Fostering a people-first environment in the workplace

The single most important part of every business, hands down, is people. Why then do so many businesses treat people–their employees and their customers–as interchangeable numbers? Simple. It’s because–for many people–navigating the complexities of humans is difficult while analysing numbers is easy. Failing to treat people like people, however, can lose you major business because one of the most important factors in business success can’t be measured like dollars or donuts. It’s how you treat your clients and business partners. 

Ensuring that your business treats every client as a name, not a number, starts within the team. Building a people-first business isn’t difficult, but it does require a mindset shift. Here’s how you pull it off. 

Cultivate a Can-Do team

Getting on record as the team that gets things done puts you in the driver’s seat when it comes to new business. Companies are composed of individuals. Being the team that solves problems for those individuals makes you incredibly valuable. So valuable, in fact, that when people naturally switch roles or companies, they remember your team as the can-do problem solvers they recommend. So, how do you cultivate a can-do company to back your people-first business? 

For starters, it’s about mindset and company culture. If you’re in any leadership role, lead from the front. Make sure your people see you doing the work you ask everyone to do. Then, inspire confidence. Let your staff know you trust them to find solutions and to come to you for help when they need it. 

Being “Can-Do” doesn’t mean never saying no to a client request, it just means finding solutions wherever they are available. Taking on too many tasks can risk burning out key members of your team, so make sure to keep track of their status and needs with regular check-ins.

If you do find yourself facing tasks your team can’t immediately handle in-house, don’t hesitate to make referrals to companies you trust. That way, even if you can’t solve a problem in-house, you become the connection that gets things done for your partner brands and businesses. 

Take an interest in what others are interested in

Clients, employees, business partners, and everyone you work with in your professional life is a person first. They have lives, families, and interests far outside the professional realm that most people know nothing about. If you’re going to be a people-first business or brand, however, you do need to engage beyond the purely professional realm. 

It’s easy to see why. Names and numbers in a phone don’t mean much. Attaching meaning to them, even simple meaning, can improve relationships considerably. 

Let’s say you know “Tim” is really into golf. If you inquire about Tim’s golf game or if he saw the latest round of the PGA, Tim knows you are listening to his interests. Tim starts to think of you less as a business associate and more as a friend. This puts you at the top of the list for future business interactions. 

Now, before you start thinking this is manipulation, remember this is the way all friendships are built everywhere. And, in the long run, building a strong partnership is beneficial for you, “Tim,” and all the other individuals served by your people-first business. 

Open up flex time in your schedule

The biggest concern with developing a people-first business is the same as the single largest concern with every other facet of any enterprise: time. Rebuilding a company culture and creating stronger relationships with clients both take time that professionals are far too often short on.

Implementing these changes requires you to be able to open up flex time in your schedule. There are lots of ways to do this: eliminating or delegating low-importance tasks, cross-training staff so that work can be shared more evenly, or hiring on additional staff. 

Whatever option you choose for opening up flexible time in your schedule, be sure to build in enough time to communicate to your larger team the goals and steps of your plan as you cultivate your can-do company attitude, engage beyond work with clients, and open up time in your schedule to implement your people-first business plan.

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As Director of Business Development, Jim Ries works to increase Offit Kurman’s visibility, reach, and value in the business community.