By Dr. Jonathan Baktari, MD, CEO of US Drug Test Centers
Supporting teamwork and employee training are crucial aspects of running a successful business. When employees work well together, they can achieve more than they could individually. Teamwork involves communication, collaboration and a shared sense of purpose. Training employees is essential to ensure they have the skills and knowledge needed to perform their roles effectively.
To foster teamwork, businesses can implement team-building activities, encourage open communication, and establish clear goals and expectations. Training programs can include on-the-job training, workshops, seminars, and online courses. By investing in the professional development of their employees, businesses can improve productivity, morale, and overall success.
Team meetings are essential for building communication, collaboration, and alignment within a team. They provide a platform for team members to share updates, discuss progress, address challenges, and make decisions collectively. Regular team meetings help ensure that everyone is on the same page and working toward common goals. They also create a sense of unity and camaraderie among team members, which can boost morale and motivation. Additionally, team meetings can be a valuable opportunity for team members to provide feedback, share ideas, and learn from one another. Overall, team meetings play a vital role in promoting teamwork and driving success in a business. For a small business, I recommend at least an uninterrupted monthly meeting of all team members. Many successful small businesses that I know of actually have weekly meetings. These meetings are critical to team building, teams working together and empowering team members with knowledge and confidence.
Training employees fosters a successful business by ensuring that all team members have the necessary skills and knowledge to perform their roles effectively. This leads to increased productivity, improved customer satisfaction, and a more cohesive and motivated team. Additionally, ongoing training helps employees stay up to date with industry trends and best practices, allowing the business to remain competitive in the market. Overall, investing in employee training demonstrates a commitment to professional development and can lead to long-term success for the business.
Sending employees to industry conferences can be beneficial for small businesses as it allows them to stay updated on industry developments, network with other professionals, and gain new insights and knowledge that can help the business grow. However, it is important to consider the cost and time commitment involved in sending employees to conferences and ensure that the benefits outweigh the investment. For the drug testing industry, the National Drug and Alcohol Screening (NDASA) annual conference is an excellent industry conference that is worth the investment [Editor’s note: Save the dates for NDASA’s 2025 Conference and Trade Show which will be held in Jacksonville, Florida, April 1-4, 2025]. I would recommend sending a few team members so they can come back and share their experience and knowledge with other employees.
NDASA also offers a weekly one-hour Town Hall Zoom meeting [Editor’s note: Every Wednesday at 2 p.m. EST, here.] which can be extremely beneficial to team members. The drug testing industry is complex with regulations and best practices and gaining knowledge from others in the same trenches is extremely valuable.
A key aspect of making your small business successful is answering the phone and how your team answers the phone. Small business employees need phone skills such as clear communication, active listening, problem-solving, and professionalism to effectively communicate with customers and clients. The person at your business answering the phone must be knowledgeable about your business, your products, services and your customer service.
Those team members actually selling your products and services need even more advanced skills. Recently I launched a new training program for phone sales entitled “Sell without Selling – High Converting Call Class.” [Editor’s note: find the NDASA member deal for this class on the Preferred Provider page of our website.] We used this program for our company with great success. Those answering our phones learned to demonstrate their authority quickly without being pushy. Imagine empowering the caller to come to the realization on their own that you are the best person in the industry to meet their wants and needs.
What about you, the business owner?
Business owners can foster teamwork by promoting open communication, setting clear goals, encouraging collaboration, providing opportunities for team-building activities, and recognizing and rewarding team efforts. It is important for business owners to create a positive and supportive work environment that values teamwork and encourages employees to work together towards common goals.
Technology and your business
Keeping up with technology helps a small business grow by increasing efficiency, improving customer experience and staying competitive in the market. By adopting the latest tools and software, small businesses can streamline their operations, reach a wider audience, and adapt to changing consumer preferences. Additionally, technology can help small businesses automate repetitive tasks, analyze data to make informed decisions and stay ahead of the competition. Overall, investing in technology can lead to increased productivity, innovation and growth for small businesses.
Small businesses can utilize various technologies to be more efficient, such as project management software, customer relationship management (CRM) systems, cloud computing services, internal communication systems, phone systems, financial systems, and other automation tools. These technologies can help streamline processes, improve communication, and increase productivity within the organization. For drug testing operations, a robust drug testing TPA management software is a key item to have in place for ordering drug tests, receipt of MRO reviewed results and random consortium management. Back in the late ’80s and ’90s, this was all done with spreadsheets, which is no longer feasible. Automating your processes for getting results out to your clients and billing your clients are two areas that can gain great efficiency for your operations. Look to NDASA members offering software and look for the launch coming next year of our new TPA management system – US TPA Gateway.
Utilizing team training, team building and technology to help grow your business can be extremely valuable. It can help you the CEO get on the right track to working on your business as opposed to working in your business.
Check out my podcast – “Crash CEO School” for more of my recommendations for business building and success.