In a world of “do more with less,” creating and maintaining an incredible team culture can be challenging. As the CEO, manager, or leader of your organization, you have the power to shape and influence your team’s culture.
To help inspire you, I’m sharing the top five things I did for my team to foster an amazing team culture in 2022!
1. Connectedness – One of the most critical elements of building a strong team culture is gaining and maintaining feelings of connectedness between team members; this means creating opportunities for your employees to interact outside of their job roles, such as through virtual happy hours or weekly check-ins outside of scheduled meetings and events. The connection allows everyone to get to know each other personally so they feel part of something larger than themselves.
2. Communication – Communication is essential for keeping everyone on the same page and helps build trust within the team. Encourage an open dialogue between colleagues by creating safe spaces where people can express their ideas without fear of judgment or retribution, such as anonymous feedback forms or 1:1s outside work hours. This allows everyone to feel comfortable coming forward with their thoughts and opinions, which can lead to better collaboration and innovation!
3. Celebrations – A great way to build a positive team culture is by celebrating successes (big or small) together! Whether taking time out for lunch together after completing a project or recognizing individual efforts during company-wide meetings, little acts like these go a long way in ensuring that every member feels appreciated and valued as part of the team.
4. Community Involvement – Involve your team in local causes aligning with your company values! Participating in volunteer work or fundraising events allows everyone to come together while giving back to the community. Plus, it makes your organization look good on social media, which can further increase brand awareness among potential customers!
5. Fun & Games – Finally, don’t forget about having fun at work! Setting aside regular time for games such as ping pong tournaments or board game nights helps break up the monotony while promoting friendly competition amongst co-workers. These activities are great ways for everyone to blow off steam while being productive team members!
Building an incredible team culture takes thoughtfulness and dedication, but it has long-term benefits for employees and employers alike! As we saw from our experience at Chick-fil-A Eastside Market Tulsa, OK & Chick-fil-A Woodland Hills Mall in 2022, these five steps helped us achieve our goals by fostering stronger relationships between colleagues, resulting in higher levels of productivity & engagement across our teams! With this advice in mind, I encourage all leaders to take some time today to think about creating a unique workplace environment that will motivate their teams! Good luck & happy leading 🤩