We are busy here at SmartCompany today preparing for tonight’s Smart50 awards ceremony, which is sponsored by accounting firm WHK and hosted by the Victorian Government.
It promises to be a great night with another great group of entrepreneurs.
We’ll have all the winners online tonight from around 7.30pm, so check back then to see who has made the list and who has taken the top gongs.
To whet your appetite I want to share an important trend that we’ve picked up from profiles of the members of the list – their determination to involve their people as much as possible.
I sense that the Smart50 have been shaped by two important events – the GFC, which has made them determined to run very lean operations with strong internal systems and the skills shortage, which has rammed home the importance of good people.
There is a clear commitment among Smart50 members to include their people as much as possible in the decision-making process, the innovation process, the marketing process (particularly by making staff into thought leaders) and the management process.
That isn’t just about surrounding themselves with smart people – every entrepreneur knows to do that.
It is about making sure employees understand that they are valued and it’s about engaging them in the business.
“You can’t manage people,” says one Smart50 member.
“To create a successful business you need to give people the chance to breathe.
“You need to give them all the necessary tools to do the job and a clear vision so they can understand what they need to set out to achieve.
“A culture of aspiration and support and the ability to celebrate each other’s success must run through the business.”
A few weeks ago I hosted a webinar with Naomi Simson of RedBalloon, who has won several best employer awards and has made employee engagement an art form.
She said RedBalloon doesn’t invest in its people because Naomi is a nice person, although of course she is.
She said RedBalloon invests in its people because it is a business advantage and by doing so the business get the discretionary effort it needs to stay ahead of the competition.
It’s a lesson the Smart50 have learned well.
James was the editor and publisher of SmartCompany and LeadingCompany for five years. He is now the Australian Financial Review‘s companies & markets editor, and a former BRW editor.
