The Business Exchange Swindon & Wiltshire Edition 34: Dec/Jan 2017/18 | Page 21

PERSONAL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT “The best way to predict the future is to create it!” (Peter Drucker 1909-2005) So thinking back to this time last year, did you plan for where you are now? As a leader in your business success depends on you. Get your team together and take some time to reflect the following: What has gone well this year? What are we proud of? What success have we had? Celebrate everything that has gone well. Now what has not gone well? Be honest – it is ok! Peter said, “Answering simple questions requires us to make stark, honest and sometimes painful self- assessments.” We all need to get to that place of knowing exactly the ‘pitch’ we are working on. What challenges have we had? What have been our biggest issues? Importantly now take each one and ask - What did we learn from this experience? Going forward what will we do differently as a result? Feedback and feedforward to each member of the team. Everyone needs to know what their part of the success is and if/ how/what they need to do differently going forward to avoid repeating any mistakes. Clearing the past year is impor tant so that nothing negative is carried forward. In Peter’s book ‘The Five Most Important Questions You will ever ask about your Organisation’ he says – yes, we need answers to drive action, but the most important thing is to ask these questions; What is our mission? Who is our customer What does the customer value? What are our results? What is our plan? Nicola McHale, founder and Master Coach at VI International, Vistage Chair South West and author of Transforming Teams. ….and I would add; What could stop us succeeding? What resources do we have to help us succeed? Who do we need to influence? Start planning for 2018 – Imagine this time next year and you are celebrating success – what will you have achieved – now put in a plan to achieve it. Create the future you want. If you want help and support getting to that place, then contact me. Peter Drucker was an Austrian-born American management consultant, educator, and author, whose writings contributed to the philosophical and practical foundations of the modern business corporation. [email protected] Mobile - 07887 616606 UK.linkedin.com/nicolamchale THE BEST INCENTIVES THAT AREN’T MONEY BASED Work pays the bills and cash creates your standard of living but when a candidate is considering joining a company, they will likely be thinking about all the implications of that course of action on their life and lifestyle. As an employer, it’s worth thinking a little harder about how to make a role more attractive. Dan Barfoot, operations manager at CMD Recruitment, illustrates a few incentives that can make life better for everyone in the company and job roles more attractive in the first place. Recognition Recognition for ‘stand-out’ achievements and quality work is important for employees to know they are doing well and to give them a reason to try to do well. Depending on the business, that can be anything from ‘employee of the month’ to annual internal awards and financial bonuses, or even gift ceremonies. Having a structured system of recognition and awards is a classic way to drive performance and get employees wanting more. someone is positioned makes a tangible difference to their every day at the company. Does the office have a nice feel? Does it have windows, plants, pictures on the wall and how are the desks arranged? Are the chairs comfortable? Can you hear yourself think? Is there a breakout area? Can you talk to the people you need to easily? When you show someone where they might be spending their next ten years – think about what they see when they do their first office tour. Holiday Remote working For workers that work 5 days a week they should receive 28 days paid leave per year. However, some companies offer extra days as incentives – for example, allowing employees to always take their birthday off, or as a reward for doing a great job on a project. Holiday days can make for great bargaining chips at interview if you want someone to work for you. A recent Regus report stated that 50% of workers work outside their office 2.5 days a week. The same report indicated that 55% of those working remotely, said it helped them concentrate and be more productive – as well as save costs on travel. With cloud applications, messaging and VoIP, the technology is there for everyone to enjoy remote working and remain connected to an office. Work environment Social life When a role is in an office space, the space where Getting employees drunk in the pub every Friday might not be the smartest move but sharing a couple of drinks, encouraging participation in a sport, going to an event together as a team (team building days are popular) – it can help colleagues to become friends, to talk freely and reveal personalities. Some companies have an end of week glass of wine, or arrange a once a month ‘long lunch’ on the company. These little perks can make a company more human, fun and boost morale. Contact our friendly consultants at CMD Recruitment if you need help recruiting talent to your business. For more info: www.cmdrecruitment.com 01225 805080 THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2017 21