3 Lessons from Santa’s Workshop
‘Tis the season to spend evenings relaxing by the fire, gobbling down holiday treats and reflecting on the past twelve months. For accounting leaders, it’s also a welcome moment of calm before a jam-packed January, and an even more chaotic tax season.
In these moments of quiet contemplation, you might question whether you’ve done enough to thank your employees for their hard work this year, if your team members are satisfied with their jobs or if you’re doing everything you can to retain top talent.
But how do you create a company culture that attracts top candidates, bolsters productivity and keeps team members engaged? Contrary to popular belief, it takes more than a casual dress code, ping-pong tables and bagel Fridays. In fact, even a competitive salary and a mile-long list of benefits won’t be enough to keep your best people if they don’t love coming to work.
Creating a positive accounting team culture requires creativity, dedication and, most importantly, a commitment to making sure people are highly engaged in their work.
To illustrate how you can achieve this goal, I’m sharing inspiration from an unlikely source: Santa's Workshop
I’ve never been to the North Pole, but by all accounts (or at least in the movies) Santa’s workforce is pretty damn dedicated. Toiling over a workbench constructing millions of toys can’t be easy. And I’m sure there are days when the work feels a bit monotonous — especially in those long hours leading up to Christmas Eve. So what keeps the elves coming back everyday, happily taking their place on the toy assembly line? If I had to guess, I’d say it’s the fulfillment of knowing every child on the “Nice List” will wake up to find something special under their tree.
Like Santa’s squad, accounting teams are no strangers to long hours — especially while closing out the fiscal year, handling taxes and running audits. Even if you’re passionate about your line of work, it’s not uncommon for burnout to rear its ugly head during long days and late nights.
How can you prevent people from feeling fatigued? The best way to reignite engagement is to provide a clear and worthwhile mission.
In fact, a 10 percent improvement in employees’ connection with an organization’s purpose or mission drives a more than 8 percent decrease in turnover and a more than 4 percent increase in profitability, according to research by Gallup.
In some cases, this mission might be helping local businesses make smart financial decisions so they can continue to grow and boost your community’s economy. Or, it might be the satisfaction of helping clients sleep a little easier knowing their books are in the right hands.
Whatever it is, driving employees to rally around a common cause engenders loyalty.
When you think of Santa’s workshop, you might imagine workers hunched over tables, using primitive tools to fashion simple wooden toys. But in the 1994 holiday classic “The Santa Clause,” we’re introduced to a more modern workshop where toys are quickly constructed using cutting edge tech (and a little magic). In this version of the story, elves are more than simple workers — they’re innovators seeking to perfect their craft… and they’re having fun doing it.
As an accounting leader, you know time is money. The more efficient your team, the greater your firm’s revenue. Wherever you're using QuickBooks with SherpaDesk integration or other accounting tools like Xero, you know technology is the solution to the time and money equation.
But technology driven tools do more than help drive efficiency and grow profit — investing in these solutions shows your team you want to make their day a little easier. From time tracking to invoicing and billing software, solutions that automate the more monotonous aspects of the job also help you and your team focus on solving bigger challenges, growing the business and enjoying a better work-life balance.
Do you recall the most famous reindeer of all? While Rudolph may have gone down in history, things weren’t always easy for the young buck. Luckily Santa, like many good leaders, recognized the little reindeer’s unique set of talents and helped him apply his skill set for the greater good of the team. Plus, Santa made sure to provide his newest sleigh-puller with plenty of public recognition.
In the end, not only did Rudolph earn the respect of the older, more experienced members of the herd who once mocked him, but he also emerged as a new leader. The hallmark of a great culture is one in which all employees aren’t just compensated with a fair salary and a quarterly bonus, but also appreciated for the unique skills they bring to the organization and recognized for instances when they’ve gone above and beyond.
Whether it’s giving shoutouts during team meetings or rolling out a more complex employee recognition program, it’s important to make sure employees feel acknowledged and appreciated by their leader as well as their peers. This not only gives team members a self-esteem boost, it also helps cultivate an environment where employees are driven to identify and recognize each other’s wins.
The holidays are the perfect time to hit the pause button and take a few moments to reflect before ringing in another busy year. Before you head back to the office in 2018, be sure to take stock of your accounting team's culture and determine where you have the most opportunity for improvement. While a perfect company culture won’t be built overnight, dedicating yourself to making these improvements throughout the year will drive you closer to the business outcomes you want and the positive environment your employees deserve.
And if all else fails, just ask yourself: WWSD — what would Santa do?
About the Author
"Carrie is an old school, gumshoe journalist trapped in a modern content marketer's body. She specializes in technology storytelling and resides in the "Silicon Hills" of Austin, TX."