Challenging times don’t follow a defined pattern or provide much warning prior to their arrival. They come at us unexpectedly and there is no playbook for how to handle them. This pandemic is no anomaly in this respect. However, the same fundamentals that make a successful business are the keys we’ve found to surviving and even thriving through an otherwise bleak scenario. We’ve left normal behind and look to our fundamentals to guide us forward. Here’s how we’re doing it:
Look to Our Values: Strong values are grounded by what’s in each of us and recognizing that we’re much larger on the inside than anything on the outside or the effect it may have on us. Our Values:
- Integrity – Have strong moral principles and always stand by them.
- Respect – Be considerate and do right by our coworkers, clients and common goals.
- Leadership – Be someone who others can look up to and admire, is worth following.
- Community – We are all part of a shared social fabric (albeit momentarily distant) and should aim to lift everyone up.
- Service Excellence – Serve our clients in a way that we can always be proud of.
- Team – We’re all in this together. Our success is yours, and vice versa.
- Work-Life Balance – Living a well-rounded life is important. Never forget your personal passions.
- Have Fun – We have the rare opportunity to truly help others. Take joy in all that we do.
Clarify Our Why: It’s very typical to be asked, “What do you do for a living?” But how often are we asked why we do it? At Stahl this is a question that we answer for ourselves regularly because it’s not what we do that drives us in good times and this becomes even more true during a crisis. Why we do it is a much stronger motivator. During challenging times like these, our why is powerful. Our Why:
For the Health of Our Communities.
Establish a Rally Cry: Our people are paramount and must be cared for. Our accomplishments are limited when we strike out on our own. It’s only through trusting the diligent efforts of each individual, working through conflict, committing to each other, demanding accountability, and seeking results when a team experiences its real potential. For us, this means communicating more than ever. Using videoconference technology allows us to be present while we’re apart. Our leadership team holds a call every day and we have all-hands calls three times a week. This is in addition to the communication at our various sites and within specific project teams. We remain flexible as we determine how to best serve our clients in our not-so-well-equipped home office environments with all the distractions they bring. We check in often looking to serve each other. We must remain humble and prepared to be called out and held accountable so that we can keep the team engaged and supported. Our Rally Cry:
The Power of Team
At The Stahl Companies, we’re looking forward to the opportunities to innovate, change, and lead through our current challenges with our sights set on emerging stronger on the other side of this. We’re not looking to get back to normal but looking forward to a new normal.
