The Three Keys to Building Your Team’s Morale
According to a recent Gallup report, How Millennials Want to Work and Live, almost two-thirds of millennial workers say they are not fully engaged with their employer’s mission. This sentiment is reflected the overall workforce as well.
A key to someone embracing a company’s overall purpose is the effective communication of an organization’s goals to team members and the related encouragement a person receives from management and leadership as they pursue the entity’s goals.
Penn State
Over the past three years and particularly during the 2016 College Football season I have been struck by how Penn State’s Head Coach, James Franklin modeled effective communication and encouragement to his team. Coach Franklin (BTW, I am not a Penn State Alumni and I am impartial regards to his team – but have only observed his remarkable leadership style) has had a dramatic impact on Penn State’s football program in that they just achieved a Big 10 Championship and a berth in the Rose Bowl – in only the three years since he arrived.
What is particularly noticeable about his leadership is how focused and under control he is during interviews, but how enthusiastic and congratulatory he is with his players on the sideline when they do something admirable.
So how does this apply to your organization?
As you lead your company, keep in mind one of a leader’s chief roles is encourage their personnel and be the cheerleader who makes their employees feel good about their efforts to achieve the goals and Vision of their business. This results in building high company morale. I would like to look at thee aspects of this.
I. Celebrating Successes
One of the most important aspects of encouraging your personnel is recognizing the progress that is being made towards the business’ goals. This is because people 
need to feel that it is worth their while to keep plugging away at the goal in front of them.
Having one-on-one chats, group meetings, and companywide events where the mile markers on the road to your organization’s goals are celebrated is a key to keeping morale high. A wise business owner takes advantage of every opportunity to encourage their employees by celebrating their business’ achievements.
Give Verbal “High-Fives” and “Hugs”
If you see Coach Franklin on the sideline he is regularly “high-fiving” and hugging his players as they come off the field after making a great play – and you can tell his players LOVE this. While giving someone a physical high-five or hug is not appropriate in most companies, alternatively, when was the last verbal “high-five” or “hug” you gave to one of your employees after they did something really great? Regularly doing this will instill within them the importance of their overall effort in making a difference in your Customer’s lives and the world.
A business owner that does not regularly and sincerely encourage their employees is missing a great opportunity to build company morale. The danger of not encouraging your employees is that they will get burned out, jaded, and discouraged which can lead to them not giving their best efforts in pursuit of your business’ goals.
II. Empowering Your Personnel
When viewed in conjunction with the above process of leading and encouraging your employees, the concept of empowering your employees is a very important part of your overall goal to keep morale high. How do you empower your personnel (both employees and contractors)? There are three steps, namely:
- Developing and sharing a compelling Vision for your company with your personnel
- Creating the organization that includes the Systems that is required to achieve your Vision
- Providing the resources (e.g., equipment, Information Technology, personnel…) that are required in order to achieve the Vision for your business
Coach Franklin’s players have reported that they have bought into his Vision for the team and that he is very organized in the execution of his overall program and his detailed game plan. This results in them feeling empowered to great things.
The Secret is Doing All Three Steps
Please be aware that unless you do all three of the above, “empowering” your personnel can backfire. For instance, if you share your Vision to your personnel and create the organization required in order to achieve your Vision, but do not provide the resources that are required in order to achieve your Vision for your business, you will thoroughly frustrate your personnel and debilitate their spirits.
However, if you have properly developed and conveyed a compelling Vision and the related company goals to your personnel and then empower them, you will be amazed how people will respond to various challenges.
III. Abounding Optimism
An integral part of moving your organization toward its Vision is that you as a business owner or leader must be optimistic and must communicate that optimism to your personnel.
If you see an interview with Coach Franklin, you will very quickly notice his optimism. The quiet confidence that he knows where he wants to take his football team and how to get there is unmistakable. And his players positively respond to his approach.
Likewise, if you look at virtually any truly successful organization and the leaders of that company, you will see that great leaders are always optimists. Having started and operated 9 companies I know that being the leader of a company is a daunting task that at times may seem to be overwhelming. But the special thing you as leader of your company bring to the table is your Vision, your dreams and goals for your organization.
However, on a daily basis your employees are on the firing line in your operations and they see all of your business’ warts – up close and personal. This can dispirit them and get them down. Therefore, they are sorely in need of the optimism that comes from you knowing where you want to take your company and how to get there.
If you need assistance with how to put encouragement to work in a practical way in your organization to elevate your team’s morale and performance, please contact us using the below information so we can show you how to make this new year the best ever for your company.
Fountainhead Consulting Group, Inc. is an Innovation and Business Planning firm. During the past 17 years we have shown over 1,200 companies how to achieve their goals by using our unique, comprehensive and systematic, innovation, business planning and growth Structure of Success™, Innovation Academy™ and FastTrak Innovation Program™ methodologies. Using the components in these methodologies, each month we examine an aspect of how to transform your business or organization into a true 21st Century operation.
Office phone: (770) 642-4220
www.FountainheadConsultingGroup.com
George.Horrigan@FountainheadConsultingGroup.com
