This content is sponsored by Kaiser Permanente.
Terrance King is big on birthdays.
So much so, the CEO of National Children鈥檚 Center uses them to engage with his team and build workplace camaraderie.
Leading a non-profit organization that supports children and adults with disabilities, King relies on birthday cards to stay in touch with his workers on the frontlines.
鈥淚 sign them and include a message. For locations like our day program, our teachers and our Georgia Avenue location administrator, I hand-deliver those cards.鈥�
Such a small gesture, King said, can make a big difference in keeping morale up and keeping employees on your team.
鈥淭hat’s a small piece,鈥� he said, 鈥渂ut it’s valuable because it becomes very meaningful when they get a card signed by the CEO with a message and hand delivered. It means that you recognize and even acknowledge my birthday. And so that has become a stable and a very important small item that has a big meaning.鈥�
Besides birthday cards, King also holds town hall meetings and attends department meetings. And he surveys his 65-year-old organization on a regular basis.
One piece of feedback from a recent survey?
King said the message was clear: 鈥淗ey, we would like to see Terrance more.鈥�
So King is holding more sessions with his team. He also polls his employees to see what鈥檚 on their minds. One of the questions is simple: If you were CEO for the day, what would you do?
King relies on the surveys to consider what to do next, fix problems and address issues.
He鈥檚 glad he started getting feedback from his organization. 鈥淎nd for me,鈥� he said, 鈥渢hat was a reflection point, because I heard many things that I know that I could do more and better.”
At a time when the Washington, D.C. economy is trying to recover from federal spending cutbacks, King is positioning his workplace for the future.
鈥淚t’s a challenging time,鈥� he added, but he thinks he鈥檚 getting through to his team because 鈥渢hey know that they have a listening ear, that you are accessible, that you have a team of leaders, also that you are investing in them to be better employees.鈥�
