Your Biggest Asset: How To Foster Your People

What is our greatest asset?

The workforce of a health or community organisation is its biggest asset. They are the face. The product/service. The reputation. The largest budget line. They make or break the work an organisation sets to achieve. Without them nothing happens.

Who are we talking about? At the frontlines are the clinicians, client service workers, the volunteers, the community leaders, the community engagement teams. Behind the scenes and just as important are the support teams e.g. IT, human resources, finance, administration. These are led by the management team who are the visionaries, setting the strategic direction and are responsible for the fiduciary matters. All combined they make the organisation tick and further the mission.

So how do we support and foster our people? A good starting point is to ask ‘Why do our people work in the caring professions?’ What makes them want to get up and come to work each day and put their full energy and capabilities into their roles?

The answer might seem obvious – the satisfaction of working towards a better world, opportunities for career development or camaraderie with like-minded colleagues, for example. But what is it about your organisation that makes them want to come to work each day? What sets you apart? This is a significant question that many leaders might struggle to easily answer for their organisation.

This is where an Employee Value Proposition (EVP) comes in.

What is a Employee Value Proposition (EVP)?

While it sounds like jargon, an EVP breaks down the central reasons staff are proud and motivated to work at your organisation.

It’s helps you to understand what your teams need and want in a workplace and what makes you an employee of choice. It also characterises and differentiates your organisation from its competition. However great your organisation is, there will always be other organisations out there competing with yours for the best and brightest people. Your biggest asset is one you want to foster. You can’t simply will this to happen, you need to make solid plans and conscious efforts.

There’s a common misconception that employees expect and value expensive perks and benefits. That an organisations MVP must be generous resource-wise, but it doesn’t need to. Such approaches can fly in the face of why people work for NFPs. Outside of providing a safe, secure and people’s values mean they generally want to see resources used to benefit the clients, communities and causes they work for. An EVP can actually save money for an organisation.

What makes up a EVP?

Typically, they comprise:

1. Rewards: salary, stock options, benefits, soft perks, or time off

2. Work: job-interest alignment and work-life balance

3. Organization: the company’s mission statement, product or service, and social responsibility

4. Opportunity: career growth, education, and personal development

5. People: the employees, from executives down, and the company culture

NFPs have always had to be creative about how to attract talent but in honing their employee value proposition – which encompasses flexible working, D&I, health and well-being initiatives, recognition and reward, and future skills requirements. There is a real opportunity for them to capitalise on their forpurpose strengths.

How to we put our biggest asset our people first? The solution does not lie solely in reams of data or high-level strategies and action plans. Though these can help. High level planning in conjunction with communicating, connecting with and knowing your people. Authentically engaging with them. For some leaders connecting with others comes naturally. For others, it is difficult and requires effort.

‘Compared with disengaged teams, engaged teams show 24% to 59% less turnover, 10% higher customer ratings, 21% greater profitability, 17% higher productivity, 28% less shrinkage, 70% fewer safety incidents and 41% less absenteeism.’ (Galup)

​The Approach	The Experience
Deeper connections: Organizations should make employees feel understood by strengthening their connections to family and community, not just work relationships.	​'I feel understood'
Radical flexibility: Employees seek to feel autonomous in their work; organizations must provide flexibility on aspects beyond the “when” and “where” of work.	​'I feel autonmous'
​Personal growth: Employees want to feel valued; they look to the organization to help them grow as people, not just as professionals.	​'I feel valued'
Holistic well-being: Organizations should find ways to reinforce that employees are cared for through holistic wellbeing offerings, such as mental health counseling.	​'I feel cared for'
Shared purpose: Organisations ensure individuals are invested in the organisation, championing meaningful action by the organisation on its mission for its communities and causes.	​'I feel invested'

How Lambert Caring Solutions can help you with this problem

As a busy manager why would I put energy into adopting a EVP and honing my employee engagement skills?

Shared purpose: Organisations ensure individuals are invested in the organisation, championing meaningful action by the organisation on its mission for its communities and causes.

1. It helps attract and retain the best people

A strong EVP that’s clearly communicated to potential employees is a powerful tool in attracting and retaining high-quality candidates – ones you might otherwise lose to organisations with more attractive EVPs.

2. It helps creates a strong ‘people’ brand

With a strong and credible EVP, your organisation is better placed to be recognised by potential employees for the way you treat people, as well as the work you do. It’s one more way for you to stand out among other employers.

3. You can use it to reengage disenchanted staff

Want to build long-term trust and boost motivation in your workforce? In developing an EVP, you’ll need to involve and survey your staff to gain their first-hand perspectives – in itself, a powerful method of reengaging staff. It also gives them a chance to reflect on what works – and what doesn’t work as well – in your organisation.

When employees and teams become more engaged, work feels very different for employees. But for that to occur, managers who intuitively understand of people management need assistance, and all benefit from practice!

Charity Digital Skills Report (2021) | Digital Skills & Jobs Platform (europa.eu)

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