Do you manage by walking around? What do you see? People excited about their job or people just going through the motions? When employees care about their work and their company —when they are engaged—they use discretionary effort. This means the engaged computer programmer works overtime when needed, without being asked. This means the engaged […]
Recently I watched my husband complete a crossword puzzle. He started with four down because that is where it was easiest for him. Then he focused his efforts on a small section of the puzzle trying to respond to both the across and down clues until he got stuck. After awhile he moved to another […]
If I was a fly on the wall what would I hear your employees say? Would it something like this? “He won’t allow me to make even the simplest decisions. She has to sign off on everything. It’s hard to do my job because there’s too much red tape.” Is it possible your staff is talking […]
“I have begun enforcing disciplinary measures on an employee due to her lateness and absenteeism. I know the employee is telling ‘her side of the story’ to anyone who will listen. How can I make my small team aware of this appropriately?” My advice would be not to make your team aware of another employee’s […]
Does your hiring process consist of proven practices or just a hodgepodge of activities that get into gear when someone says, “I need more people” or “Sally has left and we need someone to take her place NOW?” Smart hiring is more than posting requisitions, screening, interviewing and checking references. It is a series of specific […]
If I was a fly on the wall what would I hear your employees say? Would it something like this? “They won’t allow me to make even the simplest decisions.” “The red tape here makes it very difficult to do my job.” “Management has to sign off on everything; they don’t trust me.” A big […]
Rather, the team or project leader functions like a coach who recognizes special talents in people and, at the same time, gets them to work together toward a common goal. The following steps will help you select a cohesive team and set it in the right direction. 1. Evaluate team candidates. You may be called […]
Research shows that most employees want feedback – they want to know how they’re doing – but many managers are doing a poor job of giving it to them. Why is that? Here are some reasons why managers avoid providing performance feedback: 1. Lack of know-how. Providing employees with honest and useful performance feedback is […]
The saying that “people do not leave their jobs, they leave their bosses” is overused, but true. In employee exit surveys, the most frequent employee complaint is about their former supervisor’s communications skills—too little, too much, too ineffective. Poor communication does account for a multitude of workplace woes — including interpersonal conflict, wasted money and […]
Are you aware of Tootsie Roll Pop Strategy of employee retention? Inside a tootsie roll pop is the chocolate core- that is, the wages and benefits. Yes, a competitive compensation package is important. But that gets people to show up for work but not necessarily to give their 100%. However, there is also the outer […]
Carter McNamara of Authenticity Consulting, LLC, provides organization development and consultant training services, and is developer of the Free Management Library. [Read more ...]
Marcia Zidle, a certified career strategist and business coach, works with high potential, high impact executives, managers and professionals to advance their careers and grow their leadership capabilities. [Read more ...]
