LAS VEGAS, Aug. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- With the national unemployment rate reaching nearly 10 percent, more and more companies have been faced with the difficult decision of making reductions in the form of employees, salaries or benefits. These cutbacks create an atmosphere of fear, rumors and negativity that paralyzes productivity and defeats morale. This type of culture puts your company, your employees and your client retention at risk.
Jason Lindstrom, CEO of Rapport Leadership International, a leadership training organization that delivers leadership classes to create an enhanced workplace, counsels its clients to remain positive during uncertain times and direct their focus on the following three C's of business -- Clarity, Culture and Clients.
-- Clarity -- After layoffs, it is inevitable that fear is rampant in the workplace. The first step in reducing the fear is clear communication. It is important to make employees aware of the immediate and long-term vision of the company. Face-to-face open dialogue with employees allows them to voice their concerns and ask tough questions. Businesses that succeed through tough times encourage ideas from their team and provide a forum for feedback. Continuing this honest communication provides clarity to the employees, allowing them to stay focused on their jobs and not on the unknown. -- Culture -- Surveys show that loyalty and morale are driven by care and concern for employees, fairness at work, and the feeling of accomplishment. Therefore, a company's next step is to focus on its culture. Bringing staff together for a morale-building outing such as a picnic in the park or to volunteer for a local non-profit is a highly effective and inexpensive way to help them reconnect as a team. Additionally, it is crucial to create a positive workplace culture by celebrating even the smallest successes of a company and recognizing and rewarding employees for their accomplishments. Extra time off or a premium parking space are great motivators in lieu of cash incentives.
-- Clients and Customers -- Now more than ever, it is critical that relationships with clients and customers be nurtured. Reach out to clients and customers to see what can be done to help them weather any economic or business challenges they may be facing. Use challenging times as opportunities to create strategic partnerships with current clients as well as those that may be inactive. Know how to communicate with customers; personal communication is key when fostering relationships. Businesses can use a variety of other communications tools including Web sites, email and even blogs to stay connected with customers. By using these tools, businesses can position themselves as authorities on their industries, while providing customers with relevant business advice and updates on the company and its services.
At Rapport, when faced with adversity, we remind ourselves of one of our favorite quotes from Sir Winston Churchill, "We shall draw from the heart of suffering itself the means of inspiration and survival." Of course when Churchill said this, he was not thinking about the challenges that our business community is currently facing. He did encapsulate an important business lesson though. Facing adversity allows us the opportunity to look internally, both as individuals and as businesses, and draw upon our inner strength to rise above the challenges before us. The businesses that look internally and choose to focus on the three C's -- Clarity-Culture-Clients, will find the inspiration they deserve to thrive in today's times.
SOURCE: Rapport Leadership International
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