By Marcus Kane
One of the saddest things that can happen to you as an employer is to see an exceptional employee leave your company and come running into the arms of the competitor. After everything that you have gone through in interviewing dozens of people, doing countless employment background checks, and examining hundreds of resume, this scenario can surely be frustrating.
As an employer, it is vital to know that employee loyalty is not something automatic, it is something that employers earn. One way of doing so is through proper motivation that not only encourages employees to work excellently but also promotes loyalty. However, bear in mind that it is not enough that you just motivate, you have to do it properly and effectively.
Different Ways to Motivate Employees
1. Giving a raise in workers compensation
Money is surely one of the best motivators since this is the primary reason why employees work in the first place. Giving a raise when one performs excellently will truly motivate and inspire your employee to be more productive and more efficient in what they do.
2. Presenting incentives and rewards
Of course, money is not everything. You do not have to spend money all the time just so you can motivate your employees. Generous rewards like a day off, small gifts, occasional treats to lunch or dinner, or a better office are some of the ways you can motivate your employee.
3. Recognizing and appreciating a job well done
Employees appreciate it when their good performance is recognized and praised. This inspires them to work even harder next time.
4. Provide proper training
Training for additional knowledge and skills are also a great motivator for many employees especially those who are always craving to learn something new. Remember, this is not only a good way to motivate employee but this also improves performance and productivity.
Tips on how to motivate effectively
1. Know the employee
As an employer, you have to know that some motivation strategies work well on others, some do not. For instance, one of your employees is motivated with monetary incentives, another would prefer to be promoted. Therefore, it is important that you get to know your employees very well so you can give the right kind of motivation that will inspire him or her more effectively.
2. Personalize the rewards or gifts that you give to your employees.
For one, you can add a handwritten note of appreciation to the gift or you can give something that the employee is fond of. For example, if your employee is a basketball fanatic, front row tickets to an NBA game of his favorite team will surely be appreciated.
There are many ways you can motivate your employee. However, it is not enough that you just employ the first motivation strategy you see on the list without considering the personality and the likes of your employee.
For more tips and information about workers compensation, check out
http://hubpages.com/hub/Proper-Employee-Motivation-Key-to-Retaining-Great-Employees
Showing posts with label Employee. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Employee. Show all posts
Monday, January 12, 2009
Thursday, December 11, 2008
10 Key Business Management Skills to Build Trust With Your Employees
By Martin Haworth
Employees never feel comfortable under a boss who doesn't trust them or whom they don't trust. In the absence of mutual trust productivity falls as the employees get into politics, covering their backs and other counterproductive activity.
Not trusting each other will affect morale, which leads to a deterioration in customer satisfaction as the focus shifts from the business needs to internal wrangling.
So, let's look at some key qualities a manager must possess to develop trust.
1. Effective Communication
A manager must communicate well to build strong relationships with their people. In difficult times, employees might think no news as bad news, so a manager must keep in close touch. Lack of communication reduces trust; being open with information creates it.
2. Trust Others and They Will Trust You
A manager must develop an ability to trust others and create an environment of trust throughout the workplace. Really, it is better to assume the trustworthiness of employees to start with, rather than waiting for them to earn it. Team members find it much easier to trust their manager if they feel trusted themselves.
3. Honesty In Everything
Being open and honest is a key ingredient for generating trust. When you are open about your vision, actions and intentions, you will usually generate strong support. Both good and bad news should be openly shared, reducing gossip and internal politics. By admitting mistakes and not trying to cover them up, shows any manager to be a normal human being, just like everyone else!
4. Establish Strong Business Ethics
Managers should create a moral value system for the workplace. Teams which have a common ethics are healthier, resourceful, adaptable and productive because of the common root of their consistent value systems.
5. Keep Your Word
By making actions visible and fulfilling commitments, managers become trusted. Failing on promises is insincere and causes tensions. A manager needs to deliver actions visibly, to ensure everyone is aware that they can be depended upon.
6. Be Consistent
In the process of building trust, being consistent and predictable is very important. If the behavioral pattern changes from to week to week, trusting it becomes difficult. Your people get twitchy and uncomfortable when plans and expectations change too much.
7. Be Easily Available
Your team members need to able to get to you when they need to. Whilst there may be times when, for purposes of doing your own work, you need to remain undisturbed, there needs to be a balance. You are the manager and they will need you for specific involvement in day to day activities.
8. Maintaining Confidences
Employees who you manage must be able to confide in you sensitive information, express concern and share problems. People need to know that you can keep this confidential when they need you to. Sometimes these can be personal matters and in such cases this becomes even more important.
9. Language Matters
Watching your language is crucial. By avoiding using the "us" and "them" figures of speech and sticking with "we" wherever possible, your team will bond better with you. Your language should be clear and simple, because everyone interprets what is said differently - so you need to speak plainly for everyone to understand.
10. Creating Social Time
Having informal social interactions with the team enhances the trust building procedure. In context, social interactions are a big opportunity for success for any good manager.
To make a team which works together efficiently, requires the abundant presence of mutual trust. By consistently thinking of and working on trust building, any manager will reap long-lasting positive benefits.
(c) 2008 Martin Haworth is the author of Super Successful Manager, an easy to use, step-by-step weekly development program for managers of EVERY skill level. You can get a sample lesson for free at http://www.SuperSuccessfulManager.com
Employees never feel comfortable under a boss who doesn't trust them or whom they don't trust. In the absence of mutual trust productivity falls as the employees get into politics, covering their backs and other counterproductive activity.
Not trusting each other will affect morale, which leads to a deterioration in customer satisfaction as the focus shifts from the business needs to internal wrangling.
So, let's look at some key qualities a manager must possess to develop trust.
1. Effective Communication
A manager must communicate well to build strong relationships with their people. In difficult times, employees might think no news as bad news, so a manager must keep in close touch. Lack of communication reduces trust; being open with information creates it.
2. Trust Others and They Will Trust You
A manager must develop an ability to trust others and create an environment of trust throughout the workplace. Really, it is better to assume the trustworthiness of employees to start with, rather than waiting for them to earn it. Team members find it much easier to trust their manager if they feel trusted themselves.
3. Honesty In Everything
Being open and honest is a key ingredient for generating trust. When you are open about your vision, actions and intentions, you will usually generate strong support. Both good and bad news should be openly shared, reducing gossip and internal politics. By admitting mistakes and not trying to cover them up, shows any manager to be a normal human being, just like everyone else!
4. Establish Strong Business Ethics
Managers should create a moral value system for the workplace. Teams which have a common ethics are healthier, resourceful, adaptable and productive because of the common root of their consistent value systems.
5. Keep Your Word
By making actions visible and fulfilling commitments, managers become trusted. Failing on promises is insincere and causes tensions. A manager needs to deliver actions visibly, to ensure everyone is aware that they can be depended upon.
6. Be Consistent
In the process of building trust, being consistent and predictable is very important. If the behavioral pattern changes from to week to week, trusting it becomes difficult. Your people get twitchy and uncomfortable when plans and expectations change too much.
7. Be Easily Available
Your team members need to able to get to you when they need to. Whilst there may be times when, for purposes of doing your own work, you need to remain undisturbed, there needs to be a balance. You are the manager and they will need you for specific involvement in day to day activities.
8. Maintaining Confidences
Employees who you manage must be able to confide in you sensitive information, express concern and share problems. People need to know that you can keep this confidential when they need you to. Sometimes these can be personal matters and in such cases this becomes even more important.
9. Language Matters
Watching your language is crucial. By avoiding using the "us" and "them" figures of speech and sticking with "we" wherever possible, your team will bond better with you. Your language should be clear and simple, because everyone interprets what is said differently - so you need to speak plainly for everyone to understand.
10. Creating Social Time
Having informal social interactions with the team enhances the trust building procedure. In context, social interactions are a big opportunity for success for any good manager.
To make a team which works together efficiently, requires the abundant presence of mutual trust. By consistently thinking of and working on trust building, any manager will reap long-lasting positive benefits.
(c) 2008 Martin Haworth is the author of Super Successful Manager, an easy to use, step-by-step weekly development program for managers of EVERY skill level. You can get a sample lesson for free at http://www.SuperSuccessfulManager.com
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Improve Employee Performance by Focusing on Working Relationships
By Barbara Brown
Sometimes the way to encourage employees to do something you want is to focus on WHO they will be working with. In other words, people like to work with people they like, admire, respect, etc. So the next time you encounter a situation where someone is resisting doing something, explain how doing what you want will allow them to work with someone they want. Consider these five examples:
1. A Friend: Maybe there is a possibility of working with someone who is (or was) a friend or valued associate. Highlight this relationship when talking to employees. Explain how doing something you want might offer opportunities for working with someone they want.
2. An Intelligent Colleague: Some employees value working with people whom they view as intelligent or smart. If that's the case, focus on this possible connection when you talk about workloads or contributions.
3. A Powerful Colleague: Some employees are sensitive to situations that offer a chance to work with powerful people. Explain how the assignment or a change in performance might offer a chance to network with influential people.
4. A Well-Respected Colleague: Certain employees command a high level of respect from others. Some employees will leap at the opportunity to work with that person. Highlight this interaction during your discussion about tasks or performance.
5. A Nice Employee: People like to work with nice people. Think about what you want employees to do and the personalities of the employees who they will be interacting with. Link positive performance to opportunities to work with friendly people.
Remember, People Work With People
People represent a constant in work environments. As such, they influence the performance and behaviors of others. Many times that influence is negative, with employees saying, "I don't want to work on that project because John (or Jane) will be participating." But sometimes it's positive, with employees feeling excited about who they will be working with. Your role is to be proactive and use this information as a strategy to encourage greater cooperation and contributions. Start with these five working relationships.
Barbara Brown, PhD shows managers how to improve employee performance by linking performance to results. Her E-Books contain phrases and examples for discussing performance, improving performance, and reinforcing performance. Her E-Courses provide strategies for motivating employees to cooperate and contribute.
Click on "FREE STUFF" at her website to download tools to manage performance discussions.
Website: http://www.LinkToResults.net
Email: Barbara@LinkToResults.net
Sometimes the way to encourage employees to do something you want is to focus on WHO they will be working with. In other words, people like to work with people they like, admire, respect, etc. So the next time you encounter a situation where someone is resisting doing something, explain how doing what you want will allow them to work with someone they want. Consider these five examples:
1. A Friend: Maybe there is a possibility of working with someone who is (or was) a friend or valued associate. Highlight this relationship when talking to employees. Explain how doing something you want might offer opportunities for working with someone they want.
2. An Intelligent Colleague: Some employees value working with people whom they view as intelligent or smart. If that's the case, focus on this possible connection when you talk about workloads or contributions.
3. A Powerful Colleague: Some employees are sensitive to situations that offer a chance to work with powerful people. Explain how the assignment or a change in performance might offer a chance to network with influential people.
4. A Well-Respected Colleague: Certain employees command a high level of respect from others. Some employees will leap at the opportunity to work with that person. Highlight this interaction during your discussion about tasks or performance.
5. A Nice Employee: People like to work with nice people. Think about what you want employees to do and the personalities of the employees who they will be interacting with. Link positive performance to opportunities to work with friendly people.
Remember, People Work With People
People represent a constant in work environments. As such, they influence the performance and behaviors of others. Many times that influence is negative, with employees saying, "I don't want to work on that project because John (or Jane) will be participating." But sometimes it's positive, with employees feeling excited about who they will be working with. Your role is to be proactive and use this information as a strategy to encourage greater cooperation and contributions. Start with these five working relationships.
Barbara Brown, PhD shows managers how to improve employee performance by linking performance to results. Her E-Books contain phrases and examples for discussing performance, improving performance, and reinforcing performance. Her E-Courses provide strategies for motivating employees to cooperate and contribute.
Click on "FREE STUFF" at her website to download tools to manage performance discussions.
Website: http://www.LinkToResults.net
Email: Barbara@LinkToResults.net
Improve Employee Performance by Letting "Talkers" Speak
By Barbara Brown, Ph.D
Do you have one or two employees who like to be "in front" of the crowd? Or perhaps they just like to do more talking than writing. If so, use their passion for speaking as a way to encourage greater cooperation and contributions. How? By highlighting situations where there will be opportunities to speak. Or better yet, by actually making sure they have opportunities to share ideas and talk in public. Consider these four situations:
Situation 1: You want to encourage increased participation in meetings.
Sometimes the way to garner increased and constructive input from "talkers" is to give them a platform at meetings. Provide this opportunity by thinking of a way to give them a visible, but structured, role in some part of the meeting. This might involve opening the meeting, reviewing the agenda, or closing the meeting.
Situation 2: You want to encourage more sharing of expertise.
For employees who talk a lot AND know a lot, find ways to allow them to share their knowledge. If they possess appropriate platform skills, allow them to present a portion of a training class or conduct the entire class. Or consider situations where they might provide training for a group of employees outside the structured classroom.
Situation 3: You want to encourage improved participation in a project.
Some employees resist doing their best when they think that their specific work will be combined with the work of others; leaving no way to distinguish individual contributions. And while you may not be able to eliminate this end result, you might be able to give those who crave some limelight to have a public viewing. Perhaps they could have a regular role in presenting updates to management. Or maybe they could have more specific presentation tasks like identifying problems or describing approaches to solve problems.
Situation 4: You want to encourage more participation in company-sponsored events or extracurricular activities.
Employees who like to be seen may not necessarily relish a "back room or back row" role when you have community meetings, charity events, or company banquets. So whenever possible, think of ways to allow them to be engaged in a way they find useful and enjoyable. Perhaps there will be opportunities for talking about the event before it happens. Or maybe a presentation will be possible during or even after the event.
Even Irritating Behaviors Can Have A Positive Use
Some employees like to talk a lot, while some prefer to say very little. Some abhor making public presentations, while others crave such roles. When these behaviors happen in the extreme, they can be irritating. The key is to not let negative perceptions about certain behaviors prevent you from positively using those behaviors to create more meaningful experiences for employees. And if employees find the job more meaningful, they are more likely to do a better job.
So if you have some employees who love the limelight or love to be heard, give them more of what they love to do.
Barbara Brown, PhD shows managers how to improve employee performance by linking performance to results. Her E-Books contain phrases and examples for discussing performance, improving performance, and reinforcing performance. Her E-Courses provide strategies for motivating employees to cooperate and contribute.
Click on "FREE STUFF" at her website to download tools to manage performance discussions.
Website: http://www.LinkToResults.net
Email: Barbara@LinkToResults.net
Do you have one or two employees who like to be "in front" of the crowd? Or perhaps they just like to do more talking than writing. If so, use their passion for speaking as a way to encourage greater cooperation and contributions. How? By highlighting situations where there will be opportunities to speak. Or better yet, by actually making sure they have opportunities to share ideas and talk in public. Consider these four situations:
Situation 1: You want to encourage increased participation in meetings.
Sometimes the way to garner increased and constructive input from "talkers" is to give them a platform at meetings. Provide this opportunity by thinking of a way to give them a visible, but structured, role in some part of the meeting. This might involve opening the meeting, reviewing the agenda, or closing the meeting.
Situation 2: You want to encourage more sharing of expertise.
For employees who talk a lot AND know a lot, find ways to allow them to share their knowledge. If they possess appropriate platform skills, allow them to present a portion of a training class or conduct the entire class. Or consider situations where they might provide training for a group of employees outside the structured classroom.
Situation 3: You want to encourage improved participation in a project.
Some employees resist doing their best when they think that their specific work will be combined with the work of others; leaving no way to distinguish individual contributions. And while you may not be able to eliminate this end result, you might be able to give those who crave some limelight to have a public viewing. Perhaps they could have a regular role in presenting updates to management. Or maybe they could have more specific presentation tasks like identifying problems or describing approaches to solve problems.
Situation 4: You want to encourage more participation in company-sponsored events or extracurricular activities.
Employees who like to be seen may not necessarily relish a "back room or back row" role when you have community meetings, charity events, or company banquets. So whenever possible, think of ways to allow them to be engaged in a way they find useful and enjoyable. Perhaps there will be opportunities for talking about the event before it happens. Or maybe a presentation will be possible during or even after the event.
Even Irritating Behaviors Can Have A Positive Use
Some employees like to talk a lot, while some prefer to say very little. Some abhor making public presentations, while others crave such roles. When these behaviors happen in the extreme, they can be irritating. The key is to not let negative perceptions about certain behaviors prevent you from positively using those behaviors to create more meaningful experiences for employees. And if employees find the job more meaningful, they are more likely to do a better job.
So if you have some employees who love the limelight or love to be heard, give them more of what they love to do.
Barbara Brown, PhD shows managers how to improve employee performance by linking performance to results. Her E-Books contain phrases and examples for discussing performance, improving performance, and reinforcing performance. Her E-Courses provide strategies for motivating employees to cooperate and contribute.
Click on "FREE STUFF" at her website to download tools to manage performance discussions.
Website: http://www.LinkToResults.net
Email: Barbara@LinkToResults.net
How to Deal With an Uncooperative Employee
By C Jackson
This can be many manager's worst nightmare - a worker who is difficult and starts to drag down the entire team. In this article, discover the options you have in dealing with such a troublemaker.
The Dangers Of A Troublemaker
A single disruptive influence can be very costly for a team, a department and potentially even an entire company.
The most common type is a slacker. The type of person who does very little work and barely reaches the minimum. In many ways, these are the easiest to "dispose" of and encourage to leave.
But much worse are those who openly argue with management. These are a very serious case and can lead to similar behavior from other employees or, at the very least, lowered morale.
The First Approach - Understanding
With such an employee, the best approach is one of understanding. Arrange a one to one meeting for an hour and openly discuss what is happening. Ask the person what his motivations are - what does he want to do in the long term.
If he is unhappy about anything, explain whether or not it can be changed and show him your point of view. If you are a reasonable person and the employee has obviously been unreasonable then he will surely see the error of his ways.
Offer him a carrot in the form of investment in training and career opportunities and most workers will usually take the bait.
Now the proof is in how well he sticks to the new regime.
The Second Approach - Managing "Out"
If the worker does not respond well to your earlier approach then it is time to get rid of such a disruptive element. He is simply coming in every day to leech off the company at the expense of everyone except himself.
Unfortunately, labor laws are very protective of workers rights so you must be tactful.
By speaking with Human Resources, you can formulate a written plan which will set out his minimum obligations. If he fails to meet these over a period of months then you can legally terminate his contract.
However, if you have a worker that meets these requirements but you feel is still disruptive then you should encourage him to leave by denying him career opportunities and rewarding others in the team. He will probably soon feel that he could be doing better elsewhere and leave of his own accord.
Very rarely, you may be able to come to an agreement to mutually terminate the contract but this will cost you severance pay.
Do you know how to manage people effectively in the real world? Get the no holds barred guide to real management at http://www.HowToBeABoss.com
This can be many manager's worst nightmare - a worker who is difficult and starts to drag down the entire team. In this article, discover the options you have in dealing with such a troublemaker.
The Dangers Of A Troublemaker
A single disruptive influence can be very costly for a team, a department and potentially even an entire company.
The most common type is a slacker. The type of person who does very little work and barely reaches the minimum. In many ways, these are the easiest to "dispose" of and encourage to leave.
But much worse are those who openly argue with management. These are a very serious case and can lead to similar behavior from other employees or, at the very least, lowered morale.
The First Approach - Understanding
With such an employee, the best approach is one of understanding. Arrange a one to one meeting for an hour and openly discuss what is happening. Ask the person what his motivations are - what does he want to do in the long term.
If he is unhappy about anything, explain whether or not it can be changed and show him your point of view. If you are a reasonable person and the employee has obviously been unreasonable then he will surely see the error of his ways.
Offer him a carrot in the form of investment in training and career opportunities and most workers will usually take the bait.
Now the proof is in how well he sticks to the new regime.
The Second Approach - Managing "Out"
If the worker does not respond well to your earlier approach then it is time to get rid of such a disruptive element. He is simply coming in every day to leech off the company at the expense of everyone except himself.
Unfortunately, labor laws are very protective of workers rights so you must be tactful.
By speaking with Human Resources, you can formulate a written plan which will set out his minimum obligations. If he fails to meet these over a period of months then you can legally terminate his contract.
However, if you have a worker that meets these requirements but you feel is still disruptive then you should encourage him to leave by denying him career opportunities and rewarding others in the team. He will probably soon feel that he could be doing better elsewhere and leave of his own accord.
Very rarely, you may be able to come to an agreement to mutually terminate the contract but this will cost you severance pay.
Do you know how to manage people effectively in the real world? Get the no holds barred guide to real management at http://www.HowToBeABoss.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
