The Center for Sales Strategy Blog

What does the term work-life balance mean to you? The standard definition for most of us is the time we allocate to work versus the time allocated to everything else, such as family, personal pursuits, social, and leisure activities. According to HubSpot Research, one-third of salespeople say their job negatively affects their personal life, and one-half admit they need to improve their work-life balance. Another one in three say there is no work-life balance.

Most people understand the concept of work-life balance but find it hard to define what an acceptable balance is. The “right amount of work” versus the “right amount of family time” varies greatly based on individual lifestyles. Salespeople hear the term work-life balance from colleagues and managers on a daily basis, but what does work-life balance mean? It’s common for leaders and their direct reports to have different definitions of the term, and therefore very different expectations.

Your employees are the foundation of your company and your culture. So, it stands to reason that every hire you make will either enhance your culture or detract from it - one person at a time.

We know that finding top talent is difficult! And with the current talent shortage, now more than ever, the candidate is in the driver’s seat. Once you finally find the right person to bring onboard, someone with the right talents and the right fit for your team, you want to do everything you can to develop and keep them. And this starts from the moment you send them that offer letter.

Did you know that Zappos pays new hires $2000 to quit within the first week of their employment? Although that seems like an incredible gamble with their hiring budget, this policy encourages those who are only there for the paycheck to take the money and run, leaving those who really want to be there.

Much has been written about the importance of company culture. Most has been ignored.

Here’s a list of some of the things impacted either positively or negatively by company culture:

• Recruitment
• Retention
• Employee satisfaction and happiness
• Attendance (absenteeism)
• Innovation
• Creativity
• Problem-solving

All these items listed above have a direct connection to performance, profitability, and cash flow. And, oh by the way, survival!

If you want to improve the performance of your company—overall performance, not just sales performance—it is essential to dedicate time, money, and resources to developing and building company culture.

Not long ago, I spoke with two leaders from a top-notch company enrolled in our Up Your Culture program. The purpose of our conversation was to help them find ways to create a strong sense of unification employee engagement across their multiple markets.

They know that companies with highly-engaged employees are 17% more productive and 31% more profitable, and they recognize that those with strong levels of engagement enjoy 26% greater annual increases in revenue and 233% higher customer loyalty (yes - you read that right)! They’re doing great stuff over there, but they wanted to focus specifically on how they can increase engagement by creating a strong sense of “tribe.”

It is more important than ever before that sales organizations focus increased attention on emotional intelligence. As a sales performance company focused on turning talent into performance, we see evidence every day that when leaders are more self-aware and more aware of others, they are more successful.

Companies with highly-engaged employees grow revenue 2.5x as much as those who don't, and engaged employees are 87% less likely to leave their organization. Creating and building a company culture of engagement is vital to a healthy company and business growth.

Over the last few years, company culture has been a hot topic in corporate America. Companies geared towards Millennials tout game rooms and espresso machines, and most companies are having serious discussions about how to create the right atmosphere. Ask any manager trying to recruit talent, and they will tell you that culture matters. A few bad reviews on an employment website, and talent will look right past your company for one with a “great culture.” So how do you create the right culture to attract top talent? And more importantly, how do you get your current employees, and most importantly, your leaders, to buy into that culture?

Many organizations have multiple generations represented in the workplace and with that, a plethora of stereotypes that come along with each generation. While it may not be intentional, individual bias can have a significant impact on employee engagement. Bias can sometimes provide a false direction on how to lead a team, so be sure you aren’t using generational stereotypes to influence your decisions. 

For example, the now current largest generation at work, Millennials or Gen Y, are often characterized job hoppers, lazy and entitled. When you take bias out of the conversation, we know that Millennials seek career progression, can work well independently or in groups, and feel accomplished when contributing to something meaningful at work.  

Millennials aren’t the only generation with stereotypes. Bias also crosses over into Gen X and Baby Boomers. Gen X has been characterized in the workplace as control freaks, so they work best alone and aren’t team players or Boomers who have been stereotyped as set in their ways and uncompromising to change.  

You can probably imagine the conflict and lack of productivity that might arise in an organization if cross-generations are asked to collaborate amongst all the bias that surrounds each generation. As Gen Z begins to come into the fold, more bias could, too. Or, maybe you’re not imagining this scenario because it’s your reality and you are living it every day! 

Either way, increasing employee engagement ultimately helps you reduce regrettable turnover, increase productivity, and can help you retain and grow your best customers.

Culture is powerful, and like brand, you’re going to have one whether you like it or not. The best organizations to work for are the ones that recognize this and actively strive to push the right buttons every day to build a positive climate and a culture of engagement.

Spend time studying the most successful companies with the strongest cultures and you will find they have clearly-defined values and they navigate their way with a strong sense of purpose and cause. Employees who work at these companies can clearly articulate their values and they believe they can be themselves at work because they truly belong.