The Best Present Ever!

Imagine for a moment that $1 million dollars dropped from the sky and landed in your company’s bank account. This money is completely legal and has no strings attached. The only stipulation is that you must dedicate the entire amount to one area of your company. How could you spend the money so that it has the most significant impact on the health and success of your business?

Do you focus on equipment and upgrade tools and machinery? So much of your time and energy is spent on ensuring a safe working environment, so new equipment would facilitate your safety goals.

Would it be better to target performance platforms and purchase a dynamic software program? Technology is the wave of the future so it would make sense to invest in your company’s ability to estimate and project costs, better manage projects, streamline accounting, and accumulate real-time data. Better software saves money in the long-term.

Or should you focus on your people? Should you consider offering opportunities for employee development? Traditional practices suggest you hand out raises, but maybe a more competitive and robust salary structure would have a sustainable impact on retention rates and employee satisfaction.

Surely, whatever you choose, you will be better off tomorrow than you are today. But, the question still remains. What would be the best choice?

Choosing Employee Development

In 2014, as 24 leaders sat around the table to discuss the strategic plan for a $14 million organization, they considered this very quandary. Let me assure you there was no million-dollar gift at stake. But, the executive team entertained the question and discovered that it focused their attention on the most valuable asset to the organization — their people. As I was facilitating the planning process, I proposed this question of “what if?” At the time I was using it as a conversation starter, but the discussion that followed has had a dramatic impact on the financial health and value of the organization. The answers to the question took the organization on a new and exciting journey. Those answers led us to a fundamental shift in how they approach their mission and invest time, energy, and money. The team’s ultimate decision to invest in a different staffing model than their industry norm has set this organization apart and made it a model in its region. Not surprisingly, this organization’s retention rate increased 10%.

As a student of leadership, it is my mission to help people become better leaders. Of course, as a leadership champion, I am going to encourage any company to look at how it can develop its people. When companies take a people-centric approach to running their business, it is the people that grow the business.

As you start a new year, I encourage you to take the opportunity to map out employee development opportunities for your team and your staff. There are employee development strategies for organizations at all levels, whether your organization has a funded, formal learning plan or not. If you are interested in exploring these options, contact us to get started.