All your employees have ideas and suggestions that can add value to your team. However, if some of your workers don’t feel comfortable voicing them, then you could be losing out on innovation, creativity and your next great idea. How can you create a culture that encourages all employees, even those less outspoken ones, to speak up and voice their opinions? Here are some tips to help:
Make your culture welcoming.
When you have friendly, warm, inviting culture, people naturally feel more comfortable sharing their thoughts and feelings. So create a culture where everyone has an opportunity to speak, the more extroverted people are reminded not to talk over others, and each worker is encouraged to offer ideas and thoughts. Make everyone feel appreciated when they do contribute.
Create an agenda.
When you create an agenda for your meeting, this will give your introverted workers the time they need to think about what they want to say. This will lead to more participation from them. In general, introverted people don’t like being put on the spot. But if they have time to review the meeting schedule and articulate their thoughts and ideas, they’re often happy to share them. So send off an agenda in advance so they can think through their input ahead of time.
Personalize your approach to each person.
Get to know each individual so you can determine how to encourage them to participate more. Different techniques work for different people. So talk to each one privately about ways you can support and encourage them during team meetings. Let them know how important their participation is and that you want them to feel comfortable voicing their ideas.
Keep in mind too that, in general, introverts don’t like meetings or large group discussions. If you truly want their input, meet one-on-one with them or in a small group. They’re far more likely to feel comfortable sharing their feedback and ideas, so they can add value to the team.
Need help finding the right-fit people for your team?
Turn to Provisional Recruiting. We’re a leading staffing agency serving the Northwest, including in Spokane and Boise. We work with a wide range of companies and candidates and can connect you with the talented professionals you need. You can focus on running your business, while we fill your job openings. Contact us today to get started.