Having an enthusiastic team of loyal employees who look forward to doing their job should be the goal of every employer. As a business owner who has built a successful national firm from the ground up, I believe it's truly the people who a make a company. Melding a team of motivated employees into a high performance unit that has pride in their work, delivers fantastic service and helps grow the company is the ultimate goal. This requires a leadership team that understands that dedicated, hard-working employees are key to a prosperous company. Here are five key tips that I've used at my firm to build one of the fastest growing private companies in America.

Hire top quality talent It is most important to seek out individuals who match your company's personality. We seek people who are high energy, creative thinkers who really want to make a difference in their position. Experience is important, but a positive attitude and an eagerness to learn can often overshadow pure experience alone.
Treat your staff with respect Often companies prefer to manage from a top-down approach focused on a "chain of command." We break that chain as we focus on empowering our staff by providing the tools, training and teamwork to be successful. Our mission is to help each team member grow and take ownership of his or her job. Collaboration at all levels happens daily, regardless of job position. Our sole mission is to deliver outstanding service and solutions to our clients.
Inspire your team with a vision As a leader, one must rally the staff members around a core mission. Paint this vision by giving your company a core identity that is larger than any individual. It's a vision that everyone believes in and is committed to every day. For us, it's a commitment to superior service. Everything we do and the fabric of our company focuses on what can we do to improve our service and give our clients a satisfying experience each and every day.
Reward your team Recognizing and rewarding the achievements of your team is vital. Many companies skimp on salaries and bonuses to cut costs, but fail to realize that a happy and fairly compensated employee will be dedicated to your company. Leaders should take time to write handwritten thank you notes, provide flexible work schedules and aim to make the work environment a fun productive place to be. This will increase morale immensely and translate into a better work product and service to the clients as well.
Invest in your team One of the essential components many companies fail to do is to invest in their staff. We believe that by increasing our team's job-related skills through additional training classes, school and job development, we enhance both our employees' skills and improve our team as a whole. Most employees want to grow their skills and careers, so when we invest in our staff, it helps them as individuals and our company in the long run.

As a leader, it is imperative to let each person know they are a valuable piece of the puzzle that creates an inspiring work environment. Investing the time in your staff must be more than just lip service but a way of assuring each employee they are an integral part of your company.

Ernie Bray is a high-energy, award-winning American entrepreneur, CEO, author and podcast host. Bray is a respected advisor in driving strategic impact in the areas of process improvement, strategy, management, social media, marketing and innovation.

“The effort you put in today leads to the results you will get tomorrow.”