I want to tell you a story about a company I worked for 13 years ago and that will always remain a company with a remarkable impact on my personal and professional life.
One often wonders why certain companies succeed in making "entrepreneurs" of their employees. People who think, breathe and go the extra mile for their company or boss. I will try to reveal the reasons why.
What entrepreneur wouldn't love to have a fleet of "mini-me" type employees on staff? Every boss dreames at one moment or another of finding employees who operate with the same grit and gusto as they do. So how do you get not just one, but many employees who treat your businesses like their own -- wowing customers and wooing critics, proactively problem-solving, and pushing the business to the next level?
Lesson 1: Let them be entrepreneurs and reward them for being so.
The secret of this company was that we were all entrepreneurs, "owners" of that company. Responsible for our agency targets, revenue, profit & loss. As such we were all developping our own budget.A Dream budget, and setting out our own goals, number of visits, vacancies interviews, calls etc. Everything was monitored however you still got the space and independence to run your company the way you wanted. The frame work was very simple and straightforward. This made it all so easy to grasp. KISS was the moto, keep it simple and short ...or was it stupid?
Lesson 2: Make fun .
Work hard play hard.
This boss loved his people and had no problem rewarding them for the hard work done. Since 90% (in that time) of the employees were woman between 20 and 25 years old with a passion for fashion, the incentives were focussed on winning luxery good, high end electronics, excotic holidays and other groundbreaking activities. Promotions were sealed with a luxery handbag from a top Belgian designer. It was all about finding the motivation button and he knew were to find it. Always looking for new challenges where possible: fun based, if neccesary pain and punishment...
Lesson 3:Being the best...is a state of mind
Company culture, mission and vision
Eventually it was all about the philiosophy of this company. People knew what the mission statement of the company was. Every single one was steeped by this mission statement. Beginning with the words; being the best is a state of mind...It was all between our two ears. Sales was tought by schemes, a lot of practise and training. The number of sales training days exceded every other company. Most of the time it was all about common sence, discipline and action.
Other companies looked at the pase where these disciplined ladies exceeded in getting the sales results others coulden't attain.
But also in this company, all good things came to an end. The leaders stopped doing what they did for fifteen years. After they left, the charisma, passion and dynamics quietly slipt away.
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