The Business Exchange Bath & Somerset Issue 14: Winter 2019 | Page 27

THE BEAUTY OF TEAMWORK Peter Woodhouse is an employment law expert and heads up the Business Sector at national law firm Stone King – but what about outside work? He reflects on skills, opportunities and challenges that we see at work in play, and in play at work. This time Peter considers the beauty of the ‘team’. Some of my abiding memories of recent Olympics are of the GB cycling team pursuit. For those who may not know what this is, it is the event where teams of four riders play “round and round the mulberry bush” barely millimetres from the rider in front at insanely high speeds, on bikes with no brakes and only half a set of handlebars. I feel scared just thinking about it. But apart from just loving everything about bikes, what attracts me to this event in particular? I’m not really sure but I think it’s the combination of the forces on display. You have raw power but also precision; brute force but also elegance; flat out speed but also endurance; and individual excellence but also utter reliance and trust in the team. As with so many things related to sport, analogies with the work place are easily made. I have the privilege to lead a high performing team. None of us is going to win any Olympic medals (as far as I know) but to perform highly in the work place we need to adopt a similar mind set. We need to demonstrate strength and resilience, in particular when a project gets tough. We need to be able to respond quickly, but not so quickly that important details are missed. And we need to be as good as we can be at what we do. If I have just described your team, you will know how amazing the feeling is when you can look at your team and just know that each member “gets it”, values each other and will do the hard yards both for themselves and for each other. Not one of us is amazing all the time, in fact we can all be pretty average at times, but the beauty of the team is that it can be amazing all the time. Ed Clancy reigning team pursuit gold medallist explained, “I live and die for the team pursuit. That’s in my heart and what gets me out of bed”. When I read that, I put the emphasis on the word “team”. Not all of us will feel quite so strongly about what we do at work, but the more we do feel that, the more our colleagues and clients will feel it and want to share in our commitment and passion. Peter Woodhouse, partner and head of business at Stone King e: [email protected] t: 01225 326753 twitter: @StoneKingLLP For more info: www.stoneking.co.uk INSPIRING EMPLOYEES TO LOVE THEIR WORK By providing all of the right elements that inspire your team to care about your business and their job, you can really create the most amazing results and a wonderful working environment. Emma Summers, Juice Recruitment’s Founder & CEO gives us four top tips on how to inspire employees to love their work. 1. Care about, and share about, your employees first As simple as it sounds, many leaders, aren’t very good at sharing their appreciation. By learning about, practicing and recognising your people, you can truly inspire employees to produce great work. 2. Be crystal clear about what you value It is so important to demonstrate your appreciation for your company values, the unique elements that support your brand to consumers. Corporate values hanging on boardroom walls are sometimes not very inspiring, however unforgettable phrases, can create real power within a business – ‘Create Amazing’ – ‘Be Bold’ – ‘People Not Paper’ – ‘Better An Oops Rather Than A What If’! Cheer for effort Appreciation is an acknowledgment of a person’s determination and hard work to achieve great results. When efforts and results are recognised, employees feel increased confidence in their skills, an understanding that they are on track and can create a great relationship with their peers. 3. Encourage your team to make a difference Often, people apply to jobs and organisations where they believe that their skills and experience could make a real difference. By encouraging your team to ask themselves “What difference can I make that someone would love?” will really promote their thinking and effort and could make a profound difference to your business enabling them to be the best version of their unique selves. Your people are your company and by giving your people the reasons to care, they’ll achieve great things and will surpass anything you could have ever imagined! For more info: www.juicerecruitment.com Emma Summers, CEO of Juice Recruitment “When efforts and results are recognised, employees feel increased confidence in their skills” @JuiceRecruit THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2019 27