Awards are great motivators. So why are there no more business awards? After all we all like to be praised for doing well. Whether the award is for being the salesman of the year or for years of service to the company doesn’t really matter. The whole point is to make the recipient feel good about him or herself. After all someone who is acknowledged as being good at the job will feel that they are doing something right and will make an even bigger effort. It’s even better if the award comes from an outside source of course when an employee is named entrepreneur of the year for instance or the company is awarded the business award of the year. Such awards will be given more publicity which in turn is good for the company. Whatever the reason for it though remember it pays to praise.

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Staff dinners and parties are held at different times of the year. Many are held at Christmas of course. Yet more are held at the time of the trading year. Whenever they are held they give an opportunity to the C.E.O. the owner or manager to give a motivational speech to staff. That is something that is increasingly important these days. Companies are downsizing. People are in fear of losing their jobs. It is up to the speaker to be positive and reassuring. Thanking the staff for their contribution is essential because you need to engender the feel good factor. You must challenge the staff to overtake the opposition and to beat the recession. You should speak too of being open to their ideas and suggestions because even simple solutions can make a difference. The annual dinner is your opportunity to speak to the staff in a personal capacity too. So it’s alright to mention the style being worn or the dancing that will form part of the occasion. It’s a social occasion so your speech should not be too long and a few light hearted comments are perfectly acceptable. Finally such a speech is about involvement. It’s your annual opportunity to get the staff onside. Don’t waste it.

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Spring brings new growth and that’s exactly what businesses need these days. It may be by launching a new product or by changing your attitude towards your staff. It could be cutting costs or promoting team creativity in your company. Above all, though, it is about communicating your ideas to your staff. It is about motivating them. Just as gardeners start planning their flower beds and clearing up the garden in spring managers and C.E.O’s have to sit back and consider what they have to do to promote new growth. They cannot achieve any such improvements without the back up and support of their staff. So just like that gardener they have to prune out the bad habits and plant the seeds for success. Above all they have to realise and promote the idea that companies don’t succeed in business people do.

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Be a team player. That’s good advice whether you are in the military, an office or a football team. Too much attention seems to be given to the individual stars and there is no doubt that some people are outstanding in their fields. If we are to succeed in any given arena though we have to learn to pull together with others. Even the most talented player in any field will have some faults and will need the support or influence of others. Certainly even those who play individual sports will have support from coaches or mentors So being a team player is something that managers, officers and coaches have to get across to those they are training. As the saying goes, there is no i in the word team. Some will reply that there is me in team but that is a selfish and childish response. As the advertisement says, together we can make things happen.

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The anniversary of a business is a time for looking back at the achievements of the company. That anniversary, though, is also a time to look forward to the challenges of the future. In tough economic times it is more critical than ever to learn from the past and to adapt for the future. What the owner or manager says at such an anniversary function is, therefore, critically important. He has to be realistic in his speech mentioning the situation as it really is. He should speak encouragingly of past successes, of course, but he must also speak bluntly about the future. He should tell his staff how they can build on the successes of the past but how they must take account of changing times, a different economic climate. In an age of wage cuts and redundancies he must give hope that their particular business can succeed if staff rise to the challenges ahead. So he should ask for new ideas, different ways of doing things. He should explain that they are all in the business together and that it is together they will fall or succeed. So whatever position a staff member might have he must put it up to him or her to improve the way something is being done. Above all he must end on a positive and upbeat note.

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Start the New Year and the Conference off with a bang. This is the time of the year when companies make a fresh start and industries organise business conferences. Those conferences can cover a multitude of subjects from pharmaceuticals to environmental matters and a million topics in between. Whatever the subject matter though it is critical that they should start well. That means that delegates should be made to feel both welcome and involved. It means that they should have a clear idea of what is going to happen at the conference. Above all the speaker should make them realise how they can benefit by their involvement in that particular conference. A good speaker then will sell the idea that their attendance was a very clever move on their behalf. He will speak of the advantages of meeting others in the particular industry and sharing ideas with them. A good speaker will ensure that delegates literally sit up and take notice.

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The start of the New Year is an ideal time for a business opening. It’s a time for fresh starts and new ideas. When times are tough you have to make an effort, try something different. The New Year is the perfect opportunity to do something completely different with your life. Whatever your trade or your profession a New Year gives you a chance to think outside the box and to consider new options. It’s a time to be brave and a time to start afresh. Your new business can be anything from selling widgets to starting a new insurance brokerage. Whatever it is you should launch it with a party at which you should speak of your hopes and dreams for the future of the business. Invite those who have helped you and thank them for their support. Speak of your plans. Ask them to spread the word about what you are doing. Then raise a toast to your new and exciting business; wishing it every success.

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In tough times benevolent societies really come into their own. That’s why they have so many functions at this time of the year. They know that members of their own profession or trade need their help and dinners, dances and shows are ways of raising the funds necessary to assist them. They know only too well that but by the grace of God they too could be struck down with illness or disability. So they are sympathetic and understanding and very discreet about the problems people face. Someone will speak at such functions mentioning the necessity for funds without specifying who is in need. Most of us like to help those with whom we have worked or who were associated with our work. We enjoy a good night out and the fact that we are helping others gives it the plus factor. The word benevolent conjures up a picture of a Santa like figure bestowing largesse. Whatever he or she may look like we can be sure that those in need are very grateful for his or her kindness and understanding. As the saying goes “It could happen to anyone.”

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Black Friday is becoming, quite literally a really black day for retail employees. They are not getting a chance to finish celebrating Thanksgiving because so many stories are opening from midnight on Thanksgiving or earlier. It’s time to get the Christmas shopping season off to a start but will a few hours really make that much difference to retail sales? When bosses are giving their Christmas office party speeches will they mention the fact that employees had to leave the Thanksgiving table to mann the tills in many sales outlets? You can bet they won’t. All that seems to matter is to make those tills ring and that has nothing at all to do with the church bells that ring out to spread the real Christmas message of love and peace.

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Your company’s annual dinner is more than a social occasion. It’s an opportunity to motivate your staff. It’s your chance to tell them how well they have done and what needs to be done in the future. It’s your opportunity to reach out to them and get them on your side. That does not mean that you have to give a long winded speech giving facts and figures. That’s not appropriate at a social function. Some of the most memorable words in the world were short. Think of Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” or President Kennedy’s, “Ask not what your country can do for you.” It’s the message that counts. What you are trying to say is, “Company profit means jobs, YOUR jobs.” It’s about telling them that that better production means better salaries. It’s about motivating them to make their company more successful thus giving them better promotional opportunities. It’s using the words “Us” and “Ours.” The company’s annual dinner is about your people and their pride in what they do.

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