Get to know your people and then you can engage

How many of us have seen the profile of our customers?

Meet Janet, she works in middle management and has two teenage kids. She listens to radio four on her way to work and spends her weekends hiking with her dog …

Businesses spend a lot of time profiling their average customer, so they understand how to market to them, influence behaviours and maximise sales. But do we know who our people on the inside are?

Your people are what makes you different from your competitors; they are your most valuable assets. Without them, you fail to operate. Do you know who they are? What motivates them? And how you can influence and motivate them to be the best person they can be?

I’m yet to find a business who can tell me who their average employee is and scouring the internet doesn’t give me much more information. The Office of National Statistics gives me a wealth of information, but without a degree in data science or some clever code to pivot the data, it doesn’t allow me to see what I need; who is the average employee? CIPD has some interesting information, but again, it’s not really what I’m after. There’s a very good reason for that. There is no average employee that fits every business. The make-up of our people force is as unique to us as a fingerprint. Without understanding them, can we be the best we can be?

We don’t spend enough time understanding people. We enforce change, process, training and many other things on people we haven’t understood. By doing this, we cannot be successful in our mission. I’ve sat in meetings where I’m told about a process change that makes life easier for the few, not the many because no one has spent the time to understand what is existing and how the majority operate. I’ve been told this is something we couldn’t achieve with the old ways when it’s something I have achieved daily, with no real issues. We do not give our people a voice.

Decisions are often made from above, with little thought on the impact on the people on the ground. We share messages tailored to the few, written by communications teams who haven’t spent the time understanding, and may not be the average employee. We don’t spend enough time in the smoking shelter or on the production line to learn what matters to the crucial aspects of our business, like production staff or call centre operatives. These people have different priorities, understanding and motivators to team leaders, managers and senior management teams, yet a single action from these people can implode the day to day profit levels of a business.

In the world of education, I have drafted individual learning plans after understanding my learners. Understanding how they learn and how I can best support them through the journey allows me to build a profile of a learning type in which to deliver a message in an engaging and digestible way, for maximum impact and understanding.

In the world of marketing, I research the audience and digest customer profiles to understand the motivators and behaviours of the customer, to disseminate information to them in a way that resonates and reaches them at the right time. Putting myself in the shoes of the customers has helped me to maximise the return on marketing investment. This means I can tell you the preferred petrol pump of white van drivers and what day of the week holiday searchers commit to a booking. I seek to understand the market so the market can understand my message.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, we cannot expect a fish to climb a tree, as much as we cannot expect our people to demonstrate behaviour changes without understanding who they are, how they digest information and reaching them in a way that is meaningful to them. Tailor your messages to them, make sure they are heard and have a voice. Find the time to run focus groups that include every level, make sure their participation is included on performance reviews and fully understand your people force so you can engage them and change behaviours and culture.

I urge all businesses to understand their people, who they are, and what motivates them. Build a people profile. I see many companies creating people and culture teams instead of HR departments. This is a great start. Answer me this; how do you impact on people and culture if you don’t understand your people and their values? Valued and happy people are more productive. It’ll pay off in the end!

Originally published at https://www.linkedin.com.