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The Case for Creating Safety and Belonging in the Workplace Has Never Been Clearer

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As we get used to a new normal and over the shock and grief of COVID-19, it’s never been more important to care about our workplace. Our employees and teams really need a sense of safety and belonging. Both in the psychological and in the physical sense, as COVID-19 leaves us with new rules and regulations.

Simply put, if people don’t feel safe at work and if they don’t feel like they belong, they won’t do their best work. It really is that simple. The key to creating a successful culture that helps your company thrive and deliver high performance is to make sure your employees are safe. That means addressing their fears and concerns over their physical and psychological safety in a post-COVID19 world. Here’s how:

 

Ask, “What Can I Do Differently to Serve You?”

To solve any problem in your workplace, start by asking great questions. Questions that encourage the other person to go deep and really mine for the crystals so you can help solve for the challenges. I love these ideas from Google’s Head of People Analytics – start this week by asking these questions of every person on your team:

1) What am I doing now that you want me to continue to do?

2) What am I NOT doing frequently enough that you’d like to see more of?

3) What can I do to make you more effective?

Asking great questions demonstrates to the other person that you care about them, that you’re willing to listen, and you’ve got their back. When people know you care, they’ll trust you. Trust goes a long way toward creating a true culture of safety and belonging. In this new world you actually may want to share your procedures for physical safety and further check to see if they do feel physically safe and social distanced.

 

Ask, “What Makes Work Meaningful?”

We all want to do work that is meaningful, that makes a different for someone else or the world. With all this time at home, worrying about what’s going to happen to our families, our friends, our jobs, it’s got a lot of people thinking about what’s really important in life and questioning if they’re living in alignment with those principles.

Make sure you’re helping everyone on your team connect their work to their meaning and purpose. Help them see why they’re doing something and how it’s contributing to larger team or organizational goals. When people can see that they are part of something and helping to meaningfully create progress, they will feel that they belong. Again, COVID-19 is a game changer. Is there something you can do to help your employees or clients create meaning while protecting them at this time?

 

Seek to Reskill on Emotional Intelligence and Behaviors to Create Safety and Belonging

In previous articles we’ve discussed the importance of cultivating Emotional Intelligence (EQ) in our changing workplace. As we reenter the world and workforce with differing fears, anxieties, and stresses, demonstrating EQ has never been more important. Self + Others = Success. EQ helps us get there.

Reskill your team on the basics of EQ and make sure they understand how to really listen in a meaningful way, how to ask great questions, how to have empathy for the other person, and how to tap into their own strengths and story to connect. Also, make sure that you understand the real challenges of the current times and be sensitive to how they are feeling. Seek to address how their colleagues and clients may be feeling as well.

Check out our toolbox here for free resources you can use to help your people level up and let us know if we can help you apply them to our current day scenarios.

 

If you make a conscious choice to intentionally create a culture of safety and belonging, your team and company will thrive. We’ve seen it happen over and over again with our clients – and we’re sure these simple hacks will make the difference for you, too.

Need some support? Reach out to us – our Strength & Story system guarantees you will create a culture of safety and belonging and see real results with your team and business in 100 days or less. Contact us to find out more about how we can help you grow and thrive.

3 Reasons Samsung is the Most Trusted Company Among Millennials

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A recent poll by the Reputation Institute (RI) revealed that Samsung is the number 1 most trusted company among millennials in the United States. Considering that millenials consist of over 75 million people between the ages of 18 and 34, this is great news for Samsung. According to the results of this year’s RI millennial survey, when millenials decide a company is worthy of their trust and respect, they are more willing to work for, recommend and buy products from a firm they find reputable. What is Samsung doing so well that makes it the most trusted company among the largest growing generation in the world?

RI attributes Samsung’s ability to successfully gain the millenials’ trust and attention to three things: self-promotion on social media, commitment to social responsibility and creating an inclusive culture.

 

1.) Social Media Promotion and Campaigns

Social media is arguably the most important tool for a company to gain the trust of millenials. Over 90% of adults aged 18 to 29 use social media—and that number is growing rapidly.[1] The average millennial checks his or her smart phone 43 times a day.[2] Understanding these facts, it’s critical to establish a strong social media presence if a company or brand is looking to engage with millenials.

In today’s world, not having a social media presence is essentially not having any presence at all. Through self-promotion on social media, Samsung has established themselves as a familiar, trustworthy firm to millenials. This earned trust has provided Samsung the leverage to be the most favored company among millenials.

 

2.) Commitment to Social Responsibility

A poll commissioned by the Clinton Global Initiative and Microsoft revealed that millenials are more focused on the environment than their parent’s generation—a wide margin of 76% compared to a meager 24%.[3] In other words, millenials value environmental sustainability and appreciate efforts to make the world a better place.

 Samsung’s commitment to social responsibility is a huge factor in winning over millenials. Their transparency about their sustainability efforts and green initiatives are displayed openly on their website and on social media. For example, here is one of their statistics that exemplifies their effort to improve the environment: “In 2010, we will have reduced greenhouse gas emissions from our operations by 45% from 2001 levels.”

Samsung’s transparency reports and efforts to improve the environment resonate with people—and millenials—on an emotional level. This openness humanizes them as a company. Instead of being viewed as a large, corporate tech giant, they’ve effectively communicated that they are a “company who believes it’s our responsibility to do business in a way that enriches the planet.”

 

3.) Creating an Inclusive Culture

In today’s world, everyone wants to be heard. The rapid rise and prevalence of social media has created an environment where companies cannot afford to neglect their employees and customers. Having an inclusive culture is an essential part of Samsung’s strategy moving forward.

Samsung made headlines last month as they announced their “aim to reform our internal culture, execute as quickly as a startup company and push towards open communication and continuously innovate.”[4] Samsung executives will be signing a pledge to create a working atmosphere that fosters open dialogue. By adopting an inclusive culture, Samsung is yet again moving in the right direction in terms of understanding what millenials want. Through social media, millenials grew up with having a voice at a young age. Shifting to an atmosphere that embraces communication, Samsung is creating an environment both conducive and attractive to the largest growing generation in the world.

 

Embrace the strategies that have made Samsung the most trusted company among millenials and see what happens. Through social media, commitment to the environment and fostering an inclusive culture, you too can gain the trust of millenials.

 

 

[1] Pick, Tom. “47 Superb Social Media Marketing Stats and Facts.” Business 2 Community 47 Superb Social Media Marketing Stats and Facts Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 June 2016.

[2] Clifford, Catherine. “Millennials Check Their Phones 43 Times a Day. This Is What They’re Looking For. (Infographic).” Entrepreneur. N.p., 04 June 2014. Web. 14 June 2016.

[3]Timm, Jance C. “Millenials: We Care About the Environment.” MSNBC. N.p., n.d. Web.

[4] Lee, Se Young. “World’s Biggest Startup? Samsung Electronics to Reform Corporate Culture.” Reuters. Thomson Reuters, 24 Mar. 2016. Web. 14 June 2016.