The concept of love as a business strategy hasn’t yet gained much traction, but it makes a great deal of sense. I think we’d all agree the world would be a better place with a bit more love.
In essence it means trusting your staff and your customers, so they give you and each other their loyalty. Leading your team with praise before criticism will make them feel empowered and better able to take feedback. Listening to them and their ideas as much as you impart your own will make them feel valued and heard. Fostering this type of culture will lead to easier recruitment and better retention, translating to a better customer experience and a healthier operation.
Research professor at the University of Houston, Brené Brown, is a trailblazer in this regard. Her TED Talk, The Power of Vulnerability is the fifth most watched ever and shows the toxicity of shame and that there is strength in vulnerability.
Author and illustrator, Charlie Mackesy, presents this well in his book The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse. He recently shared on Instagram that a teacher asked him to make another book because his first one had given some of her boys permission to be kind and honest about how they feel.
Within the health and fitness industry, Tara Dillon, went about creating an empowering culture when she took over as CEO of CIMSPA, an organisation that was off-balance at the time.
“I wanted to build a culture on the foundations of equality, respect and teamwork,” she says. “I implemented the policy of treating people like grown-ups: for example offering unlimited leave – they have to check with their colleagues rather than me.
“With expenses, we ask employees to treat the company money as they do their own and have always taken an open-minded approach to flexible working.
“Fully immersing the team in the direction of the organisation, so they buy into the purpose and love what they do is so important,” says Dillon. “The work culture has also helped recruitment and retention.”
So is love the answer? And how do you make a start? We ask the experts...