Will 14 minutes of measuring pay off for small business owners?

For the last 15 years, I’ve been recommending to small business owners that they run a simple anonymous quarterly team survey (I ran these in my last seven businesses).

The end of the quarter is a little over a week away, so grab the below template and send it to your team today, and chase them Monday, Wednesday and Friday to complete.?

It’s now 19 questions, with 12 of those coming from one of the best management books I have read (below).

Taking around 14 minutes a quarter for you to send, you get immense value from it, including:

1. The team feels valued and heard (especially if you actually act on their suggestions)
2. You find out if you and your management team are communicating (especially around the all-important ‘why’, vision and values) and performing well, as managers
3. If one of your managers is an asshole, this quickly helps you find out and do something about it
4. It’s a simple way to measure the health of the culture - a lot of the questions are yes / no, or ask for a numerical rating, and
5. You get a shitload of good suggestions on how to improve the business.

Early last year, I made this suggestion to two co-founders of a great professional services business I have been guiding for greater growth for the last two years.

When we started working together they were 2.5 FTE (they had a part-timer).??

Now with over 10 FTE, I finally convinced them to push send on this survey (one co-founder was worried about what the results would say, so he wanted to fix a few leadership, management and cultural things first).?

The first survey closed just before the break and in January we looked at the results.?

?Outstanding is all I can say!

+100 on the Net Promoter Score (NPS), “Between 0 - 10, how likely are you to recommend working here to a friend or colleague?”, all 10s and one 8 (which doesn’t affect the way NPS is calculated).

I suggested they track that internal NPS for a few months, and if it is 100+ or near that a few quarters in a row, it’ll be a powerful recruitment marketing metric to entice A-Players to jump on their bus.

All the other questions were answered with a glowing “you are both great managers, the culture is awesome - we love working here”.

Some minor suggestions were in the “one thing we can change?” question, which they talked with the team about in their next weekly team meeting, and will act on.?

The team feels valued, and changes for the better happen in the business - every quarter.

Do you regularly ask your team how you and your managers are going, and what things can be improved around the business?

We explain how to use this quarterly survey in much more detail in our ‘Business Transformation Program’, it is one of the communication tools we arm you with to be a better leader, have better managers and overall build and maintain a kick-ass culture.?

One Tool or Professional Development Resource:

While around 20 years old, and not available on audio, this is worth the paper (or Kindle) read.

The book, “First, Break All The Rules: What the World's Greatest Managers Do Differently” is in my top five favourite books to help you become a better manager.?

Watch this 3 minute video then click on the link beneath it to grab a copy of our quarterly anonymous team survey, follow the steps and get this out in 14 minutes (it includes an email template for you to tailor).

Blog posts live this week

• A marketing tactic often overlooked by small businesses.

Podcasts live this week

• Episode 488: Unlocking Business Brilliance: Insights from a Trailblazing Entrepreneur Achieving Remarkable Success, Doubling Revenue, and Nurturing a Stellar Team – A Must-Listen for Entrepreneurs on the Rise. (Sofia Lane)
• Episode 489: Accelerate Small Business Growth: Join the Million-Dollar Journey alongside the founder of Comma Copywriters … from $50K to $1M in 6 years. Discover critical conversations, remote team culture, and practical insights. (Crystalee Beck)
• Episode 490: QFF: Unlocking Success: Dive into the World of Personal Branding with Nina Christian, Renowned Marketing Mentor & Strategist, Pioneering 30 Years of Business Excellence. Gain Insights for Small Business Triumphs (Nina Christian)

Podcasts Throwback

Leveraging expertise from an international opera-singing career, this expert specializes in body language and voice analysis.

With a background in organizational psychology, they empower business leaders to enhance their communication skills.

Their unique approach enables leaders to unlock confidence and excel in various communication contexts.?

Listen to episode 109 I did with Louise in May 2021.

Regards,

Troy Trewin | Founder

P.S. If you’re not sure how to work through your #1 growth challenge at the moment (people, marketing, strategy, systems or funding), book a Growth Chat with me. In 20 minutes, I will recommend some resources to help.