Are
You and Your Staff
Heading
in the
Same
Direction?
It is the boss’s job to make sure that the entire
organization is heading in the right direction. This starts with hiring the best people you can find … and then
training them to be great contributors.
People who are trained to share your vision of your company in the first
four months of their employment will develop into your best employees. That is the greatest thing you can do for
your employees. Now, most small
business people don't put much time into training, but it is … the secret.
Training does wonderful things for you and your staff, so
don't think of it as overhead. First
think of training as the single highest returning investment you can make. Whether you are training people in a small
retail store or a high-pressure environment there are some basic areas that you
want to work out to insure that your people are properly trained.
Start with
your goal. Your vision of your
business is the greatest thing you have to share. If people do not understand your vision and your mission, how can
you expect them to accomplish the goals of your business? So locate people of character and instill
them with your vision of your business.
Teach them to make you look good and share with them the value of the
knowledge that is at the core of your business.
Make
training a standard part of your workplace. You can do this by having an organized plan. Don't leave this to chance because it is the
greatest way to nurture your employees.
You can use your office automation processes to assist you with
this.
Flowchart
the training process. Make a chart that lays out step by step the
things that each employee needs to know and how you can instill this knowledge
in that employee. Then develop training
material to accomplish this goal. Your
GoldMine customer contact software has an Information Center within it that
will allow you put the instructions for each of the jobs in your office on a
file so each employee can access it.
You can do this same thing with many other programs in addition to
GoldMine. Just make sure that the
program you use is on your network and it is flexible so that changes can be
made easily to the instructions. In
this way if Bob finds a new way sort inventory items, he can post it in the
system where everyone can find and use it.
Set aside
the time to do the training.
Do, at least, part of the training yourself. This is the best way to instill your vision in your employees and
it will give you insight into your employee's basic motivation. The bottom line of all this process is to
instill your vision and the skills to accomplish it in your employees and by
making yourself successful by making your employees successful.
1) Don’t Keep Employees in
the Dark. Boss, put your
goals for the month … and year … on the wall so everyone knows where the
company is headed. Have each employee
write down specifically what they are going to do this month, and this
year, to help accomplish the goals.
2) Become a “Learning
Organization”. Send a note
or an email to each employee … explain the importance of continuous
learning. Ask them this question: “In order for you to make the maximum
contribution to our company, what part of your job or your performance do you
feel most needs enhancement?” (This
includes you too, boss.) Have each
employee log on to Amazon.com or go to one of the major book stores and find a
business or personal development book that deals with the area needing
improvement. There are books on
marketing, procrastination, delegation, business controls, selling, customer
service, telephone techniques, project management, business management,
planning, profit improvement, organization, systems, corporate vision—EVERYTHING!
Have employees report back to you,
or to their supervisor, as to the specific changes they have made in
their jobs as a result of the new information.
Reward and celebrate improvements in performance! Keep your organization focused on improving
personal performance.
3) Procedures and Flowcharts. Begin the process of flowcharting and documenting everyone’s job starting this week. Have each employee write down the steps of one of their jobs during the next seven day. Then, spend the following seven days looking for ways to improve the job … make it easier, faster, more customer friendly, etc. Keep this process going. Pretty soon every employee knows exactly what they are responsible for, the details steps for perfect performance, and they know when their performance is on-track.