While the importance of a strong, relatable, and engaging organizational culture cannot be denied, small business owners often face unique challenges in doing so. Kelly Moser, co-founder, and editor at Home & Jet, shares seven essential tips for small businesses to foster a compassionate and competitive company culture.
A strong company culture provides a competitive advantage that motivates employees and drives business growth. Don’t wait until you hire your hundredth employee to get started. As a small business owner, it may often seem daunting to build your unique culture from scratch. However, starting small has its advantages if you know how to leverage them and make the most of the resources at hand.
Here are seven tips on building a strong culture as a small business.
1. Build your team strategically
There’s a lot to think about when you’re building your team. You want your staff to be able to communicate effectively, collaborate on projects, and be hungry to learn. When hiring, consider their skills and how they’ll work in a group settingOpens a new window to find the right mix of personalities and skill sets.
For example, if hiring a graphic designer, ensure they have good attention to detail. If hiring an accountant, make sure they have some experience working closely on projects with people from other departments.
Of course, hiring is easier said than done. Sourcing and screening candidates can be a time-consuming process.
But thankfully, technology has made this much easier for HR professionals, who can now use job boards that give them instant access to millions of candidates.
Don’t be afraid to use LinkedIn. The platform’s search function lets you quickly find potential employees in specific industries or locations. These people can reach out if they want to work at your company.
Further, AI talent marketplaces are beginning to revolutionize the way companies hire.
Organizations are using artificial intelligence to streamline their hiring processes and improve talent management strategies to keep top performers and gain a competitive advantage.Â
2. Prioritize communicationÂ
Communication is the foundation of a successful business and a strong company cultureOpens a new window .Â
Technology is essential for opening up new avenues of collaboration, especially for remote teams, who may not be able to work together physically.
Leverage collaboration tools like Trello, Slack, and Google Docs that allow people to work on projects together in real-time and make sure every team member is up-to-date with the latest information.Â
Think of communication as an ongoing process — not just one-off conversations here and there.Â
To have effective communication, you need to ensure that every employee knows what they need to do and when they need to do it.Â
Employees should be clear of their roles within the company, so they can help make quality decisions to contribute to the overall mission statement of your company.Â
3. Set clear goals and hold people accountable
Goals are essential because they give you and your team a sense of direction to help you stay focused on what matters most.
When setting goals, make sure they’re SMART: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. This tactic helps people know what they need to do to achieve these goals.
Managing employees is a daunting task. It can feel like you’re herding cats. There are many things to keep track of deadlines, projects, and schedules.Â
But there’s good news. Project management software like monday.com or ClickUp helps ensure that every team member is on track and meeting their goals. Here are three ways that project management software can help you stay on track:Â Â
- It keeps everyone accountable for their work. If an employee doesn’t update their progress in the app, you’ll know about it immediately.Â
- It allows you to measure progress across teams and individuals. If someone isn’t hitting their goals, or if they’re hitting them too fast or too slow, then you’ll have access to data that shows exactly where they stand at any given moment.
- It helps you get buy-in from your team members before they even start working on something new by showing them what their contributions will look like when everything is said and done.Â
4. Document and streamline standard operating proceduresÂ
When building your company, getting caught up in the daily grind of ensuring your business is running smoothly, and customers are happy can easily. But don’t let that distract you from taking time to think about how your organization operates at its core.
If you’re not documenting and streamlining your standard operating procedures (SOPs), you’re missing out on a huge opportunity to grow as a business by improving your culture.Â
An internal guidebook creates efficiency, responsibility, and accountability. These lead to an amazing corporate culture.
But don’t sit there and write everything step-by-step in a Google Doc. Use Loom to make screen recordings for your employees to reference later. Keep them tidy and easy to find in a knowledge hub like Notion.
See More: Staff Meetings and Personal Connections Help Employees Feel More Engaged
5. Provide opportunities as your business evolves
While big companies have the allure of stability, small businesses are typically more agile and flexible and tend to have faster promotional opportunities. Strong company culture will help you attract and maintain the best talent when you’re small, allowing you to build competitive advantage when selling your businessOpens a new window .Â
As time goes on and your business continues to evolve, don’t forget to keep the opportunities fresh and exciting for your team. Â
For instance, consider offering opportunities for employees to work on projects that interest them. Or invest in employee training programs so they can learn new skills.Â
6. Encourage team members to provide feedback
Asking for feedback is essentialOpens a new window for building a strong culture.
Even if you already have a good sense of what’s happening, it’s still essential to ensure that everyone feels comfortable giving their honest opinions.Â
An employee feedback management program helps you collect and respond to employee feedback. This is more efficient and provides ideas on how to address issues.
7. Celebrate your wins
You might not realize it, but celebrating the little things goes a long way.
Even as a small business owner, you can still celebrate wins. It doesn’t have to be anything big — it could be as simple as going out to lunch with your team to celebrate their hard work or new company achievement.
It doesn’t matter if you’ve just hit your first $1,000 in revenue or hired your tenth employee. Celebrating success is important for team morale and for keeping the momentum going.Â
Success doesn’t happen overnight. There’s typically more to it than meets the eye. Recognize people for their efforts, which will surely pay off in dividends. Â
Wrapping up
If you want to create a strong culture for your small business, you can’t treat it as a side hustle or a source of passive incomeOpens a new window . Strong company culture starts from the top, and as the owner, you must prioritize this to see results.Â
We hope these tips will help you build a strong culture for your small business — and that they’ll inspire you to keep going even on the most challenging days. It’s time-consuming but can pay off in ways you might never have expected.
Which best practices have you followed for establishing a strong company culture for your businesses? Let us know on FacebookOpens a new window , TwitterOpens a new window , and LinkedInOpens a new window .Â