Now that you have hired the people that you want, how do you set the right work culture in your Company? First of all, is there such a thing as what is right or wrong in work culture? Personally, I am of the view that it depends on one’s perception as to what constitutes right or wrong. To me, setting the right work culture means motivating employees to enjoy their work so that they feel a sense of self satisfaction and pride in their work. If an employee has that feeling of self satisfaction and pride then you will have a Company with a very positive environment which will improve efficiency.
Story: A plumber who enjoys his work
When I was a student in Australia, I stayed off campus in a single storey house located in a beautiful town called Robina situated in the Gold Coast, Queensland. One day, there was a problem with a leaky tap in the house. I went to a D.I.Y. (Do It Yourself) shop to get some things that I felt could help me fix the problem. However, the situation became worse and I had no other alternative but to call a Plumber. The Plumber wasn’t able to come the same day but promised that he would drop by at 9.30 the next morning. One thing, I noticed in countries such as Australia, people tend to be punctual with appointments. It is considered rude, and rightly so I might add, if one does not show up at the appointed time.
The next morning at 9.30 am, someone rang the doorbell and there was the Plumber looking cheerful and friendly. In my heart, I was saying to myself who could be so cheerful and happy at this hour of the day. The Plumber wished me “Good morning” and asked me to show him the leaky tap. After examining the leaky tap, he excused himself and cheerfully walked back to his van to pick up some tools. He came back with his tools and started working on the leaky tap. While working, he was whistling to himself and seemed to be enjoying himself. I decided to sit down and have a chat with him while he was working. The Plumber was a professional as while chatting, his hands were working on the leaky tap and there was never a moment of pause from him.
Somehow, watching him work, that positive attitude and cheerfulness created by him rubbed off on me and I too began to whistle and felt friendly towards my classmates that afternoon. It was difficult to pinpoint what was the trigger that created this positive feeling. Perhaps some spiritual people would say it could be the positive aura and energy emitted by the Plumber. Well, I won’t say I doubt that but for certain, watching a person enjoying his work and obviously being proud of the service that he was giving made my day. Perhaps, I was inspired by the Plumber. How much did it cost me then? In 1992, for less than an hour of plumbing work it came to AUD$90.00 for labour, parts and inspiration!
As you can see from the above, even though the incident took place almost 20 years ago the Plumber created a lasting impression on me. A lasting impression can be good or not so good. Therefore, it is important that you ensure your employees create the former and not the latter. To illustrate, I am going to share with you a story that shows the difference between a good and not so good impression.
Story: Good v Not So Good Impression
In 2010, my family and I visited Hong Kong. Since it was my children’s first visit to Hong Kong, I wanted to make it a memorable visit for them. Being the school holidays, I expected the hotel rates to shoot up during this holiday season. I asked a friend in a travel agency to assist me in booking 2 rooms. My friend recommended we take a family suite rather than booking 2 rooms as it would be relatively cheaper. He recommended YMCA Salisbury Hotel in Kowloon. A family suite is quite similar to a one bedroom studio apartment. It has a bedroom and a small living room. In the living room, there is a sofa set which can be converted into a bed.
To be honest, I had not been to a YMCA hotel prior to this, so I really did not know what to expect. Upon stepping into the YMCA Salisbury Hotel after a 3 ½ hours flight from Kuala Lumpur, I was pleasantly surprised. Upon seeing the car stop in front of the hotel, the porter came and collected our bags and I was promptly shown to the hotel reception. The checking in was a breeze which took less than 10 minutes. I also noticed that there were a couple of men in grey suits whom I assumed were floor supervisors. I did notice later that they were there not only to assist the guests but also to guide the students. Yes, there was a school located in the YMCA hotel itself!
What amazed me most was the floor supervisors’ attentiveness. One morning, I was sitting at the hotel lobby waiting for the tour bus when a person next to me inadvertently left a small plastic bag. Immediately, the floor supervisor noticed that and quickly took the small plastic bag and ran after the person to return the bag. Then there was another incident where I saw the floor supervisor take a small tissue paper from his suit pocket. Thinking that he was going to sneeze, I set my sight on other things. Suddenly, he came towards my direction to pick up some small debris from the seat next to me with the small tissue. This may be small things but if you put yourself in the employee’s position, would you bother to do small things like picking up some small debris? Further, I am not even sure if that was part of his job? A person who has no pride in his or her work would probably just ignore small things like that. I also noticed that the floor supervisor was always on the move, walking up and down paying close attention to the surroundings.
When we checked into the room, I called housekeeping for some extra towels and to convert the sofa to a bed. My requests were attended to promptly by the ever smiling housekeeping staff. For a reasonably priced hotel, I thought the service was first class and impressive.
Let me now compare with a 4 star hotel which my family and I stayed at not too long ago. I have been their Premier Club member for close to 10 years now. The service there used to be very good and the Premier Club Manager knew me well. All I needed to do was to send her a text message and she would reply with the room booking and confirmation number. I was there one afternoon at 2.45 pm to check in. There were a few guests in front of me who wanted to check in. I couldn’t help but overhear that they had to wait for an hour before the rooms were ready. When it came to my turn, the person attending to me noticed that I was a Premier Club member and a regular guest based on their records. The person informed me that the room was ready but I needed to wait for 15 minutes as the supervisor had to check the room before it could be released. That sounded professional to me. The hotel receptionist informed me that she would call me once the room was ready. I told her I would be at the coffee house and she could reach me there.
After waiting for half and hour, I decided to go to the reception area. The reception area was quiet, so I asked the hotel receptionist if my room was ready and she said “Yes”. There was no apology from her for keeping the guest waiting and neither was there an apology for not informing the guest when the room was ready as she had promised earlier. I didn’t want to make a fuss, so I just thanked her and took the key card from her. My wife and I were carrying a few bags between us. There were a number of porters around but no one offered any help. They all looked bored and had that “I couldn’t care less” sort of look unlike the porters I encountered at the YMCA Salisbury Hotel.
When we arrived in our room which was a 2 bedroom family suite, we noticed that housekeeping had not replenished the complimentary mineral water bottles. We called the housekeeping and informed them. Later, we found that the air conditioning was not working in the master bedroom. Again, we called the housekeeping and informed them. When my wife wanted to take a shower, she discovered the shower wasn’t working. It made me wonder whether the supervisor had actually checked the room when we were kept waiting for more than half an hour. It took quite a while before someone came and got it fixed but there was still no sign of the mineral water bottles. We made a further 3 calls but no one came. After that, we didn’t bother anymore as we were only staying for a night.
When I went to check out the next day, I informed the person at the hotel front desk about my concerns but he didn’t seem to care. The service I got from this hotel didn’t give me a good impression. It definitely made me consider whether I ought to renew my membership when it expires. At the same time, it also made me wonder what happened to this hotel which once had very good service. Somehow the staff members seemed to be tired and demoralized. Was the Company doing anything about it? Did the Company notice it? Did the Company care? These are questions that ought to be addressed by the Company before it starts losing its customers.
It is important for the Employer to give their employees a sense of belonging. Belonging means feeling wanted and cared for by the Employer. I am of the view that the Employer should praise their employees if they have done well. Show genuine concern for their welfare and be alert. In other words, be observant and take notice if you feel that something is not right about the Employee. An example would be a sudden behaviour change from the Employee, something must be bothering the person that results in such a change in his or her behaviour. It is like tending to a young child. Whenever you notice an active child suddenly becoming passive, tired or cranky, make sure you check on the child to see what is bothering him or her.
Similar to a young child, an Employer should praise the employees when they have done well. I am also of the view that it is very important to let the employees know that they are appreciated and play a very essential and important role in the Company regardless of their position. I am not saying that an employee is like a child but far from it. An Employer and an employee’s relationship should be close-knit like a family. It may sound like a cliché but since you have heard it many times, you know it , so let’s do it!
As an Employer, I am sure you will not hire anyone from the street just for the heck of it. There must be a reason why you need the person and you are prepared to pay a salary to that person. Therefore, treat the Employee as an important person and an integral part of the functioning of your Company. A person will always feel good about himself or herself whenever he or she is accepted, treated well and knows that he or she is an important part of the Company. To me, that is the real meaning of “belonging”.
Once an employee feels that the Company genuinely cares for him or her, the employee will give his or her best. Why? Well, you can call it “karma” but to me, when someone treats me well, I will try my best not to disappoint the person and the trust that the person has placed in me. I will give my very best to the task assigned to me.
Story: An example where the employees are proud of the Company
A few years ago, a friend of mine applied for a position with a multi-national oil Company. He knew that he had to compete with a number of other applicants. Fortunately for him, a reply came for him to attend an interview with the Company. He went there early and had to obtain an access card from the Security/Reception desk. The person attending to the Security/Reception desk asked him the purpose of his visit. He replied that he was attending an interview. The stern security personnel then broke into a smile and said that he had been working there for more than 10 years and if my friend was accepted into the Company, my friend would not regret it. The security personnel went on to say that the Company treated him very well and he enjoyed working in the Company.
My friend found that rather reassuring and somehow could feel that the security personnel was sincere in what he said. My friend took the elevator to the interviewing floor. My friend couldn’t find the interview room and asked one of the staff on the floor. The staff was helpful and informed my friend that he remembered when he came for an interview some 5 years ago. He shared some stories about the Company and all of them were positive. By now, my friend was feeling quite comfortable and feeling rather assured that if successful, he was going to be with this Company for a long time or perhaps even for the rest of his working life.
Just when he thought he had heard enough, suddenly there was an elderly cleaner who came into the room to tidy up the waiting area. She smiled at my friend and wished him “Good morning”. My friend returned the greeting and the lady asked whether my friend was a candidate for the job interview. My friend replied “Yes” and asked the lady how long she has been working in the Company? She replied more than 25 years. She informed that most of the employees in the Company were long serving staff. Like the security personnel and the office staff, she was full of praise for the Company.
Eventually my friend went in for the interview and got the job. In less than 3 years due to his good work performance, the Company sent him overseas to a new posting.
I found it rather fascinating that all the employees of the Company from the security personnel to the cleaner had one thing in common and that is pride and loyalty to the Company. There must be an underlying reason why they have worked for the Company for so many years. Was it because of the good salary package? Perhaps, but I know of some people who, inspite of having a good salary package, are not happy with their employers. I believe that the difference here is that the Company cares and shows it. From what I can observe, the Company recognizes the achievement and good performance of its employees. As stated at the beginning of this chapter, all of us need some praise and some appreciation from time to time. The Company must have recognized that and given due appreciation to its staff by either promoting them or in some other ways recognizing the employees’ achievement. The Company certainly set the right work culture for its employees.
Story: A plumber who enjoys his work
When I was a student in Australia, I stayed off campus in a single storey house located in a beautiful town called Robina situated in the Gold Coast, Queensland. One day, there was a problem with a leaky tap in the house. I went to a D.I.Y. (Do It Yourself) shop to get some things that I felt could help me fix the problem. However, the situation became worse and I had no other alternative but to call a Plumber. The Plumber wasn’t able to come the same day but promised that he would drop by at 9.30 the next morning. One thing, I noticed in countries such as Australia, people tend to be punctual with appointments. It is considered rude, and rightly so I might add, if one does not show up at the appointed time.
The next morning at 9.30 am, someone rang the doorbell and there was the Plumber looking cheerful and friendly. In my heart, I was saying to myself who could be so cheerful and happy at this hour of the day. The Plumber wished me “Good morning” and asked me to show him the leaky tap. After examining the leaky tap, he excused himself and cheerfully walked back to his van to pick up some tools. He came back with his tools and started working on the leaky tap. While working, he was whistling to himself and seemed to be enjoying himself. I decided to sit down and have a chat with him while he was working. The Plumber was a professional as while chatting, his hands were working on the leaky tap and there was never a moment of pause from him.
Somehow, watching him work, that positive attitude and cheerfulness created by him rubbed off on me and I too began to whistle and felt friendly towards my classmates that afternoon. It was difficult to pinpoint what was the trigger that created this positive feeling. Perhaps some spiritual people would say it could be the positive aura and energy emitted by the Plumber. Well, I won’t say I doubt that but for certain, watching a person enjoying his work and obviously being proud of the service that he was giving made my day. Perhaps, I was inspired by the Plumber. How much did it cost me then? In 1992, for less than an hour of plumbing work it came to AUD$90.00 for labour, parts and inspiration!
As you can see from the above, even though the incident took place almost 20 years ago the Plumber created a lasting impression on me. A lasting impression can be good or not so good. Therefore, it is important that you ensure your employees create the former and not the latter. To illustrate, I am going to share with you a story that shows the difference between a good and not so good impression.
Story: Good v Not So Good Impression
In 2010, my family and I visited Hong Kong. Since it was my children’s first visit to Hong Kong, I wanted to make it a memorable visit for them. Being the school holidays, I expected the hotel rates to shoot up during this holiday season. I asked a friend in a travel agency to assist me in booking 2 rooms. My friend recommended we take a family suite rather than booking 2 rooms as it would be relatively cheaper. He recommended YMCA Salisbury Hotel in Kowloon. A family suite is quite similar to a one bedroom studio apartment. It has a bedroom and a small living room. In the living room, there is a sofa set which can be converted into a bed.
To be honest, I had not been to a YMCA hotel prior to this, so I really did not know what to expect. Upon stepping into the YMCA Salisbury Hotel after a 3 ½ hours flight from Kuala Lumpur, I was pleasantly surprised. Upon seeing the car stop in front of the hotel, the porter came and collected our bags and I was promptly shown to the hotel reception. The checking in was a breeze which took less than 10 minutes. I also noticed that there were a couple of men in grey suits whom I assumed were floor supervisors. I did notice later that they were there not only to assist the guests but also to guide the students. Yes, there was a school located in the YMCA hotel itself!
What amazed me most was the floor supervisors’ attentiveness. One morning, I was sitting at the hotel lobby waiting for the tour bus when a person next to me inadvertently left a small plastic bag. Immediately, the floor supervisor noticed that and quickly took the small plastic bag and ran after the person to return the bag. Then there was another incident where I saw the floor supervisor take a small tissue paper from his suit pocket. Thinking that he was going to sneeze, I set my sight on other things. Suddenly, he came towards my direction to pick up some small debris from the seat next to me with the small tissue. This may be small things but if you put yourself in the employee’s position, would you bother to do small things like picking up some small debris? Further, I am not even sure if that was part of his job? A person who has no pride in his or her work would probably just ignore small things like that. I also noticed that the floor supervisor was always on the move, walking up and down paying close attention to the surroundings.
When we checked into the room, I called housekeeping for some extra towels and to convert the sofa to a bed. My requests were attended to promptly by the ever smiling housekeeping staff. For a reasonably priced hotel, I thought the service was first class and impressive.
Let me now compare with a 4 star hotel which my family and I stayed at not too long ago. I have been their Premier Club member for close to 10 years now. The service there used to be very good and the Premier Club Manager knew me well. All I needed to do was to send her a text message and she would reply with the room booking and confirmation number. I was there one afternoon at 2.45 pm to check in. There were a few guests in front of me who wanted to check in. I couldn’t help but overhear that they had to wait for an hour before the rooms were ready. When it came to my turn, the person attending to me noticed that I was a Premier Club member and a regular guest based on their records. The person informed me that the room was ready but I needed to wait for 15 minutes as the supervisor had to check the room before it could be released. That sounded professional to me. The hotel receptionist informed me that she would call me once the room was ready. I told her I would be at the coffee house and she could reach me there.
After waiting for half and hour, I decided to go to the reception area. The reception area was quiet, so I asked the hotel receptionist if my room was ready and she said “Yes”. There was no apology from her for keeping the guest waiting and neither was there an apology for not informing the guest when the room was ready as she had promised earlier. I didn’t want to make a fuss, so I just thanked her and took the key card from her. My wife and I were carrying a few bags between us. There were a number of porters around but no one offered any help. They all looked bored and had that “I couldn’t care less” sort of look unlike the porters I encountered at the YMCA Salisbury Hotel.
When we arrived in our room which was a 2 bedroom family suite, we noticed that housekeeping had not replenished the complimentary mineral water bottles. We called the housekeeping and informed them. Later, we found that the air conditioning was not working in the master bedroom. Again, we called the housekeeping and informed them. When my wife wanted to take a shower, she discovered the shower wasn’t working. It made me wonder whether the supervisor had actually checked the room when we were kept waiting for more than half an hour. It took quite a while before someone came and got it fixed but there was still no sign of the mineral water bottles. We made a further 3 calls but no one came. After that, we didn’t bother anymore as we were only staying for a night.
When I went to check out the next day, I informed the person at the hotel front desk about my concerns but he didn’t seem to care. The service I got from this hotel didn’t give me a good impression. It definitely made me consider whether I ought to renew my membership when it expires. At the same time, it also made me wonder what happened to this hotel which once had very good service. Somehow the staff members seemed to be tired and demoralized. Was the Company doing anything about it? Did the Company notice it? Did the Company care? These are questions that ought to be addressed by the Company before it starts losing its customers.
It is important for the Employer to give their employees a sense of belonging. Belonging means feeling wanted and cared for by the Employer. I am of the view that the Employer should praise their employees if they have done well. Show genuine concern for their welfare and be alert. In other words, be observant and take notice if you feel that something is not right about the Employee. An example would be a sudden behaviour change from the Employee, something must be bothering the person that results in such a change in his or her behaviour. It is like tending to a young child. Whenever you notice an active child suddenly becoming passive, tired or cranky, make sure you check on the child to see what is bothering him or her.
Similar to a young child, an Employer should praise the employees when they have done well. I am also of the view that it is very important to let the employees know that they are appreciated and play a very essential and important role in the Company regardless of their position. I am not saying that an employee is like a child but far from it. An Employer and an employee’s relationship should be close-knit like a family. It may sound like a cliché but since you have heard it many times, you know it , so let’s do it!
As an Employer, I am sure you will not hire anyone from the street just for the heck of it. There must be a reason why you need the person and you are prepared to pay a salary to that person. Therefore, treat the Employee as an important person and an integral part of the functioning of your Company. A person will always feel good about himself or herself whenever he or she is accepted, treated well and knows that he or she is an important part of the Company. To me, that is the real meaning of “belonging”.
Once an employee feels that the Company genuinely cares for him or her, the employee will give his or her best. Why? Well, you can call it “karma” but to me, when someone treats me well, I will try my best not to disappoint the person and the trust that the person has placed in me. I will give my very best to the task assigned to me.
Story: An example where the employees are proud of the Company
A few years ago, a friend of mine applied for a position with a multi-national oil Company. He knew that he had to compete with a number of other applicants. Fortunately for him, a reply came for him to attend an interview with the Company. He went there early and had to obtain an access card from the Security/Reception desk. The person attending to the Security/Reception desk asked him the purpose of his visit. He replied that he was attending an interview. The stern security personnel then broke into a smile and said that he had been working there for more than 10 years and if my friend was accepted into the Company, my friend would not regret it. The security personnel went on to say that the Company treated him very well and he enjoyed working in the Company.
My friend found that rather reassuring and somehow could feel that the security personnel was sincere in what he said. My friend took the elevator to the interviewing floor. My friend couldn’t find the interview room and asked one of the staff on the floor. The staff was helpful and informed my friend that he remembered when he came for an interview some 5 years ago. He shared some stories about the Company and all of them were positive. By now, my friend was feeling quite comfortable and feeling rather assured that if successful, he was going to be with this Company for a long time or perhaps even for the rest of his working life.
Just when he thought he had heard enough, suddenly there was an elderly cleaner who came into the room to tidy up the waiting area. She smiled at my friend and wished him “Good morning”. My friend returned the greeting and the lady asked whether my friend was a candidate for the job interview. My friend replied “Yes” and asked the lady how long she has been working in the Company? She replied more than 25 years. She informed that most of the employees in the Company were long serving staff. Like the security personnel and the office staff, she was full of praise for the Company.
Eventually my friend went in for the interview and got the job. In less than 3 years due to his good work performance, the Company sent him overseas to a new posting.
I found it rather fascinating that all the employees of the Company from the security personnel to the cleaner had one thing in common and that is pride and loyalty to the Company. There must be an underlying reason why they have worked for the Company for so many years. Was it because of the good salary package? Perhaps, but I know of some people who, inspite of having a good salary package, are not happy with their employers. I believe that the difference here is that the Company cares and shows it. From what I can observe, the Company recognizes the achievement and good performance of its employees. As stated at the beginning of this chapter, all of us need some praise and some appreciation from time to time. The Company must have recognized that and given due appreciation to its staff by either promoting them or in some other ways recognizing the employees’ achievement. The Company certainly set the right work culture for its employees.
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