The Sunday Times has recently published its list of the ‘100 Best Companies to Work For’. It makes for interesting reading for every business leader, no matter the size, shape or specialism of their firm. No dog is ever too old to learn new tricks, so it is always worth looking at what works well in other firms and sectors – at least to be sure it would not benefit your own business. The survey ranks eight characteristics. These are:
Leadership - How employees feel about the head of the company and senior managers.
Well-being - How staff feel about stress, pressure and the balance between their work and home duties.
My manager - People’s feelings toward their immediate boss and their day-to-day managers.
My team - People’s feelings about their immediate colleagues.
Fair deal - How happy the work-force is with their pay and benefits.
Giving something back - How much companies are thought by their staff to put back into society, and the local community in particular.
My company - Feelings about the company people work for as opposed to the people they work with.
Personal growth - To what extent staff feel they are stretched and challenged by their job.
Personal growth
There is probably a series of articles, on how each of these applies to the firms in the mortgage market, in each of these bullet points. However, the one for today is the last in the list – personal growth. I see this as particularly important for our sector given three issues.
The first of these, and by far the least important in many ways, is that the FSA stipulates that firms have a training and competence responsibility. Those giving professional advice must be competent to do so and that it is important to ensure on-going competence – this is a journey not a destination.
Second, in my view, those firms that invest in their staff will perform better, be better at retaining and attracting new personnel, and, ultimately, will be the leaders of tomorrow. This survey seems to be re-enforcing this particular message. As an industry we often worry about the average age of advisers, and where future generations will come from. Bright graduates, as well as those with rich life experience, are attracted to organisations that take development opportunities seriously.
Third, and most importantly, clients have a right to expect that those who present themselves as giving professional advice do so because they are fit and proper – and this among other things means being competent. Otherwise, rightly, they will question both the quality of the advice and the right of the person to offer it.
Best defence
Of course, well-trained, competent advisers are also any firm’s best defence against complaints and negative Ombudsman verdicts. This is because those who have been well advised are less likely to complain. This not only applies to technical excellence but also to the softer people skills that good advisers need. An ability to understand what the client actually needs, to explain recommendations with clarity, and also empathy, and a real interest in the well-being of the client are all necessary aspects of a good intermediary today.
It is always easy to focus on adviser training and competence – but there are other groups for whom personal growth is equally important. One of the most resistant groups to on-going training have been those who lead successful, entrepreneurial businesses. The need to develop has, unfortunately, sometimes been equated with weakness or an inability to take the business forward. This is dangerous thinking, as those leading firms have not only the responsibility to themselves to be the best managers they can – but also to their staff who look to them.
Business leaders set the tone of their organisation and if there is a reluctance to commit to personal growth, or training if that is a better term, then this will permeate the whole organisation. Whether those who run businesses recognise it, their attitude will create the organisational culture. I hope the points above demonstrate why this means they should lead by example, and invest in their own, and others, growth. Our sector, and our clients, will be the richer for it.
