Forget customers, how well do you know your colleagues?

Lately, I have seen a lot of conversations on talent – engagement, career progression, recognition, training, retention and so on. I agree with all of that, but behind this rather daunting task, companies often miss out on the small steps that make all of this a reality.

Cultivating empathy is one of them.

Every year Marketing magazine has an editor’s conference where we discuss a range of things that help us, well, enjoy our work and do better at it.

A couple of years ago in one such discussion on creating an ideal team, our editorial director Tony Kelly said something which has stuck with me ever since. He said: “You are not a different person when you come to work.”

Speaking from personal experience of being part of a team and leading one now, I can vouch for the validity of that statement. We carry with us the emotional baggage of things that have happened at home, with family or friends. While all of us hope it does not affect our work, there are times it gets overwhelming.

What helps in such situations? An empathetic team and manager to begin with, which encourages the employee to perform well and with a relaxed mind. This is an example of small steps/changes I am alluding to.

There’s a lot of emphasis on companies becoming truly customer-centric, an omni-channel approach to understanding customers and so on and so forth.

That to me is a distant dream if companies fail to understand and empathise with people who work for them – and who will go the extra mile to help achieve business goals if they appreciate what the manager and the team has done for them.

And I say both the team and manager for a reason. Putting the blame on managers and the management for every other issue, to me, is escapism. I’m a big believer in bringing about change where you are and in whatever capacity.

Creating a work culture is a leader’s job, agreed. Keeping it up and making it better if need be, especially for peers, is everyone’s job.

This mindset of feeling empowered is yet another example of small steps/changes.

No longer are the issues of culture and talent soft. These are hard issues and have to be dealt with accordingly for any organisation’s success.

Let’s focus on the small steps, guys. The bigger picture will take care of itself.