‘Designing Strategies’ eNewsletter
May – June 2010 Volume 7 – Issue 33
How are you feeling about the performance of your employees? What have you done to assure that employees have the support needed to do their jobs optimally? If you spend too much time in hand-holding mode, constantly forced to intervene with employees who can’t seem to get or stay on track, that’s not a good thing. If running around, putting out fires is a normal day for you, it’s time to make some changes.
Good, or excellent, employees doing assigned tasks, and beyond, in a professional and timely manner is what you want to see. Less positive are others who can’t manage to get to work on time, much less complete their project assignments on time. These employees hold up other staff and delay important deadlines. Some employees take no time at all to get on track. You give them assignments, point them in the right direction and they handle the work to with little additional input.
Don’t you wish all of your staff fit that ‘good employee’ mold? It would be nice, not having to constantly follow up with them to be sure they understood the assignments and tasks they were hired for. Knowing they understand their job as well as their place in your company’s big picture would be a real plus. Imagine every project and task being completed, day in and day out, with little need for you to intercede. Imagine co-workers working well as teams to keep the business running smoothly. Imagine employees willing to go the extra mile to be sure everyone is headed in the direction outlined in your strategic plan. Think of your team operating as interconnecting elements of a strong, cooperative and ethical work force, focused on supporting your core competencies and strategies. Ahhh…wouldn’t that be nice?
“The employer generally gets the employee he deserves.”
Sir Walter Bilbey
What have you done to assure that employees have the support needed to do their jobs optimally? Are they clear on their responsibilities, the importance of their job, and your expectations of them as valued members of the team? Were clear job descriptions created to assure all bases are covered at all times? Did you hire and place employees based on their strengths, or did you put the wrong person in the wrong position, poised for failure? Have you planned and budgeted for necessary training to support success?
Each individual is different, with their own unique strengths and weaknesses. Unless you take time to determine the personality type needed to adequately fill a specific position, chances are you will end up with inappropriate workers. This results in employees tackling projects incompatible with their core strengths and weaknesses.
Leaders of a well-run company will take the time necessary to develop detailed job descriptions for every position. This is necessary in order to keep the company moving forward like a well-oiled machine. Those looking to hire rock stars will also need an understanding of which characteristics and attributes best mesh for every available position. Every staff addition needs training to understand their job. Leverage your human resources. Help them be all that they can be. It should be crystal clear to new hires what their job will entail, what is expected of them and how they fit into the corporate culture and structure. Success will seldom come to employees kept in the dark about expectations.
Many companies grow before they are ready for what growth entails regarding the addition of staff. They don’t quite have their sea legs under them when that big project or sale rolls in, forcing them to increase the work force over night. These situations leave little time for preparation needed to assure the best people are hired to handle the increased work load and move the company to the next level. It is far better to plan for growth before it becomes an instant reality.
Decide that you are going to get your staffing issues under control. It is crucial that you leverage your human resources to achieve strategic success. Review your organizational chart to be sure you have all bases covered for today and for the future. Review…or create….job descriptions for each position in the company and cross-check them to avoid gaps in critical areas. Determine what skills, competencies and personality types each job requires and be sure to have a training plan in place to improve skills where necessary. Then, recruit and hire the best people you can find with the skills and attributes that best match your needs. A strategic approach to staffing will position your company to move into the future as the economy picks up.
VISUALIZE — ANALYZE — STRATEGIZE
Your firm’s human resources to the highest levels!
Maurer Consulting Group is a strategies firm helping clients evaluate and formulate strategies for success. ‘Designing Strategies’ is a bi-monthly, email-generated newsletter sent to you with Terri Maurer’s compliments. Please feel free to forward to friends and colleagues you think might find it interesting and informative. To be added to or removed from our recipients list, please send an email to tlmaurer@maurerconsultinggroup.com.
