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Success begins with your employees. It’s no surprise that employees are described as your most important asset. You need staff you can trust to move the business further. Yet, as a business owner, it’s your responsibility to ensure that your team is prepared for success, or more exactly, that they are equipped to deliver the success you expect. Ultimately, if you don’t invest in your team, you can’t shape them to your business culture and needs. That’s precisely why companies that dedicate time and money to helping their employees upskill and perform tend to be more successful than those that don’t. Whether you choose to embrace team building opportunities or focus on training plans, you can help employees grow within the company.
However, success doesn’t only begin with your employees. It can also end with your employees when your business strategy accidentally backfires. No company sets up to fail. However, sometimes the best intentions can hide unexpected consequences.
Evening social events
There’s nothing like social events to socialise, right? However, the appeal of the office Christmas party of the happy hour staff cocktail is decreasing rapidly. More and more employees are reluctant to give up on their social time to attend a business party, especially if there is no specific business goal. It can be counterproductive. People are more likely to quit a company that makes social events mandatory as they feel it disrupt their work/life balance.
Even employees who choose to attend can find it hard to adjust. Social events tend to encourage the consumption of alcohol and late-night entertainment. Sleep deprivation and alcohol go hand-in-hand to bring unexpected problems, such as employees misbehaving during the party or being arrested on a DUI charge on their way home. Businesses can argue that individuals are responsible for themselves. However, a skilful lawyer could argue the point that the employee wouldn’t need bail bonds services or face legal consequences without mandatory business social gatherings. At the end of the day, even if the employee chooses to take responsibility, their behaviour is likely to negatively reflect on the company.
Accidental favouritism
Sometimes, trying to help an employee could bring more problems than advantages. Of course, this doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t support your employee’s growth. But the way in which you choose to show support can be damaging for the company. You could inadvertently create a climate of favouritism within the workplace. Favouritism essential discriminates individuals by putting an employee first, regardless of their performance or role. Bias isn’t illegal unless it can be proven to be discriminatory. However, it contributes to conflict and disparities in the office. Employees are more likely to leave a company where they feel that a manager displays preferential treatments to a member of the staff. It can be tricky to define where favouritism ends and where illegal discrimination starts. But, even without a legal case, employees are likely to walk away from a company that shows favouritism to some employees.
A business that wants to support employees and creates a positive atmosphere can find itself unfairly criticised. Unfortunately, even the best intentions can take a turn for the worse. It can be worth using internal anonymous surveys to check how your employees perceive the business efforts.
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