This Thursday I wanted to speak with you all about a topic that I find very interesting. What do leaders call their employees? Do they call them a team or do they call them a family?
Personally, I find this very interesting because I’ve seen different companies use different terminology. When a new batch of employees join a company they may hear, welcome to the team or welcome to the family.
So what is the difference here? Well, as I see it, if you say family (which usually means a mother, father, kids) or extended family (which is grandparents, aunts, uncles) they are all associated by marriage or blood. So, when you’re talking about people that way from a company standpoint you don’t have that tight of a bond. Also, the challenge also arises, can you fire a family member, or when you finally catch that one that is always late, can you put a family member on probation. These and many other complications can arise when people who work for a company, corporation, or small business are called a family. Can you have close friends? Absolutely. Can you be very close to people who work for you? Sure. To me, this is remarkably different than being a family with a group. I find it to be more like a team. Because when I think of a team I think of sports. A group of people that compete against another group of people. A group has to come together and work together as a team. A team seems like a better term to me, because you can let a team member go. If one person is dragging the team down, that team member should be cut or in this case, fired. By using different terminology, you, as a leader, can avoid many of the challenges that occur when you use the term family.
So, Leaders, I would like to know what you think about this topic. You can reach me through my website or my email, jgarrett@theascentperformancegroup.com . Tune in tomorrow for the next episode of The Coach Jeff Garrett Show podcast and be back here next week for the new blog post. Remember, Be Great!
