As a leader, do you practice what you preach? Setting a good example to your team is one of the most effective ways of inspiring trust in your employees and improve productivity.  This is because changing the climate of a business has to come from the top down.

Your behaviour sets the precedent and filters down to individuals and the teams in which they work.  If you are careless in your approach, or if you don’t take others’ opinions on board and make it clear you value their contributions, then this will eventually permeate the climate of your company.

Additionally, a workforce that is disengaged or distrustful will not be a properly productive workforce.

 

Triggering Climate Change at Work

If you are leading by example, you also must learn how to listen. But listening to your employees’ concerns isn’t enough. It is important that you demonstrate that you understand their concerns by encouraging them to submit suggestions and offer ideas.  Finally, you need to see your commitments through.

Success comes through engagement.  For business leaders and managers used to controlling the situation, this may involve a certain amount of letting go.

Changing the climate in your workplace means gathering feedback and offering advice, and assigning responsibilities to people while backing them up with training and support.

 

Managing Expectations

By empowering your employees, you should have certain expectations of them and of how your business can develop. Part of getting your climate right is understanding how to deal with situations where performance falls short of those expectations.

To embed a drive to improve productivity, you should ensure that your people are accountable for their actions.  Importantly, with this accountability, they should carry a sense of responsibility.

If employees fail to meet your expectations it is important to get clarity over this accountability and whether, when someone’s performance falls short, they can be brought back on track with the right degree of training and coaching.

There are occasions where you shouldn’t suffer fools gladly, but a blame culture does not help matters and is likely to have an overall negative impact on the workplace.

Fostering this sense of individual responsibility and accountability so that it feeds into a positive climate requires perseverance and patience. However, the rewards come with a workplace less likely to suffer disciplinary issues.  And one with a more motivated, productive workforce.

If you are ready to change the climate in your business, please contact Ubuntu HR.