Listen and understand, act and convince
Employees feel they are misunderstood, they are not fully behind the corporate strategy and in the worst-case scenario the company strategy falls flat. Unfortunately, this situation is all too real, but it can be avoided with a few simple steps aimed at activating the employees and breathing life into the brand.
It was a little more than one year ago that we decided to tap into the zeitgeist with our future initiative. We carried out a survey among CEOs, CMOs, COOs and employees of leading Swiss companies to determine whether and how visions and strategies are received by employees.
The cleverest strategy brings nothing
43% of the employees we questioned believed that they were fully behind the company’s vision, but only 25% of the managers thought that their employees knew the company strategy. And this is precisely where the problem lies – however brilliant the strategy may be, it will fall flat if the employees fail to get fully behind it. The consequence of this is a dissatisfied boardroom, unclear values, a lack of motivation among the employees and ultimately less success.
The employees are the life and soul of the brand
Motivation comes from inside. It cannot be forced but rather must be teased out. And this is where the right action can make a difference – the best approach is to integrate employees into processes and involve them in focus groups which, thanks to intermediate levels, open up communication channels between the management and staff. If employees feel that they are part of a greater whole, they will be activated and convey the corporate values to the outside world. They will live out the company philosophy and breathe life into the brand. In this way, processes can be adjusted in a streamlined manner and concepts implemented without friction losses. The result is greater efficiency and success.
Published 01.02.2017 © Brandsoul AG
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