodologies, procedures and company philosophy helps them to understand your vision and why things are done in a certain way. Once they understand, they’ll be able to follow along and emulate the vision going forward and maybe even improve on company procedures.

Empower: Give someone sufficient leeway and support to learn, grow, and improve their capabilities. Empowering people to spread their wings demonstrates both your confidence in them as well as gives them the opportunity to gain confidence in themselves. Maybe they’ll even lasso that new client for you!

Acknowledge: As your staff and co-workers grow and develop their capabilities, nothing is more appreciated than your acknowledgement. Often it is the lack of recognition that leads people to become dissatisfied or feel unappreciated, and to look towards other pastures. Whether it’s giving them a shout-out in a company email for a job well-done, mentioning their impressive performance in front of a client, or just taking them aside to say “thank-you for your exemplary work,” recognizing the engines of your company is an investment that pays deep and rich rewards.

Motivate with a Mission: A mission statement is an aspirational roadmap for success and achievement. If often lets people know whether or not they’ll fit into an organization, what the company stands for and if the company’s purpose will meet their needs. A mission statement that is created, discussed and shared by an entire organization is a powerful tool. It should not be left in a drawer but proudly displayed, revisited and revised as goals and aspirations change depending on the stage of your organization and staff makeup. If your mission statement isn’t worth showing, sharing or developing, it says a lot about the organization as a whole. (I have to admit that while I like ours, The Holstee Manifesto is one of my favorites and hangs in my own office.)

I hope that everyone, including us, will redouble their efforts this year to create and reap the benefits of a winning and fulfilling organizational team.