We can talk about the importance of company culture and the type of culture you want to build into your business, but the only way to establish and build your company culture is to work on it.
That’s a big reason for our annual Kick Off meeting. Wish Group gets together as a whole company, we talk about what happened in the previous year, we celebrate accomplishments, we talk through what we’re working towards in the New Year, and we spend time connecting with each other. Kick Off is about building connections and building the culture of Wish Group together.
Leadership is about leading by example, and serving others by bringing the best out of them. As a leader, my focus is on finding the right people who will excel in the Wish Group culture, providing them with avenues to grow within the company, and empowering them to be part of the culture. I am not the type of leader who needs to be seen daily to drive results; my company is filled with people who are self-motivated and strive to be better than they were last quarter.
“Good people are not just crucial to a business, they are the business! Finding them, managing them, inspiring them and then holding on to them is one of the most important challenges a business leader faces.” – Richard Branson
One of the keys to Wish Group consistently appearing on the Profit 500 list and winning other company awards is the way my people build and drive each other. I work each day to grow the company and connect with people who will benefit from Wish Group, and it is the people I have working in the business who help keep the day-to-day momentum going. Kick Off and Summer Reunion are the two big events at Wish Group where I work to motivate the whole team, reinforce the vision I have for the company, discuss what’s been working or hasn’t been working, open the floor for direct feedback, and recognize all of the individuals who make this team what it is. I find these events are just as motivating for me as they are for my team!
If you’re a business leader, and you’re not connecting with the people in your organization regularly, you’re not going to see big success.
My experience at Darome Teleconferencing, before it was bought by Bell, is what inspired me to start my own business, and what continues to drive me to build the company culture at Wish Group.
Company culture is not something that happens organically, it requires hiring the right people who will fit in with your culture, managing people in a way that motivates them as individuals and a collective, inspiring them to want more for themselves and their colleagues, and holding on to people who not only fit your culture but embrace it and work to build onto it.
At Kick Off this year, Wish Group celebrated employees who have been with the company anywhere from 6-10 years! I am so proud to have these people as part of the team. While I understand and support employees who leave for other opportunities, I continue to work towards building a company culture that makes my employees excited to get up on Monday mornings, encourages them to learn and do more, and is open to feedback from employees who are living the culture.
I believe that you get what you work for, and Wish Group supports each employee to grow as much as possible. It is those employees who take the opportunities for growth that continue to work with us and some even develop their own business to grow within Wish Group.
We have a unique environment here with amazing people. You can build your company culture into a thriving environment as well, but it takes hard work and constant improvements!
As the leader of Wish Group, I am visible, but I’m not the star of the show. At Kick Off I sat at the front of the room to take notes and ask questions. I learned from my people because they are the ones I hired to be the best in their area of expertise. We learn from each other, we learn from our successes, and we learn from things that haven’t gone as planned.
Building a company culture based on transparent growth and a learning environment fosters more creativity, more opportunity for employees to take control of their own destiny, more growth and more happiness.
What are some of the ways you work to build company culture? Share them in a comment below.
Frank
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