“What will the public say? Tell them we lowered the levy and steadily increased employee engagement. That should get their attention.”
This is what happens when you update your work culture and focus on results. This is what happened to a small county in Northern Minnesota, and they are proud to talk about it.
In the summer of 2013, I met with the Director of Community Services in Crow Wing County. She described the transformation she hoped to achieve, and I designed a program to help them get there.
A few months later, I trained their leadership and 14 Champions of Change in three days…a training the Champions and leaders will never forget. It was a training that re-energized the workforce for years to come.
This program helped leaders and teams update their culture and gain autonomy at work and home. Each employee was able to choose how, when, and where they did their work. The leaders learned the skills necessary to manage the work and abandon outdated management practices (counting heads, time stamps) that limit employee productivity and engagement in the workplace.
Results workshops helped teams clarify results and identify meaningful indicators for the organization, effectively condensing over 200 metrics and measures to just 20 meaningful indicators of productivity and organizational success. The organization’s goals were aligned throughout every level from line staff to top leadership: every voice heard.
And now over two years later, they continue to report increased employee engagement and better results, lowering the levy for the 6th year in a row, an amazing accomplishment: http://www.brainerddispatch.com/news/3894248-crow-wing-county-board-levy-lowered-6th-straight-year
Last week, I presented the Focus on Results Program to 30 MN County Commissioners. Without prompting, Crow Wing County talked proudly of their successes from a Commissioner’s point of interest, and recognized that the benefits are far greater than decreasing the levy or employee engagement. The real benefits are experienced by the client who is able to meet with their social worker more easily and thanks to technology has resources and online applications in hand, the social worker who is 40% more productive on focused, undisturbed activities, and the teams who have clear coverage calendars and work together as adults to improve how they do business, putting their ideas into action. The true accomplishment when an organization focuses on results is gauged by service to customers and clients: the people we are here to serve.
And when a culture transformation in an organization like this takes place, you can see it, you hear it, and most importantly, you feel the renewed energy and passion in your workplace. I felt that passion shared in that room with 30 MN County Commissioners. It’s electric.
What would it take for your organization to focus on results?
Interested in transforming your culture at work and need a little help? Contact Vreeman Consulting, LLC: vreeman.consulting.llc@gmail.com. This work is what I was meant to do.
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