How to get your team on board with the company vision
First things first, what the heck is ‘vision’?
It’s one of those words that gets bandied around a lot, especially within business, but what does it actually mean?
Vision is intrinsically linked to your business purpose, they’re not quite the same thing but they definitely overlap. The main difference is that purpose is more about the ‘why’ behind a company or team, whereas vision is a future aspiration for the business. The secret is in the name…. Our vision for X is Y.
Author and business coach James Kerr sums up the distinction using the All Blacks as an example:
“They have a clear vision of the future — to be the best team in the world and to win every game. They have a compelling sense of purpose — to leave the jersey in a better place — and this cultural mindset helps make them the most successful sporting team in the world with a win ratio over 100 years of 78 percent.” (Kerr, 2016)
So how can you translate this idea to your own teams? Well here’s a few steps to keep in mind…
1. Don’t keep your vision a secret!
The best way to get your team on board with the company vision is by telling them about it. It may sound obvious but you will be surprised at how many companies don’t share their vision with their employees.
The company vision should be more than just a statement on the wall or a list of principles emailed around once and then completely forgotten about.
It is something your teams should live and breathe, giving them a goal to work towards and a benchmark to hold themselves accountable.
Everyday, leaders should be role modeling the vision with their actions; rather than just using empty words that mean nothing to their teams.
2. Create a culture of open-communication
To be able to galvanise your teams behind the company vision, it’s important to foster a culture of open communication.
Your people should feel comfortable giving and receiving feedback on a regular basis rather than just passively waiting for feedback from above.
By creating this two way street of communication, your team has a clear understanding of what they’re working towards, why they’re working towards it and what they need to be doing to achieve it. It also makes them feel more comfortable coming to you for clarification if for any reason they aren’t clear on the company vision; or the role they play in achieving it.
3. Your vision shouldn’t be static
If the past few years have taught us anything it’s that we can’t predict what the future holds. Three years ago we could never have expected to have gone through a global pandemic. Especially one that resulted in businesses all over the world closing their doors and whole workforces working remotely from home.
In a lot of cases, the vision you held pre-pandemic is vastly different to what it is today. That’s because the world isn’t the same as it used to be; and neither are we. So it makes sense that the vision you created even just a few years ago may not be relevant today. Even without the impact of the pandemic, it’s important to remember, just as the environment around a company changes, so does the company itself.
Allow your vision to evolve with the company. It doesn’t always have to be the same thing you had in mind when you first started.
Make sure to regularly review your vision — does it still apply? Collaborate with your people and get their opinion on any changes you could make.
Give me one vision
Having a clear purpose and a clear direction towards vision matters more than ever to both companies and their employees.
Employees expect their jobs to bring a significant sense of purpose to their lives and being on board with the company’s overall vision contributes hugely to this. Employers need to help meet this need, or you could just end up losing talent to companies that will!
Follow the steps above and create the habit of encouraging your teams to not just know the company vision, but to be actively working towards it and aware of the part they play in achieving it!