Double your success. Tell the cleaner

After almost ten years in a high profile role in a major corporate I am convinced there is a significant contributing factor that delineates a highly successful business from a mediocre one and that factor my friends is the knowledge of the cleaner.

Most companies have a mission statement and a vision. It is generally conveyed to staff at a strategy meeting. Often it is sent to all staff in a nice glossy brochure or in one case I saw, put on the back of a beer coaster of which supplies were given to the staff. The fact is a lot of businesses spend a lot of money and time and miss the whole point.

If you or I can walk into any business and find the cleaner and ask him or her what the mission and values of that business are and how their job contributes to those values we have found a truly awesome company.

I learned that conveying the message to the most junior of staff and having them understand how their job contributes to the greater whole is a key contributing factor to doubling the success of the business overall. However, there is a second part to this strategy. Don’t just do it once. I have seen dozens of companies pour money into the void of management retreats, glossy brochures, mission statements in gold frames, not to mention the beer coasters. If you as the owner of your business are not living and re inforcing the values and mission on a regular basis (weekly is good) then you are running the risk of the message not being lived by your staff.

So how do you go about this? The retreats, t-shirts, screen savers and all the rest are good ideas, but firstly you must meet with all staff and let them know what your values are and how they can live them and contribute to them throughout their role. Then you must put some incentives in place to ensure people are rewarded for living the values. This could be as little as an employee of the month, a chocolate bar or even just mentions in the company magazine. There are many ways to recognise staff without spending the GDP of a small nation doing so.

Every month for at least 6 months and then at least quarterly there after you need to have organised department meetings regards your mission and values and how the business relates to them. Never fall into the trap of thinking everyone knows what you stand for and how they contribute. This is not a process that like an injection. This is a regular treatment. If you are a small business, even one person, relate your mission to clients, a virtual board, suppliers and other stakeholders. At the very least it will help you stick to your core values.

In the early 1970’s global giant Johnson & Johnson recalled tens of millions of dollars of product because the quality conflicted with their mission. The cost was incredible. The feedback and press from their decision led them to a period of unprecedented growth that returned their decision exponentially.

Review your mission and values today, set a program to ensure everyone is constantly aware of how they add value to and support them, recognise and reward support and watch your profits grow.


Double your success. Tell the cleaner - To learn more about this author, visit Mike Handcock's Website.

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