How to Manage Your Employees
How to Motivate Part Time Employees
It's hard to motivate part-time employees. They often do low-level work, have little chance for advancement and can be treated as outsiders by full-time employees. So how do managers overcome these problems and turn their part-time staff into a potent force? Here are some proven methods.
Orient them properly. Take time to describe job duties and go over the basic rules, e.g., are personal phone calls allowed? To avoid confusion and frustration, clearly identify who is allowed to give the part-time staff assignments.
Assign a mentor. Even after proper orientation, part-time staff will have questions. Assign a full-time employee to be their mentor. The part-time person will feel more like a part of the team, and the mentor will feel good about the added responsibility. Make sure to pick someone who is patient and has time to answer questions.
Mix up the workload. Don't overload part-time staff with only mundane tasks. It's a common temptation to assign all low-level work to them. Don't! It's demoralizing and will discourage them from doing their best. It is also important to find out what specialized skills the part time person has to offer and then take advantage of that knowledge.
Offer flexible hours. Many part-time people have special situations that require them to work only part time. Use that to add to your advantage. By allowing flexible hours, you'll retain your part-time staff longer, eliminating the need for costly training.
Offer financial incentives. Most companies don't offer part-time staff bonuses. That's a mistake. Set up a bonus plan based on company revenues. Give them a reason to get excited about their jobs.
Make Acknowledging your Employees a Daily Event
Good managers remember to acknowledge and motivate their employees. Great managers do it every day! Here are some proven methods for making sure that praising employees becomes part of your daily routine.
At the beginning of the day put five coins in you pocket. Then during the day each time you praise an employee, transfer a coin to your other pocket. It may sound corny, but once you get into the habit, you'll start relying on tricks like this one. Just remember not to buy a soda with the coins!
Make employees a part of your weekly "to do" list. Add the names of the people who report to you to your list of goals to accomplish. Then cross of the names as you praise them.
At the end of the day, take a minute to write a thank-you note to any employee who made a difference that day. Keep a stack of note cards on your desk as a reminder.
Always be specific about what you praise. Never say "George, you are doing a great job, keep up the good work." He may have been surfing the net all morning and now will think you are easy to fool. Wait for something specific to praise, as in "Todd, you did a great job with that customer, keep up the good work."
If an employee does excellent work on a project, spend some time with that employee to let him or her know how much it means to you and the company. Better yet, take that employee to lunch on the company, as a way of rewarding the behavior.
Use praise to improve poor performance. If an employee is doing well in one area, but poorly in another, use praise to improve the poor performance. Sit the employee down, praise what he or she is doing right and then say, "Now, I want you to take the same approach on this other matter?"
Never assume praise is enough. Superior performance over time deserves more than compliments. Praise starts to ring hollow if that's all the employee ever gets. Bonuses, raises, interesting job assignments and other forms of appreciation are absolutely essential at some point.
The Right Way to Cut Absenteeism
Make sure you consider these four critical "don'ts" if you opt for an incentive plan to control absenteeism:
Don't set up a team-driven program that requires perfect attendance y all members. Instead, tie success to production results so the members can reach goals even when one member is absent for a legitimate reason.
Don't reward employees who have good attendance and ignore those who do not. Your plan should include disciplinary measures for poor attendance.
Don't leave rewards to chance. A lottery can hurt morale because employees with perfect attendance may never win.
Don't set impractical goals or offer skimpy rewards. A successful plan requires attainable rewards that are worth winning.
Great Ways to Boost Morale
One of a managers most important jobs is to keep spirits up in the work place. With stress levels in America at an all time high, this isn't always easy to do. However here are some ideas you can use that will get the job done, without hurting your budget.
Sponsor a "Noon Show". Once a week, show a funny old movie (they are short!) or episodes from Seinfeld, Home Improvement or other situation comedies.
Set up a "Humor Corner". Designate one section of the store or office as the place for humor, and encourage employees to post cartoons, jokes or other funny material.
Get out of the office or store! Whenever possible, hold meetings outside the workplace, such as the coffee shop down the street or a local restaurant. If weather permits, go to the park or the beach.
Sponsor an "Interesting Pizza Day". Once a month, treat employees to pizza (gourmet pizza shops now feature dozens of specialty toppings) and encourage people to try different kinds.
Liven up you memos. Buy a book of one-liners and include a joke at the bottom of your memos.
Have a "late Day Monday". If possible, once a month, allow your employees to arrive an hour late on a Monday morning or to leave an hour early on a Friday. If store hours don't permit this, have employees take turns on different days.
Take pictures! Everyone office has an aspiring photographer. Ask that person to take candid shots of employees and add them to your "humor corner" and/or include them in your newsletters, advertising and holiday cards.
Play with the dress code. If your culture allows it, hold an "Ugly Tie", "Ugly Pants" or "Ugly Shirt" day and then award prizes for the winners. Crazy Hat days are always popular too! This is fun for both the employees and the customers!
How to Be a Great Manager
If you gathered 100 experienced managers together and asked for their advice, they probably wouldn't say much about "competing value models" or "temporal rhythm." Instead this is a good idea of what you'd hear.
Don't be afraid of the phrase "I don't know?." If you don't know the answer, don't try to bluff. If you're at fault, take the blame. If you're wrong, apologize. A wise person once said, "If you always tell the truth, you never have to remember anything."
"Never gossip." And if someone wants to gossip with you, politely say you're not interested. This corporate adage rings true. When someone gossips, two careers are hurt, the person being talked about, and the person doing the talking.
"No task is beneath you." Don't think you are above anything. Be the good example and pitch in, especially if the job is one that nobody wants to do.
"Share the credit whenever possible." Managers who spread credit around look much stronger than those who take all the credit themselves.
"Ask for help." If you think you're in over your head, you are. Before it gets out of hand, ask someone for help, most people enjoy giving a hand. Besides saving yourself from embarrassment, you'll make a friend and ally.
"Keep your salary to yourself." Discussing salary is a no win proposition. Either you'll be upset because someone is making more than you, or they will be upset with you.
"When you don't like someone, don't let it show." Especially if you outrank them. Never burn bridges or offend others as you move ahead.
"Let it go." What shouldn't happen often does. You weren't given the project you wanted, you were passed over for the promotion you deserved. Be gracious and diplomatic and move on. Harboring a grudge won't advance your career.
"When you are right, don't gloat." The only time you should ever use the phrase "I told you so" is if someone says to you "you were right, I really could succeed at that project."
How to Deal with Employee Conflict
Ask those who disagree to paraphrase one another's comments. This may help the team see if they really understand each other.
Work out a compromise. Agree on the underlying source of conflict, then engage in give and take and finally agree on a solution.
Ask each member to list what the other side should do. Exchange lists, select a compromise all are willing to accept and test the compromise to see if it meshes with team goals.
Have each side write 10 questions for their opponents. This will allow them to signal their major concerns about the other side's position. And the answers may lead to a compromise.
Convince team member they sometimes may have to admit they are wrong. Help them save face by convincing them that changing position can show strength.
Respect the experts on the team. Give their opinions more weight when the conflict involves their expertise, but don't rule out conflicting opinions.
Ideas to Use When Delegating
Proper delegation creates a team spirit and helps you accomplish much more than if you try to work alone.
Pick people who can accept responsibility. Surround yourself with the best.
Try to match the person to the task. Try to delegate assignments that will capitalize on the person's talents.
Remember that the person performing the task may not do it as well as you do it. Don't be tempted to take over the project. Weigh the time you might lose at first against the time you'll save in the long run.
Build the person's confidence by assigning low-risk projects at first.
Let delegates put their own spin on the assignment. Their way may be better. Be sure to listen to their ideas.
When communicating a task, use words that are easily understood. A good idea: Dictate the instructions on a cassette or write them out so the person can recheck the message.
Six Ways to Build a Top Staff
- Be friendly to staff members but don't treat them like close personal friends. They want you to be the boss and they want to be employees. It works better that way.
- Tell them everything. And expect them to tell you the same. Shared knowledge builds loyalty and trust.
- Practice Pulitzer Prize plagiarism: Steal only from the best. If you need help, reach out to your professional community. Someone, somewhere, somehow will know how to help you.
- Invest heavily in loyalty. If staff members know that you're always loyal to them, they'll give you the same in return.
- Realize that fairness establishes your credibility.
- Never be too busy to laugh. Nothing gets people through a crisis like a good laugh and a manger who's willing to enjoy it with them.
If You Must Criticize an Associate
Here are some suggestions for giving criticism in a way that motivates others to do a better job.
See yourself as a teacher or coach -- as being helpful. Keep in mind that you're trying to help someone improve.
- Show you care. Express your sincere concern about sharing ways the other person can boost his or her success.
- Pick the right moment to offer criticism. Make sure the person hasn't just been shaken by some incident.
- Avoid telling people they "should do such and such" or "should have done such and such." "Shoulds" make you appear rigid and overly concerned with formal rules and trivial points of learning.
- Avoid giving the impression that you're more concerned with seeing your recommendations put into practice than in helping the other person improve and succeed.
- Show how the person will benefit from taking the actions you suggest.
- Give specific suggestions. Being vague might only make the situation worse by creating anxiety and doubt.
Having Fun at Work!
If you own a small business, you know that your employees? attitude can directly affect the quality of the service and customer care you provide. Customers can usually sense if the staff is happy, content, bored or annoyed. By making an effort to ensure that employee morale remains high, you'll be taking steps to create a better company.
There are hundreds of ways to make being at work fun, but some of the most simple and cost effective ones are still the best! Everyone loves potluck lunches and themed lunches provided by the company. Decorating the office for holidays and giving everyone candy for Valentines or providing green treats for St. Patrick's Day always puts a smile on everyone's face as well! Also, anytime you can get together for lunch or dinner off site, it is a big treat. Another great idea is "movie and popcorn" night, many of the theaters have a group discount and even rooms to have pizza or hot dogs before the movie, as another option.
Another mood elevator is playing games at lunch time. Have some "fast games" in the break room such as checkers, Connect Four, playing cards, Yahtzee, Nerf basketball, etc. Even kids games, like Pick Up Sticks, and Barrel of Monkeys can be a fun and quick diversion. When weather allows, it's great to have tables and chairs outside for lunches and even having meetings outdoors is a great idea! The best way to find out what your associates would like is to have a meeting, specifically to decide as a group what activities would add an element of fun to work.
Quick and Easy "Acts of Fun"
Have a "funny hat" day, even people who don't like to dress up, will find a fun hat to wear.
Hold a paper plane contest, the winner being the person to have their plane fly the furthest.
Give everyone silly putty and give them 15 minutes to do something fun with it and give a prize to the winner.
Have noisemakers at meetings (hooters, whistles, clickers) which everyone has to use before they speak. Take votes with "All those in favor, make a noise". Even more fun, add something funny, like a rubber duck, that everyone has to hold while they are speaking.