So you’ve got your team engaged. They are passively accepting the aims and objectives of the company.

Unfortunately, this isn’t enough.

Creating and sustaining a culture of involvement is one of the biggest challenges of leadership. It is the ‘holy grail’ that can change your organisation forever.

Involvement is something that takes a lot of time, understanding and effort. That said, there are a few key ingredients that will help set you on the right track.

1.    Use Social Media to Communicate the Vision

Let’s say a new project has come across the company’s desk. It’s exciting and positive for the company, but it is also big. It requires the complete involvement of your team.

To pull it off you need to communicate the vision bringing everyone onto the same page. Social media is one of the prime areas in which people are engaged in their daily lives, so why not use it as a means of involvement? Create a page for a project, invite every employee that you want to be involved, and create an open platform where people can share ideas. This would create an immediate buzz and excitement around the future of the project.

2.    Cultivate Trust

Equip employees with the skills, tools and resources they need to make good decisions. Informal huddles every day, and more formal gatherings on a weekly or monthly basis, go a long way to building trust and involvement.

Trust and involvement go hand in hand. By trusting an employee with responsibility and decision-making, he or she feels a sense of ownership. All of this breeds loyalty, productivity and fulfilment – all pleasant and very useful by-products of full involvement.

3.    Share the Budgeting

By bringing employees in on the budgeting side of a project, you’ll help them to understand their own financial impact on it. It helps them to put a value on their own contribution. They’ll come to understand that success for you, ultimately means success for them.

4.    Encourage Feedback

Listen to opinions and ideas. Organise formal meetings, or even social gatherings down the pub (we’ll leave it up to you to decide which is more appropriate) to air these ideas and opinions. Be sure to invite everyone. Don’t leave anyone behind. It’s important to project the message throughout your organisation that everyone has a voice. Everyone’s say is important.

5.    Positive Deviance

There are people in every organisation whose uncommon strategies or behaviours enable them to find better solutions to problems than their peers. These ‘deviant’ behaviours, such as organisational citizenship, social responsibility or creativity, should be utilised. Involve these ‘deviants.’ Don’t marginalise them.

By using these 5 techniques in your next project you will make your team feel more involved, valued and productive.

If you want to know more about the involvement tools we offer to help your organisation, then send us an email, or give us a call.