I will not apologize for being precious this year. I will not.
But speaking of new years…tis the season for talent — in many industries — to evaluate their current Employee Experience (EX). Many companies pay out bonuses in Q1, leaving disengaged talent liberated to explore new options.
How well is your team or organization able to Deliver, Develop, Connect, and Thrive (our Four Pillars of an Impactful EX)?
Whether you’re an HR or business leader, now’s a great moment to consider how your people are faring. How will you engage, and invest in your talent? How will you earn their loyalty, creativity and drive to win?
But my real objective for today is to empower you to cultivate impactful experiences for your team or organization. Not with big plans and swim lanes, but by watching the small symptoms, signals and opportunities that show themselves daily. And finding your spots to move the needle one increment at a time.
So where can you begin?
Be intentional. Step back. Observe. Watch for things like:
✳️ Meeting norms. Does everyone have a voice? Do you see more “yes, and” or “no, but”? Are your meetings purposeful, with clear objectives and outcomes? What might you test or tweak to get more people speaking, or sharpen objectives and outcomes?
✳️ How inclusive are you, really? Outside of diversity programs, do you harness the intelligence of your frontline teams before you make decisions that will impact them? Do you seek broad perspective before products are defined? Whose insights might you be missing and how can you rectify that?
✳️ How real is your commitment to wellness? Aside from programs and benefits, can people set and hold boundaries? Is self-care truly role modeled? Where can you make a change to your own norms and routines to gift your team with a few extra deep breaths during the day?
And where you see opportunity, you don’t need to “solve” or “fix” it. Just try something new and see if it’s better or worse. If it’s better, do it again. If it’s worse, try something different.
My pockets are full of these. But today, just a few to get you started. And yeah, we’re always here to help your spots.