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The Important Part Employees Play in a Business Turnaround |
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Written by David Willetts
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In a business turnaround situation the import of improving staff morale cannot be understated. The key staff will be pivotal in turning around the fortunes of the business, but how are these staff motivated to work as a team, in a positive manner towards achieving a business turnaround success?
Usually when a business is in decline the employee morale is at a low-ebb, fuelled by uncertainty and rumour.
If the business decline has been protracted, the poor morale may be deep rooted and be challenging to overcome. The owner may engage a business turnaround specialist and the turnaround practitioner will become dependent upon the skills of key staff to achieve success. The task will be to change the mind set of those individuals to a positive frame with a can-do attitude.
The important task of communicating the operational review, future strategy and business plans to staff will be critical. Should key staff lack enthusiasm to succeed then the turnaround will be jeopardized.
The need for change may be immediate, but how is the mind set of individuals changed quickly? How is the development of a successful business environment encouraged?
Start by talking to staff!
Clear communication of the business demise will be obligatory; this should be done not to scare or frighten individuals but to give an honest assessment of the business and to identify the causes of the situation. A no-blame culture should be engendered and little is gained from ‘finger pointing'.
After explanation of the business situation and ensuring it is understood by all, it will be advisable to draw a line under past events and concentrate on:
- The future plans
- The future role the employees
For a successful business turnaround to be achieved it will be vital that staff are aware of the business plans and the part they may have in their execution.
Should job losses feature in the business turnaround plan, it will be beneficial to act quickly in advising individuals, so that the business can stabilize and the remaining employees not fear for their job security.
The business turnaround specialist should meet with the remaining staff collectively and on an individual basis; failures in staff not understanding their responsibilities and the expected results of their work should be avoided. An important aspect of these meetings will be to determine the strengths and weaknesses of individuals and to assess if staff will require training in order to be capable of discharging their new tasks.
Performance indicators should be agreed for each department/person that will form part of the turnaround success. All good news items should be communicated throughout the business. The use of notices, emails, newsletters, departmental meetings, company wide meetings and so on should be exploited to raise morale and document the achievements made.
An individual or department that may achieve some success should be recognized for their work. At times this need only be a compliment, but it should be broadcast throughout the business. This may encourage other employees to emulate their peers, attain good results or suggest improvements to add to the value of the business.
It will become evident that some employees do innovate and take risks. This should be encouraged within a ‘controlled environment' with the delegation of decision making responsibility becoming an on-going task.
Formal review meetings should be held, reporting on the progress made against the turnaround plan. Management and other key staff should be present and should corrective actions be required to achieve the plan, these should be agreed and actioned.
Improving the morale of staff is not easy. However, despite the time required it will be most beneficial in building a team spirit to achieve a business turnaround success.
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