Right now every medical start-up is experiencing an unprecedented situation. This can mean that morale and expectation across the business takes a hit.
But when you run a company that is far removed from the traditional medical industry, especially those start-ups that have popped up over the last few years, it is crucial to ensure that morale stays in place. How can we do this?
Effective working within the supply chain
The supply chain is such an essential component that if you are running a business and your employees don’t have faith in your abilities you’ve got to make sure that you are improving your communication across the board. This means that whether you’re trying to find a medical fridge for sale or ensuring that the current suppliers are kept sweet you’ve got to improve your communication standards.
Remember, when you work with an external supplier it’s important to realise that they whilst you are important to them, they are often not solely there to serve only your specific needs. The supplier works with you because of a conflation of mutual interest, in this case, they want to sell and you want to buy.
Improving stakeholder outreach
There are so many different ways to engage with prospects in the modern-day. You can use Email campaigns but when you are engaging with your stakeholders, you shouldn’t just rely on the digital methods of communication. Incorporating multi-level marketing practices is vital especially right now. When your workers lose their faith in your ability to keep a business afloat you’ve lost them forever.
Ultimately it’s not their responsibility to engage with stakeholders but if they catch wind of the fact that you aren’t keeping up your end of the bargain, this is a slippery slope towards low morale.
Leading from the front
Medical workers require a significant level of autonomy but this means that when we pass off responsibility to them they could lose faith in our ability to lead. We have to learn to lead by example but we also need to make sure that we shield employees from sticky situations.
Ultimately, they need to do their job properly and in terms of business, we’ve got to bear the brunt, especially when it comes to negotiation with stakeholders and maintaining interest levels.
Poor leadership shifts the blame and this is why those on both exec and non-execs need to learn to accept responsibility for the good and the bad.
Transparency
We must remember that when we are leading a group of employees, especially in difficult circumstances, we set out what we expect of them and work towards getting this goal achieved.
If someone is not able to achieve their expectations we shouldn’t reprimand them. Rather, we must lay out our expectations and work with them towards a common goal. Achieving this isn’t about targets but it’s about making sure that you have an open-door policy and realise that each employee is a human being and we cannot set a blanket expectation.
The modern approach to business is about holistic practices rather than deadlines and targets, which could mean incorporating different approaches to working, such as working remotely or being more flexible.
If you struggle to maintain morale or you are finding it difficult to keep afloat right now you cannot underestimate your impact on the entire process. Likewise, we have to remember teamwork is crucial but if people don’t have faith in your ability to lead this could signal major problems further down the line.