Whether your business has 10 employees or 10,000 employees, most business owners can say this: 2020 has been tough. From the operational changes brought on by COVID-19, to the downturn in the economy to broken supply chains, even the most successful businesses have had their own share of challenges. But one thing is the same across all businesses in all industries – supporting your community has never been more important.
Not every business is able to support their community in the same way, but here are three things you can do to make a difference, no matter the size of your business, your specific industry or even your individual community:
Support Your Team
Your employees are part of your community and you can make their lives, your community and your business better by supporting them. Depending on the needs of your business, that might mean allowing your employees to shift their hours to care for their children, scheduling regular check in calls to make sure they have the structure they need from you, watching for signs of struggle and helping where you can, etc. If you have a larger business, this obviously means you need to train and empower your leaders to do this for you. There’s a fine line between providing top-notch support and micromanaging. Just remember that your employees are human and they are facing the same struggles you are facing.
Give Back
Supporting your community is the right thing to do, but it can also pay off in terms of employee engagement, retention and business growth. From small things like sponsoring a little league team or volunteering or collecting donations for a food bank to larger donations or volunteer events, being part of your community means supporting your community. If you’re not sure what direction to go with this, poll your team! They are part of the community and they might see needs you haven’t even considered supporting.
Grow
New jobs. New tax dollars. Higher incomes. When your business grows, your community grows. By finding ways to grow – and sometimes pivot – your business, your community wins too. This is especially true if you keep the jobs local, source local products (when applicable) and work with local partners through a sustainable growth plan and systems.
If you need help with any (or all) of these initiatives, your local Growth Coach can help: https://www.thegrowthcoach.com/find-a-coach.