Given today’s technological advances and difficult market environments, it may seem appropriate that more and more businesses are focusing on working leaner, cutting costs and using digital technologies to survive. It almost seems as if people are an optional variable in the calculation of success.
Nonetheless, while technology and advanced automation do have their place in modern business processes, they will have less and less impact on the market advantages of a business as they become easier to use and more widely available. In addition, an organization can only become so lean or cut its cost to a certain level before it will start to negatively impact performance. To succeed today and into the future, there is only one true strategy: focusing on creativity and growth, in other words focusing on a company's employees and its culture that fosters growth and creativity.
Here are our four tips for fostering creativity and growth.
Make it safe to fail
For people to become creative and to think outside the box, they need to feel safe. This means safe to suggest solutions that might not work, plans that might fail, ideas that have not been fully thought through and safe to fail in the completion of an assignment in general. Management must establish a culture that protects the individual and views failure as an integral part of growth and improvement. Only then will people be ready to really invest and commit to a company’s growth.
"Failure is not just a part of learning. It is learning."
Put culture and values first
In most cases, people do not work for the financial goals of a company, nor do they feel connected to its balance sheet. People relate to a cause, to other people and the way they work and do business together. The success of a company in terms of attracting and retaining the right talent is not defined by the size of the paycheck, but by a company’s culture and values. Companies investing in their culture and living their values will be the ones that come out on top.
Inspire each other’s greatness
Research shows that the factor that made the biggest difference between the most successful and least successful teams was the ratio of positive comments to negative comments. While the highest performing teams gave nearly six positive comments for every negative one, the lowest performing teams gave three negative comments for every positive one. Do you want your company to perform well? Improve your feedback culture and praise praising.
Stay curious
To stay ahead of the competition, your company needs to stay curious and on its toes – or more precisely, your employees need to stay curious and on their toes. Management needs to listen to its own employees, embrace their interests and give them the room and freedom to develop and cultivate their ideas. Create an organization in which employee development is paramount…and the business is sure to develop as well.
How Goalify Professional can help
Goalify Professional can help you establish new cultural habits by providing you with the ability to set up repeating tasks and reminders that will help your team members absorb and integrate them in their work routine. You can learn more about Goalify Professional and how it can help you to improve team performance and promote a culture of growth here.
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