If you practice what you preach, you’re more likely to gain credibility as a business leader – whether that be with your staff or customers. After all – would you take fitness advice from a personal trainer who smokes; or would you take driving lessons from an instructor who has a string of driving offences? Probably not.
They won’t believe what you say. They will believe what you do (George Bradt, www.forbes.com)
‘I have obsessed over the principles that drive strong culture and leadership’
So it was a double-win for The Entourage, one of Australia’s leading education institutions for entrepreneurs, when they were recently recognised as the 4th best place to work in Australasia by Great Place to Work. Founded in 2010 by entrepreneur and investor, Jack Delosa, The Entourage brings together a community of over 120,000 entrepreneurs globally and facilitates business education from those with real experience.
Speaking of the award, Jack said “I have obsessed over the principles that drive strong culture and leadership for most of my life, so to find out that The Entourage has been listed in the Top 4 Best Places to Work in Australasia for small to medium businesses, is something I am incredibly proud of.”
‘A world class culture is not built with gimmicks’
Jack believes this accolade has been achieved through some unconventional thinking when it comes to their own internal culture. He says a world class culture is not built with gimmicks, but when a business successfully unites employees around a common vision:
“Contrary to conventional thinking, culture is not about beanbags, bicycles and fireman’s poles. These are gimmicks that often serve only to detract from the true essence of an organisation,” said Jack.
“I’m so lucky to have a team of 80 that come in and fight to actualise this audacious goal every single day.”
‘Culture and performance are intrinsically linked’
Jack identifies 4 practices that he believes are key to creating a great place to work:
- Having a clearly defined vision, mission and values
- Recruiting staff based on their alignment with these factors; valuing ‘buy in” to the vision above talent or experience
- Weekly team gatherings where staff are encouraged to share personal and team achievements.
- Providing spontaneous, sincere recognition and praise for good performance.
Much less costly than gimmicks, these practices will deliver a better return on investment according to Jack. If you get the culture right, this will pay dividends when it comes to performance:
“I believe culture and performance are intrinsically linked. While vision, mission and values should be the foundation that your culture is based on, the extent to which you fulfil this, is the extent to which you can mobilise other people to perform and work towards it.”
