Written by: Sachin Parmar
Do you have a vision for your business that you’re finding difficult to implement? The demise of many companies is down to poor organisational culture. Here’s some easy-to-follow advice to make your team part of your business objectives. Sachin Parmar, Creative Director from evokeu, London’s boutique digital marketing and branding agency, shares his top tips for involving employees in your vision. Ingredients that are vital to a successful and effective business that has a future.
As a business leader, you’ll have a clear goal for your business, whether it’s your focus for the next few months or the next five years. But, if your business relies on a team of people to drive it forward, your vision won’t become a reality unless your employees understand, appreciate and respect your ambitions.
The majority of businesses look like a success from the outside, but on closer inspection, their organisational culture is a disaster. Never judge a book by its cover, and never judge a company by its slick website and social media posts. Look beneath the surface and you’ll likely reveal a high turnover of staff or a team that are disengaged and completing the bare minimum needed to hold on to their jobs.
Yet this doesn’t need to be the way. No matter the size of your team, you can start creating a better environment for your employees using three simple steps – engage, align and celebrate. A happier, more coordinated team is better for your employees, better for your clients and better for your business.
1. Engage your employees from the beginning
There’s no point handing your employees a bunch of documents that tell them about your company's vision and mission. To encourage participation, they need to be involved in crafting these important aspects of your business. Creating your vision and mission is a great opportunity to bring your employees together in a team-building activity where they can share their thoughts, dreams and hopes for the business. By all means, steer them in a direction that fits with your ideas, but give them a chance to feel part of the process. This way they’ll have a sense of ownership and connection to the business and will become true brand advocates.
2. Align the company vision with your team
As well as including your employees in the process of creating your vision and mission, you need to ensure that they’re included in the narrative. Shake off the notion that the company’s focus is on you as the leader and look at the bigger picture. Every one of your staff members’ personal and career aspirations should be considered when drafting the goals for the business. Not only is this more meaningful and motivating for your team, but it’s also crucial that any plans for the future involve the people that will be responsible for the groundwork that will bring these plans to fruition.
3. Celebrate the big and small victories
Although it’s great to look ahead to the next steps for your business, to make your team feel valued, you need to observe the here and now. This is especially important when your team has a win, whether it’s nailing that design element or securing a new client. Whatever the magnitude of the success, take time to recognise and praise your team for their efforts. Revel in the positive, it’ll strengthen your teams’ resilience for when harder times hit. A supported and united team is more difficult to defeat than a team that is despondent and underappreciated.
By embracing these values, you’ll be well on the way to building a company that is fit for the future and in for a greater chance of fulfilling its purpose.
If you’d like to find out more about Sachin and evokeu, please visit: https://www.evokeu.com/. You can also follow Sachin on LinkedIn, where he frequently posts business advice and inspiring content.
About the author:
Sachin Parmar is the creative director and co-founder of evokeu & Graphic Kitchen, a london-based creative agency established in 2014. He has a reputation for crafting unforgettable brands for ambitious businesses around the world. Sachin leads a team of designers, innovators, and developers, who deliver exceptional results for clients by creating visually appealing designs that effectively communicate their message. His leadership and expertise have earned the agency a reputation as a premier creative agency.
