Awesomely Simple: Keys to success are in your own backyard

John Spence gave an 'Awesomely Simple' and actionable closing keynote

Just that simple Business trainer John Spence delivers a closing keynote that distills the wisdom of top thought leaders and the latest research into simple steps any business can take.

Inspired by his book of the same name, John Spence’s “Awesomely Simple” closing keynote address distilled the best business advice out there into easy to understand and implement bites. A business trainer, Spence offered this key takeaway—that for success, companies must focus on internal, not external, innovation—and much of that innovation relates to culture and employees.

“Internally, are your departments delivering excellent service to each other?” Spence asked. “The No. 1 factor in increasing the level of highly satisfied and engaged customers in your business is the level of highly satisfied and engaged employees in your business.”

A “Wordle” word collage, derived from a study of thousands of “top employees” at highly successful companies, depicted the key elements of businesses that attract top talent. The most important terms have to do with soft skills—communication, culture, leadership, focus, innovation, transparency and passion.

Acquiring and retaining top talent needs to be a major strategic objective, Spence said. Leaders always should be looking, even when they aren’t hiring, so they “have a very deep bench” of talent to call on when needed.

To retain the best employees, you need a winning company culture, one in which “people smile as much when they come in in the morning, as when they leave at the end of the day.” It’s the way to cultivate a team of highly engaged, proactive employees who have an “ownership mentality.”

Attracting this caliber of employees involves “atmosphere issues that don’t cost you a penny,” Spence said. His findings are derived from large-scale research among today’s “top talent” in the business world. The very best employees rate the following factors as important to their job satisfaction:  

■  Challenging, meaningful work

■  A winning company culture

■  Cool people (I am surrounded by friends.)

  Fair, comparable pay

■  Personal and professional growth (I can see myself at this company five years from now.)

■  Leadership (I want to work for a leader I admire and like, who is honest, supportive, inspiring, visionary and competent.)

■  Freedom (Don’t undermine my autonomy by micromanaging me.)

■  Pride (I want to be able to take pride in the organization I work for.)

■  Praise

Spence offered specific guidelines for managing the final point. Employers should give honest praise once every seven days to create a culture of doing things right at your company. Yes, hold employees accountable, but celebrate their successes.

In “the new normal,” companies need “nimbleosity”—they must be “nimble with velocity.” It’s timely advice for the sleep products industry, which faces a number of issues, from environmental and regulatory to increased competition and consolidation.

He recommended that businesses uncover that one special, compelling element they own, that no one else can copy—“the one thing that in your ideal customer’s eyes is the ‘moment of truth.’ ”

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