The founder of Solar States, a Best for The World B-Corporation right here in Philadelphia, engages his employees by asking their input on every decision that the company makes. In one instance, he had to decide on maternity leave for his business, so he called some competitors and discovered three weeks to be the most given out. After consulting with female members of his team and offering max of three weeks, he was essentially laughed out of the conference room. Solar States is now working to push the envelope on maternity leave and creating a plan that really works for their employees.
The founder of Solar States also purposely does not label himself a president or CEO, but instead founder, to break the glass statue CEO management paradigm, and present himself as approachable.
Educating employees on business financial language and current performance was also noted as a tactic that can really help engage employees. Adopting open book policies on financials helps employees understand the performance of the business and take pride in helping to enhance that business. There was a significant emphasis at this forum on the need for leaders to become people-oriented and less hard line policy- and profit-oriented and for those leaders to learn more about their employees' individual needs/wants/visions. Business leaders engaging constructively with employees has a positive impact on employee performance and helps companies attract and retain engaged employees. What are the benefits to your organization when you have an employee focus? Engaged and attentive employees, who, inspired by a feeling they are cared for, perform better at their workplaces. Employee retention rates increase, communication improves, and clients can sense an improvement in morale. Not only does social consciousness improve the lives of your workers, it makes good business sense. Interested in engaging your employees in sustainability initiatives? Give us a call anytime. We take pride in having a team that specializes in all three pillars of the triple bottom line.