How do you bring out the best in people, how do you attract the right people for your company and how do you grow as a leader? Believe it or not: Greet Boonen and Mie Van der Auwera have both faced these challenges and won.
Your customers are key for growth and becoming more profitable. But what about your employees? As a leader or manager, you may be wondering how to attract the right people and how to bring out the best in your organisation. Tune in for a candid conversation around purpose, female entrepreneurship and how to connect the dots between personal and business growth with Greet Boonen, CEO of RainPharma and founder of Blossom, and Mie Van der Auwera, co-founder of MMBSY.
Great leaders bring out the best in people
You may think that your job as a manager or a business owner is to service your customers and increase revenue. But guess again. Your job, as a CEO or manager, is to inspire the people around you. In short: good managers help, not hurt.
It’s crucial to work at a company with the right values, where you are working towards a common goal, and share a bigger purpose.’
– Greet Boonen.
According to both Greet and Mie bringing out the best in people starts with your business itself. The values you have as a leader are crucial for attracting the right talent that matches your company’s ambition. It’s crucial to work at a company with the right values, where you are working towards a common goal, and share a bigger purpose.’, says Greet Boonen.
To win the war for talent, have a purpose
If you think the next generation of workers is in it for the paycheck, you’re wrong. The traditional view on talent doesn’t work anymore. So, it’s time to flip the script and up your game. To attract and retain talented people, you need to create a great company culture. Put learning and development at the heart of your business and connect your employees to a higher purpose.
As an employer you need to walk the talk and show how you use your company to make an impact. Be authentic. People want to belong to an organization with a clear vision on the future and where they can be their true self. But, reinventing the world of work doesn’t happen overnight. Start with small steps by moving away from traditional hiring ways. You shouldn’t only consider full-time employees or candidates with a college degree, because sometimes talent wins from experience. There’s no magical formula, so consider each hire individually.
Tell a winning story
Winners are attracted to winners. The best people want to work for the best companies. If you have a blooming company culture and a booming business, put it in the spotlight. Use storytelling as your secret weapon and stand out from your competition by humanizing your brand. Telling the story of your brand allows candidates to connect with you on an emotional level and forms a degree of trust, which is hard to build.
“If you want to implement strategic changes, translate it into your brand story. If your brand story hits the right note, your employees will rally around you”.
– Mie Van der Auwera.
You can also use your current employees to help tell your story. In fact, for Mie it’s a must. “If you want to implement strategic changes, translate it into your brand story. If your brand story hits the right note, your employees will rally around you”. She says. “Attract, retain and engage talent with formats as podcasts, blogs, video’ s, infographic, ….” As a true content marketing expert at heart, Mie only sees possibilities when it comes to storytelling.
You can’t pour from an empty cup
At first glance, personal growth and professional growth may seem like two separate worlds, but they’re more intertwined than you might think. Did you know that people who engage in personal growth are often more productive, less stressed and more likely to produce better results? I bet that changes your perspective. As an entrepreneur, Mie advises you to take well-deserved Me-Time. Especially when you’re starting out. Put your wellbeing and personal time first, otherwise you’ll run the risk of burning out.
The same goes for your employees. Greet points out that if you give employees the space and the opportunity to grow, they will. Space to play, have a good time, take breaks, celebrate successes, creatively attack problems - it’s all part of your company’s culture.
This is just the start. If you’re ready to really dive into people, purpose and business, listen to the entire episode with Greet Boonen and Mie Van der Auwera on Spotify, Apple iTunes or on Stitcher.
