PPB April 2021

refreshing chance for everyone to reconnect. 5 An Opportunity For Personal Development Book clubs are a terrific way to get everyone on the same page (literally) about a topic of interest. They also increase a sense of purpose, growth and achievement. People want to develop themselves; they want to know that they’re not the same person they were six months ago or a year ago. Book clubs that encourage personal development and have a discussion with action steps help accomplish this. We do this monthly and rotate which teammember choses the book, so we get a variety of topics and authors. We also have discussion points and action steps facilitated by a peer to get the team talking about their aha moments. 6 Give Employees A Voice Town hall-style meetings can be a great way to be transparent and share the numbers as well as provide a safe place for team members to share unique ideas. We have Think Tank Tuesdays where we focus on innovation as well. Whatever it is that you do, if your intent is to provide a safe place for your team to express their creative ideas, concerns and challenges, you will naturally increase engagement. 7 Work Their Courage Muscle Challenging your team members in the most positive way to step outside of their comfort zone is also a terrific way to increase engagement. When you provide a space for them to stretch their courage muscle, they will be reenergized and excited about coming to work. So how do you go about doing that? Find out what each employee is deeply passionate about. Find out what special projects they wish they could participate in or lead the charge on, and then relinquish control to give them the space to expand their skills. Provide a safe space if the project goes sideways and always recognize the growth journey and courage to try something new. 8 Special Projects So, who knew that our accounting lead was unbelievably creative until we encouraged her to jump into design work? She astonished us with her creativity and beautiful layouts for our Sigma Sales Playbook . It was through a coaching session that we discovered her real passion was marketing and design. Once given the opportunity to learn and growwith it, she’s blossomed and is feeling reinvigorated and enthusiastic. She still does accounting, and does it very well, however, we’re keeping an open mind. Perhaps her career plan includes leading an accounting team at a high level 50 percent of the time and working in design 50 percent of the time. That’s the point! Great engagement means being flexible to team members’ needs, giving them the independence to flex that muscle, and try and realign when they find their sweet spot. 9 Taking the Lead If you’re like me, you sometimes feel like you must lead each meeting or have the final say or wrap up. This has been a big lesson for me. I’ve intentionally started asking team members to lead meetings. I’ve asked teammembers to report back on planning, even though I’m excited to do it myself. I’ve learned that when I’m always front and center, it leaves little space for others. Am I still learning in this area? Absolutely! I’m determined, though, to keep at it and give teammembers an opportunity to build their confidence as leaders. Wondering if your team is engaged or not? Download Sigma Promotions’ free assessment to find out: www.growwithsigmau.com/ team-engagement. Nikki Pett is founder of distributor Sigma Promotions Inc. in Newmarket, Ontario, and the company’s SigmaU business education program. Author of Relationship ROI and Leadership ROI , she has been in the industry for 18 years and leads a growing team of nine. nikki@sigmapromotions.com . www.sigmapromotions.com. Great engagement means being flexible to team members’ needs, giving themthe independence to flex thatmuscle, and try and realignwhen they find their sweet spot. Chaosamran_Studio / Monkey Business Images / Shutterstock.com 74 | APRIL 2021 | THINK