With the dawn of a new year approaching, the need for change is top of mind. Don't worry—we're not asking for resolutions. Instead, we're talking smart business practices you can adopt, like better business moves, goal-setting for the year ahead and most importantly, motivating your staff to follow suit.
Randy Currie, owner of Currie Hair, Skin & Nails in Glen Mills, PA, strongly believes that a successful team is the foundation for a happy and healthy work environment in the new year. That said, he also believes setting goals is the biggest necessity for continued growth and success. "Our employees are constantly working towards a achieving a new goal," Currie says. "Our leadership team encourages goal setting on both a short-term and long-term basis because in our minds, consistent goals equals consistent success."
If finding appropriate tactics for team building and goal setting is something you struggle with, Michael Albor, owner of The Loft Salon, hires a salon coach to keep his staff focused on attaining their goals for the year ahead. "She helps them celebrate wins from the previous year and works with them to create an effective path towards their goals for the new year," Albor says.
Come the new year, Albor hosts a new year kick-off meeting with his entire staff from all five of his salon locations. "The meeting consists of improvements that we made in the last year, personal triumphs and we also recognize stellar performances by our team members like: highest revenue, highest retail average, new requests and highest ticket averages," he says. "We also use this time to announce new policies, procedures and education schedules for the next year." Acknowledging success and planning for the future in a celebratory environment shows your staff that you appreciate them while anticipating all that's to come.
Though setting goals and motivating staff becomes more apparent during the holiday rush, Dale LeMonds, owner of Aveda Institute in Denver, strives to make it his main focus year round. "Even though our mission comes to life during the holiday season, it's an ongoing effort," he says. "One thing we try to keep in mind is that our leaders have the ability to show special care to our team members, which then translates to special care for our guests." But, above all else, LeMonds instills one important piece of information in his employees: "Our customer is always boss, especially during the holiday season."