To Invest or NOT to Invest

Wednesday, November 1, 2023

I was at a conference recently and overheard a conversation about how EXPENSIVE it was to bring team members to the event and the questionable impact on the bottom line. YES- everything seems to have gone up in recent years, hotels, airfare, rental cars, food and events themselves are not getting any cheaper. As I listened to the conversation, I was struck by a part of the conversation that seemed to be missing- a VITAL piece of the puzzle: How would NOT investing in their team members impact their bottom line? Making the decision to invest in team members, how much to spend and when to begin the investment process is something that many business owners wrestle with. After all, things ARE expensive and we certainly do not want to waste our precious resources.

Here are a few points to consider that may help you determine whether to not to (and when) to invest in your team members.

People ARE One of Your Most Precious Assets: Zig Ziglar said, "You don't build a business, you build people and the people build the business." Before a team member even steps foot into your business, we have to make sure we are recognizing the gifts they bring and how they have the potential to impact the bottom line. If you have hired properly, the new team member's values are in alignment with your company and they have a passion to make a difference on your team. Existing team members obviously have an impact on the bottom line as their efforts help to create it! Investing in team members from the very beginning and throughout their tenure with you just makes good fiscal sense. Retaining People Requires an Investment: Mr Ziglar was asked this question- What if I invest in a team member and they end up quitting and going to work for someone else? Zig replied, "What if you don't train them and they stay?" Interestingly, the research today proves that one of the main reasons people are leaving their jobs is because they do not feel valuable and do not have a growth plan with their existing employer. When you invest in your team, they feel valued, they get better at their jobs and most of the time they stay! People Who Feel Valued Deliver MORE Value: When we invest in our team members, we are sending a message that says- YOU ARE WORTH IT! I am surprised by how much this means to people. I once had a team member write me a thank you note after an offsite training- in a nutshell, the note thanked me for trusting her to attend the event and relying on her to bring the information back to share with the team. She ended the letter by saying she had never had an employer treat her like her opinion mattered. WOW- not only did her opinion matter, but she absolutely brought even more value to the team after the event!
There are always two sides to the 'expense' question of investing in our team members. When we consider that people really are the most precious asset we have (2nd only to time itself), that retaining team members is critical to the success of our businesses and that people who feel valued deliver an elevated level of value, it is easy to see how investing in our team members just make GOOD sense!

Cheri Perry 11/1/2023