Employees Who No Longer Care...Do You Know What to Do? by Larry Wenger
Whether I am talking to employees at a human services agency or at a local hardware store, I find that most supervisors struggle with the problem of employees who have lost their motivation to do a good job. They walk around looking bored; their eyes glazed; they sit down whenever possible; they talk to customers and clients in unpleasant tones; they have very little positive to say to anyone; they cant wait for the next payday. You know the folks I'm talking about.
I hear it all the time. Their supervisors are very frustrated. Understandably so and yet too often, if you examine their personnel folders, there's nothing there. Rarely do these unmotivated people do anything bad enough that gets them fired on the spot. Yet their negative influcence spreads a dangerous disease every day. It's a disease that makes it hard to get anything significant accomplished.
These problems are not easy to fix; you can't give unmotivated employees a pill to change them. Interesting that many of us work for organizations that claim to know how to change human behavior and yet we seem totally inept at changing the behavior of employees. We can help employees change; it doesnt happen quickly but it can be done and let me say right away that we will not change them with threats or a "my way or the highway approach". It's a network of behaviors that will stimulate the change, when implemented professionally and by supervisors who are good with people and emotionally intelligent. Here are some suggestions.
1. Reduce mis-hires. Renowned football coach Lou Holtz says that he's a better coach when he has good players. Make it hard to get a job at your place. Put job applicants under stress and only hire the ones that show good potential to contribute to your organization. Accept nothing less...for any reason.
2. Be clear about duties and expectations. Align these with the mission of the organization and discuss it at every staff meeting...it's a discussion, not a lecture. Everyone should know how the mission impacts what they have to do this afternoon.
3. Emphasize learning for everyone...form top to bottom. Demonstrate how learning new skills makes everyone more productive. Talk about your efforts to improve your own performance.
4. Show an interest in the personal stressors of your employees. Understand the mountains they have to climb in order to be successful on the job. Maybe you know where they can get some help. Their loyalty will more than make your effort worhwhile. It's not about being "nosey", it's a matter of being available.
5. Overcommunicate your commitment to support the success of your employees. Be their cheerleader; promote them; let others know about their accomplishments.
6. Give people honest feedback beginning on their first day; don't put it off.
7. Be a supervisor who is trustworthy and dependable. Don't overpromise, but do overdeliver. Give them a safe environment in which to work; one in which they can grow and make mistakes. Being firm, fair and consistent makes it easier for them to change.
Building motivation in someone takes time and it's not simple. Who knows, for some it may never work. But these 7 suggestions will promote a culture in which change is possible.
If your supervisors want to get the most out of their staff but aren't sure where to start, I'd love to talk to you about it. Call me at Healthier Workplaces for a free consultation, 877-872-6195.
5.
Monday, January 18, 2016
Saturday, January 2, 2016
The Nine Commandments for Supervisors
For many supervisors, their relationship with people who work for them could be a lot better. A recent study by faculty members at the University of Florida said that more than half of the employees found their supervisors untrustworthy, not good role models and too free to share confidential information. This is indeed a severe indictment. Poor supervision is often seen as a factor in high turnover and increasingly employers are holding supervisors accountable for turnover amongst their direct reports.
Supervision is about nurturing employees. It's about being committed to making them successful rather than waiting for them to make a mistake. Supervisors need to have a clear and specific idea of how they can support the individuals who work for them and how technical skills as well as attitudes or habits can be improved.
Technical skills are the easy part. Attitudes and habits are harder to change which speaks to the reason why they are responsible for more terminations than the technical skills. Which takes us to the Nine Commandments... since if followed, the supervisor will be more successful at changing attitudes and habits.
1. Get to know the employee, what motivates them, what some of their personal interests are, what their goals are for their personal and professional future. Be prepared to share some of your own as well. This develops the bond between you and your employee, enables better planning for the future and adds zest to your work together.
2. Be organized. Don't bring your employee into a cluttered office. Be prepared. The employee should not feel as though he/she is taking you away from more important work. Don't take phone calls during the session. Do put a do-not-disturb sign on your door and make sure that your discussions are held in a private, safe-to-talk space. The environment should show respect for the employee.
3. Model the behavior you expect to see from your employee. Handle your own responsibilities well.
4. Acknowledge good work. Regularly and often. No employee has ever complained that their boss compliments them too much. Compliments feel good.
5. Be positive and optimistic. Give your employees the confidence that things will work out; give them a reason to believe that planning and hard work will lead to success. Describe their strengths as well as weaknesses.
6. Document your discussions. Describe the behavior you want from the employee both verbally and in writing. Track progress and make note of it. This eliminates surprises when it comes to doing the annual review.
7. Refer often to the mission and goals of the organization. Make sure that the employee knows exactly how to contribute to those goals.
8. Demonstrate your own commitment to learning and to improving your own performance. Don't expect your employees to find time to go to training if you can't seem to break away for some time of personal growth. Be willing to admit your own mistakes and areas in which you need to improve.
9. Be fair, consistent and honest. Be prepared to speak clearly about areas of the employee's performance that must improve; don't use vague language. Be behaviorally specific in terms of the problem and the solution as well as the time frame for expected improvement. One can be specific without being judgmental of the person receiving the feedback.
As a supervisor you must recognize that your job now requires that you help the organization achieve success through the cooperation of other people. You may have been really good at making clay pots, but that is not your job now. Instead of the technical skills that were required in making those pots, you now need the people skills which build loyalty and motivation. As Dwight Eisenhower is quoted as saying, "Leadership (including supervision) is about getting other people to do what you want them to do because they want to do it that way." Attitudes and habits do not change quickly. You will need to be patient, but determined.
For many supervisors, their relationship with people who work for them could be a lot better. A recent study by faculty members at the University of Florida said that more than half of the employees found their supervisors untrustworthy, not good role models and too free to share confidential information. This is indeed a severe indictment. Poor supervision is often seen as a factor in high turnover and increasingly employers are holding supervisors accountable for turnover amongst their direct reports.
Supervision is about nurturing employees. It's about being committed to making them successful rather than waiting for them to make a mistake. Supervisors need to have a clear and specific idea of how they can support the individuals who work for them and how technical skills as well as attitudes or habits can be improved.
Technical skills are the easy part. Attitudes and habits are harder to change which speaks to the reason why they are responsible for more terminations than the technical skills. Which takes us to the Nine Commandments... since if followed, the supervisor will be more successful at changing attitudes and habits.
1. Get to know the employee, what motivates them, what some of their personal interests are, what their goals are for their personal and professional future. Be prepared to share some of your own as well. This develops the bond between you and your employee, enables better planning for the future and adds zest to your work together.
2. Be organized. Don't bring your employee into a cluttered office. Be prepared. The employee should not feel as though he/she is taking you away from more important work. Don't take phone calls during the session. Do put a do-not-disturb sign on your door and make sure that your discussions are held in a private, safe-to-talk space. The environment should show respect for the employee.
3. Model the behavior you expect to see from your employee. Handle your own responsibilities well.
4. Acknowledge good work. Regularly and often. No employee has ever complained that their boss compliments them too much. Compliments feel good.
5. Be positive and optimistic. Give your employees the confidence that things will work out; give them a reason to believe that planning and hard work will lead to success. Describe their strengths as well as weaknesses.
6. Document your discussions. Describe the behavior you want from the employee both verbally and in writing. Track progress and make note of it. This eliminates surprises when it comes to doing the annual review.
7. Refer often to the mission and goals of the organization. Make sure that the employee knows exactly how to contribute to those goals.
8. Demonstrate your own commitment to learning and to improving your own performance. Don't expect your employees to find time to go to training if you can't seem to break away for some time of personal growth. Be willing to admit your own mistakes and areas in which you need to improve.
9. Be fair, consistent and honest. Be prepared to speak clearly about areas of the employee's performance that must improve; don't use vague language. Be behaviorally specific in terms of the problem and the solution as well as the time frame for expected improvement. One can be specific without being judgmental of the person receiving the feedback.
As a supervisor you must recognize that your job now requires that you help the organization achieve success through the cooperation of other people. You may have been really good at making clay pots, but that is not your job now. Instead of the technical skills that were required in making those pots, you now need the people skills which build loyalty and motivation. As Dwight Eisenhower is quoted as saying, "Leadership (including supervision) is about getting other people to do what you want them to do because they want to do it that way." Attitudes and habits do not change quickly. You will need to be patient, but determined.
Webinar Training for Managers Available
Happy to announce the availability of 5, 30-minute webinars on management. These trainings written by Larry Wenger and produced and distributed by NetSmart Technologies, one of the largest producers of on-line training. The 5 topics are:
Happy to announce the availability of 5, 30-minute webinars on management. These trainings written by Larry Wenger and produced and distributed by NetSmart Technologies, one of the largest producers of on-line training. The 5 topics are:
- Building a High-Trust Workplace;
- Employee Happiness;
- Hire and Retain the Right People in the First Place;
- Sensational Staff Meetings;
- Staff Training and Development.
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