More Fun Staff Meeting Ideas

"Great Ideas" Award (five minutes)
The Great Ideas Award is an award presented at the Staff Meeting in recognition of an idea submitted recently by an employee in an ongoing program.

For more in-depth help to implement this program, go to the Great Ideas Award.

Ask Why When Communicating Core Values

To clarify and distill a statement down to real purpose, use the "Five Whys" exercise.
The "five whys" exercise works like this: once you make a descriptive statement such as "We accept accountability for our products"

Ask why.
We are accountable to our customers and stakeholders.
Of that answer, ask why.
They expect of us quality products and services.
Of that answer, ask why.
We are experienced and an expert at what we do.
Of that answer, ask why.
We are individually qualified and, as a team, we produced the world´s most respected and preferred widget.
Of that answer, ask why.
We take responsibility for our decisions at the individual and company levels.
After such in-depth discussion, the answers will reflect a deeper sense of purpose.

Define the Mentor´s Role

Treat those who assume the role of a mentor with honor - it is one of the biggest compliments you can give to an employee.

Let mentors know that their role is important, will be recognized, and included in their performance review process. Then add mentoring to your company´s performance review format or guidelines. For example, select from the following expectations and use them in mentors´ performance reviews.

"Serves as a Mentor:
• Nurtures mentoring buddy, demonstrates [specific functions], and serves as advocate.
• Conveys company´s goals, explains how the goals benefit the organization.
• Helps mentoring buddy envision what outcomes will occur when the goals are achieved.
• Fosters independence and professional development in the mentoring buddy."

How to Share and Communicate Core Values

Name a champion of the cause. Enlist a top executive to make Core Values his or her personal issue to support, promote, and blatantly mention them at every opportunity.

Remind managers and officers to refer to and reinforce the company´s Core Values in meetings and gatherings.
Name an ethics officer. Identify a respected person to be the official guardian, representative, and keeper of the company´s Core Values.

Write and disseminate a policy containing the Core Values. Deliver it through official channels. Make clear that it is to be highly valued and a reference for individual behavior.

Support your company´s values with a system of rewards and sanctions. Encourage employees to conduct business with those values in mind. Give constructive feedback, recognizing, and encouraging adherence to Core Values.

Types of Teams

Functional teams usually work on specific assignments or to achieve a particular goal. The members on a functional team usually include employees within a department or operating unit. Functional teams are often self-directed and can effectively deliver specific products or services with defined cost and time parameters, or address group improvement issues.

Cross-functional teams usually work to integrate multiple functions, or to investigate and resolve issues. The team members include individuals from two or more areas who are selected for their knowledge of the situation, their experience, or their expertise. A cross-functional team might also be referred to as a Task Force, Process Improvement team, or Product Launch team.

Multi-functional teams develop organizational issues, make policy, define philosophy, plan direction, and cultivate opportunities. The team members include individuals from every level of the organization, and may sometimes be empowered as the organization´s management team.

Quality Circles work on specific quality, productivity, or service challenges. They are often temporary teams. The team members are volunteers and, in many cases, do not have authority. However, they may advise or recommend action by management or another team.

Team building requires people to change because teams don´t function in the typical ways we´ve learned to get along at home, in school, and in many work situations. To build trust and encourage buy-in by every member, management must openly support team efforts.

Assess the Need for Mentoring Employees

Mentoring is about building relationships. Through relationships with others from whom we can learn, or who we can help to learn, everyone wins - the mentor, the mentee or "buddy", and the company! Ask your executive staff or more experienced employees how they perceive mentoring could support and build company culture. Use our Mentor´s Survey to help gather the information.

Match Mentors with Mentees
Informal mentoring abounds...many people have been informal mentors without fanfare. So the first step in cultivating mentors may be to find out who is already doing it. Finding mentors may be as easy as talking with people about it.

When orienting a new hire, consider pairing the new hire with the person who last held the position and is still available to mentor his or her replacement.

Use The Job Descriptions

Above all, use your job descriptions in all the ways you can. Filing them away is the equivalent of missed opportunities. Use them for hiring, interviewing, performance reviews, coaching, and mentoring. And make sure each employee has one!

Benefits of the Company Bulletin Board

A centrally located company bulletin board promotes company communication and contributes to company unity and employee productivity. Employees feel included and connected while reading memos and postings for upcoming activities, or sharing a light moment learning about each other.

What is a Company Bulletin Board?
A central prominent location for displaying company announcements, sign-up sheets, and other information, as well as personal postings by employees.

What are the benefits of a Company Bulletin Board?
A company bulletin board is a great way to keep your staff informed. Having a central place to post memos, industry developments, notices, and company news promotes communication within the organization.

Be Human During the Employee Reviews

For best results during a review, keep the following points in mind:
-If you don´t know something, admit it, and follow up on getting an answer.
-Now is not the time to discuss another employee´s performance, or to compare this employee with anyone else in the company.
-Relate to the employee as an individual, not just as authority figure to subordinate.
-Create realistic, measurable goals. A goal is worthy only if you can tell whether it´s been accomplished or not.

Some examples of poorly worded goals:
-Try harder to keep my desk more organized.
-Do my best to make sure the contracts are done right.
-Make Employee of the Month by the beginning of next quarter.

"Trying harder" and "doing your best" are actions that cannot be measured. How would you know if someone is trying hard enough or not?

Benefits of Service Anniversaries

Celebrate the service anniversaries of your employees and you'll be showing appreciation for hard work and loyalty. You strengthen that message by honoring an employee for the length of service with the company in front of their peers – it helps ALL your employees feel valued.

What are Service Anniversaries?
A short ceremony or form of recognition in honor of an employee, based on long they have worked at your company.

What are the benefits of Service Anniversaries?

Public Recognition
Many employees cite public recognition as one of the most important things that an employer can offer. Your employee has made a statement about their loyalty and commitment to your company–now it's your turn.

Retain and Reinforce
Avoid the costs of recruitment and retain your employees' valuable talents and experience. Increase the likelihood of your employees staying by thanking them for their years of service while renewing their motivation.

Communicate Company Values
Service anniversaries are a chance to reiterate your core values and show your long-term employees how they have contributed to upholding them.

Since recruiting is time consuming and costly, honoring service anniversaries can help all your employees feel valued and strengthen your company´s image as a desirable place to work.

Display on Imprinted Reminders

Display your vision and mission statements on custom imprinted reminders.
Print your Vision and Mission Statements on various handy items like magnets, calendars, and foam can coolers.

Hint - Some companies have their mission and vision statements printed on laminated, wallet-sized cards to hand out or attach to employee I.D. badges.

Know The Law When Writing a Job Description

It´s in your best interests to familiarize yourself with the legal requirements for the language of a job description. WorkplaceToolbox is not a legal consultant, and cannot go into the informative depth needed to ensure that the job descriptions you create are legally acceptable. Remember to look up relevant guidelines on the Americans with Disabilities Act at http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/adahom1.htm.

Functional Skills for Job Title Descriptions

How the job is actually performed:

What knowledge and skills must the jobholder absolutely have?

What needs to be accurate and timely about this position?

What are the standards of quality for the various services/products this position provides?

If there is a measurable quantity involved in this job, what are the goals and limits for high productivity? Poor performance?

Benefits of an Employee Manual

What is an Employee Manual?
An Employee Manual is a summary of your company´s policies and procedures. It contains information about work procedures, expected behavior, benefits, and policies that affect employment.

What are the Benefits of an Employee Manual?
Educate Your Employees About Company Procedures
When an individual joins your staff, he or she has many questions about company procedures. An Employee Manual answers common questions like "What is the vacation policy?" "What happens if I get called for jury duty?" and "How do I report inappropriate behavior?"

Protect Your Company
A comprehensive Employee Manual protects your organization. An Employee Manual describes the behavior that is expected of your company´s employees. It also describes unacceptable behavior, such as harassment or use of company equipment for personal business, and outlines the consequences of such behavior. An Employee Manual addresses issues before they become problems.

Weave Your Core Values into Company Culture
Along with outlining behavior expectations, communicate your company´s values via the Employee Manual. They provide a reference point for business practices and individual behavior. Recognizing and reflecting your values will help retain desirable employees and build a solid client base, leading to greater profitability.

Practice Good Management
A good manager treats employees consistently and fairly. A good Employee Manual lays the foundation for fair and consistent treatment. When a company´s policies and procedures are recorded and available for all employees to see, there is less chance for confusion or misunderstanding.

Order Wearables

Order wearables:
Print your Vision statements or Mission statements on T-shirts, polo shirts, or sweatshirts with your company logo. Encourage employees to wear them when and where appropriate.