In their book No Excuses: How You Can Turn Any Workplace Into a Great One, authors Jennifer Robin and Michael Burchell detail common challenges to building a great workplace, and outline ways to overcome these perceived obstacles. While making excuses and rationalizing missteps is not unique to the business world, it is evident that creating a workplace culture that empowers employees and adheres to core values can help avoid the propensity to “excuse” or bow out of responsibilities to improve the work environment. Here are three solutions to any excuse encountered by a workplace:
- •Make every interaction an opportunity to build trust.
- •Get clear on your core values and define your organization's behavior.
- •Find opportunity in challenges and seek inspiration from other great workplaces.
A strong company culture is not a fad or trend—it is recognized as contributing to the bottom line and playing a direct role in business success. If employees feel valued, they will work to advance the company overall. For example, Marriott employees who work behind the scenes are said to work in the “heart of the house” and not the “back of the house”—they feel appreciated. At Dixon Schwabl, we do not call our lower floor the basement, but rather refer to it as the "Level of Love." There are no excuses—whether you have limited budgets, tight resources, a changing corporate landscape or other impediments to progress, you must strive to create a great workplace. By leveraging systems you already have in place—company meetings, team lunches, holiday celebrations—you can strategically and economically work to deepen your relationship with team members and build a strong culture, starting today!
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