Several factors produce highly-effective teams: the right hires, the right structures, and the right tools can all impact outcomes. But what about the less tangible things that take your team from good to great? For leaders who want to accelerate their teams this year and create environments where employees can thrive, we recommend focusing on authenticity.
The Link Between Authenticity and Excellence
The idea of authenticity as a core business value isn’t new. Over the past decade, organizations learned the power of honesty and clarity in consumer interactions or the peril that comes without it. When it comes to investment services, authenticity is foundational to any strong client relationship. It helps foster conversations where all parties can freely share their opinions or ideas without judgment or reservation.
When we turn the lens toward our internal teams, authenticity helps employees avoid groupthink and have confidence in their final decisions. Each person at the table should feel like they have the power to be themselves and use their expertise to make the bold decisions that drive innovation and good business.
6 Guiding Principles for Authenticity-Based Teams
It can be hard to contextualize what authenticity looks or sounds like—because, more often than not, we describe it as a feeling. To help your team elevate their collaboration, here are some tangible guiding principles to communicate:
- Value diverse opinions, people, and personalities: it is challenging to be authentic with one another if there is no safety to be oneself. Create environments where differences of opinion, background, and ideas are not just accepted but celebrated.
- Be hard on the problem, not the person: authentic organizations focus on their efforts on a common goal and use that shared perspective to tackle complex problems without creating a toxic environment.
- Set boundaries and respect others: boundaries are a valuable—if not crucial—part of any highly-effective team. Allow your employees the freedom to acknowledge when they need space to process a situation or take a break.
- Be accountable: no team, or their leadership, is perfect 24/7. When we make mistakes, it’s important to own them and work collaboratively with others to resolve the issue.
- Nurture meaningful relationships: at Concorde, this is an area that we specifically emphasize with our teams. Though it may seem small, we choose to invest in each others’ lives and connect over quick coffees, family events, or team dinners. Sometimes, our team events will even involve volunteering with local organizations where we can build up our community together.
- Balance direct communication with empathy: when faced with a difficult situation, it can be easy to forget that each employee in our organization faces unique struggles—whether in the office or at home. An authentic team will value clear and direct communication, especially when things are difficult. But that communication is not without compassion.
Bring Yourself First
As a leader or employee within an organization, the path to authenticity starts with you. If you want to set personal goals to foster authenticity this coming quarter, we recommend they look something like this:
- Align your actions with your work: consistent delivery helps create a foundational level of trust that can lead to better authenticity in the workplace.
- Be reliable and transparent, no matter what: learn how to communicate clearly, no matter the situation. If a client relationship is strong, share that success. If you’ve faced a setback in your work, flag it early—and have honest conversations about how to fix it.
- Use your authentic self to build trust: people can inherently tell when you’re not you. Focus on bringing your whole self to work and use that version of yourself to develop meaningful relationships.
At Concorde, we take pride in creating environments where our team members can thrive. It’s a group effort—and when we succeed, our ability to better help each other and our clients multiplies. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you’re interested in learning more about how we support our teams and help them elevate their financial careers.
This is for informational purposes only, does not constitute individual investment advice, and should not be relied upon as tax or legal advice. Securities offered through Concorde Investment Services, LLC (CIS), member FINRA/SIPC. Advisory services offered through Concorde Asset Management, LLC (CAM), an SEC registered investment adviser. Insurance products offered through Concorde Insurance Agency, Inc. (CIA).