As I currently pursue a new Site Foreman to join my team, I’m more conscious than ever of the journey I’m on as a small business owner, to become a great employer. In fact, I don’t just want to be a great employer, I want to be amazing, fantastic…all the superlatives!! I want my team to be having a beer with friends on the weekend and their mates disclose… ‘Wow - you’re so lucky to work for Wade!’ But why is that important to me and my business? Why should I create a workplace that rocks, where my team can thrive, excel and feel like they're part of something amazing? Let's see….
It All Starts with People
First things first…the heart and soul of any great business is people! Without a doubt, the team is vital to delivering a successful product to the customer. My reputation as a builder relies heavily on my team. So, if Frontline Builders is going to achieve greatness, then I need to prioritise the happiness and well-being of every single one of my team.
A Culture of Awesomeness
We’ve all heard of workplace culture and that it’s vital to the successful impact that a small business can make. But creating an awesome company culture is more than just a couple of buzzwords! It's about fostering an environment where everyone feels valued, respected and supported. I want my team to wake up in the morning and be genuinely excited to come to work - where Mondayitis is just a myth. So, I want to cultivate a culture that celebrates diversity, encourages creativity and innovation (one of our company values by the way) and promotes a healthy work-life balance.
Open Ears, Open Minds
We firmly believe that communication is the key to success. Hey, it’s another one of our company values! So, I’m trying to make a point of keeping my ears wide open to what the team has to say. Not only actively listening to their suggestions, concerns and ideas, but actioning them! After all, who knows the nitty-gritty of my business better than the people who work in it day in and day out?
Work-Life Balance
Healthy work-life balance is a term that we hear bandied about a bit….but it’s just so darn important. To me as an employer this is essential to creating a thriving and happy workforce - it's like a secret sauce! A happy employee will create a happy workplace - simple. Not only will happy employees have a smile on their face and radiate positivity, but they’ll be more productive at work too. The quality of work matters more than the quantity of hours spent working. By encouraging work-life balance, an environment is being created where the team can focus on delivering epic craftsmanship, rather than just clocking in more hours.
A key result of a healthy work-life balance is to ensure good mental health is never taken for granted…burnout isn’t good for anyone! Allowing our team members to maintain a healthy balance between their work and personal lives helps prevent exhaustion and stress, ensuring they can give their 100% when they're on site. It’s important to understand that there is a life beyond the worksite and I’m trying to respect that. Whether it's spending time with family at sports events (no one wants to miss their kids’ cross-country!), pursuing hobbies or simply recharging, I want the team to feel comfortable asking for time off and ultimately have some freedom to enjoy their lives alongside work.
Ultimately too, I want to both attract top talent to my team and then retain my current talent. Offering a healthy work-life balance is a key factor to ensuring employees want to stick around for the long haul.
In pursuit of becoming a great employer, the learning is an endless adventure! I want to be a great boss and have a great company for people to work in and by nurturing a culture of awesomeness, encouraging open communication and ensuring the team can practise work-life balance, I’m well set on my journey to achieve that. There’s a long road ahead and no doubt perfection will always be just out of reach, but it’s an important road for me and my business to be on. So much time is spent at work - let’s try and make it awesome!
By the way, as I said at the start…Frontline Builders is recruiting a Site Foreman to our team. Email nicola@frontlinebuilders.co.nz for a Job Description before applying for the position with a covering letter (and 2x referees) to the same email address.
Come and join us!