Create Culture of Inclusion

It's important to understand that little gets accomplished when employees don't feel appreciated or like they matter.  Everyone in the department matters regardless of their job title. A good leader includes everyone in the team's cause.  A great leader engages each person individually and shows them all that each of them are important both as employees and as people.

 

Earlier we discussed why employees are more important that customers (since happy and appreciated employees treat your customers like gold) and the philosophy of inclusion builds upon that idea.  When your employees know they matter and they feel included, then they are happy, are actually eager to give you their energy and loyalty and they end up treating your guests well.  On the other hand, employees who don't feel included are apathetic and just see their job as a paycheck and nothing more.

 

Here's how to create a culture of inclusion where everyone matters:

 

Make sure everyone KNOWS they matter

Take every opportunity to get to know your employees on a personal level. Learn their kids names, birthdates and favorite activities.  Say hello to each employee when you pass them in the hallway.  Acknowledge special non-work events such as a graduation or the birth of a grandchild.  Understand what their experiences, ambitions and dreams are all about.  Watch their faces break into broad smiles when you wish an employee's child a happy birthday because you remembered a small detail about their personal life.  The bottom line is to make everyone feel special and that you care about them as a person and watch their job engagement escalate.

 

Recognize talent and good work.  If you can make your employees feel you notice and appreciate the good work they do, their level of commitment skyrockets. That increased level of commitment translates into a strong personal connection to the work they do as their pride in a job well done begins to soar.  Ultimately this translates into a happy, productive work force that will show their loyalty to you by doing their very best every day.

 

And when I say everyone matters, I literally mean everyone.  The person who cleans the stoves at night are just as important as the chef who dirtied it up in the first place. The person that cleans the hotel rooms is just as important as the sales executive that filled the hotel with guests.  I would venture to say those "low level" staff members might even be more important than the upper tier managers because if the rooms are dirty and the kitchen is filthy, there would be no guests to serve in the first place.

 

Solicit Staff Input

Great leaders are self aware enough to know they don't know everything.  If you are confident in your abilities, then you should have no problem soliciting input from staff and listening to what they have to say.  Ask for your employee's opinions, suggestions and ideas and you'll find you make better decisions and garner greater commitment from your staff to achieve your goals.

 

It is important to NEVER dismiss employee input without thoroughly examining the pros and cons of implementing the idea. We should always be asking ourselves and our employees "Why do we do it this way?" and "How can we do it better?".  Who would know better than the employees who are in the trenches everyday and living through the challenges that management never see?  When employees answer your questions, politely thank them for their input even if the input was the worst idea you've ever heard of.  Dismissing their ideas right away will eventually cause them to clam up and never offer their opinions in the future since they don't feel their thoughts are valued.

 

Be There

Good leaders are always available when needed.  Keep an open door policy and encourage employees to come to you with issues they may be facing.  Take the time to listen to employee needs and concerns because taking care of "trivial" problems prevents larger problems from developing in the future.  After all, you cannot create a culture of inclusion if you aren't available to listen to your employees.

 

Communicate With Purpose

You want to be clear in what you are trying to say so there is no confusion.  You want to communicate directly to avoid beating around the bush.  And you want to communicate honestly without prejudice.  This is what I call Communicating with Purpose.

 

Your staff will know if you are not being honest with them and it will affect how they see you as a leader.  I'm not talking about not being honest like you are lying to them.  I mean being honest like calling it like you see it.  You can't be afraid to have tough conversations with people to address issues of concern.  A good leader will deal with the issue directly, honestly and clearly state the problem as well as the expectation.  You must communicate with purpose or you will be seen as weak, indecisive or just plain not trustworthy.

 

This doesn't mean beat employees up with a harsh tone or hurtful words.  Quite the contrary.  Address issues directly without emotion and in a manner of simply dealing with clearing the problem so the employee may proceed and be successful in his or her role.  Be thoughtful to the other person's feeling and show empathy, but communicate with a purpose to make sure the point of contention and desired outcomes are clearly understood.

 

Let Go

Don't micromanage.  Nobody likes that.  If you feel you need to micromanage then perhaps you should consider that you have people in the wrong roles.  Great leaders hire talent, provide the tools necessary to do the job, clear roadblocks, communicate responsibilities, uphold accountability then let people do their jobs without interference.

 

Leaders are good at clearly communicating vision and objectives then leaving the details of how to achieve that vision and accomplish those objectives to the people doing the jobs.  You might have a great job title and a plush office, but that doesn't make you smarter than the collective group of people you rely upon to achieve your goals.

 

Communicate your vision, objectives and expectations then let your people run with accomplishing them.

 

The bottom line is that if you want to create a high performing team, then make sure everyone knows they matter and they are included.  Ask for input and listen to it.  Value each team member as an individual.  Be available to your staff, communicate with a purpose and don't micromanage.  You'll find that the level of trust, loyalty and overall performance on your team will increase dramatically.