Would you fire every single employee in your workforce right now? If you answered no, you’re making a mistake – because you don’t want employees. You want ambassadors of your company, not employees.
Employees walk around your facility like a zombie waiting for their paycheck to show up at the end of the week. They’ve disengaged a long time ago and they can be poison to your organization.
A recent Gallup poll showed that roughly 29% of employees are truly engaged.
That means that less than 1/3 of your workforce is engaged. That’s like having a 1-legged stool or a baseball team with only three players on the field.
You want ambassadors of your company. A team of people who are excited about their jobs and are actively working to make your company grow. Because in the end, this company that you’ve built, this place of excellence that has grown from an idea into a true manufacturing facility – it belongs to everyone.
And it’s everyone’s responsibility to help it grow. Plus, as the future of work will no doubt change due to technology evolving, the members of staff you have at your place of work should want to grow too.
Ambassadors of a company have no problem being the voice of your company in public and are proud to call you their employer.
But not everyone you hire will walk into your facility ready to cheer the company’s accomplishments and know its vision for the future. However you can guide them into becoming these ambassadors with a few simple initiatives.
A Clear Vision
A company with a clear vision is a company full of ambassadors because everyone at any given level knows the vision. It’s so well defined and obtainable that everyone lives and breathes your company vision.
Know Your Team
You cannot possibly know your entire team unless you’re workforce is less than five people. But there’s a difference in knowing your workforce and knowing your workforce.
There will be many people at your company that know what’s broken. Many will know what they would do to fix it. But how will you know what those problems are if you’re not listening?
If you do not have clear and accurate information about what is going on inside your facility, at all levels, you will make bad decisions based on bad information.
A Company Mantra
Guy Kawasaki points out that a company doesn’t need a mission statement, it needs a mantra.
A mantra is a few simple words that directs the behavior of your workforce. It tells you the what, when and where of your company. “Think Different.” “Be relentless” These types of mantras can become rallying points for employees and the culture of your business.