You may only have a handful of employees in your small business but that does not discount the fact that you still have to ensure that they are being taken cared of. This is especially important for those employees who are performing excellently and are essential to the success of your business. The last thing that you want is your “star employee” to bail out on you – that just might prove disastrous. What you need to do is set up an atmosphere wherein that person will want to stay with you mid- or long-term. How do you do this?

A very effective way of doing so is by providing enough incentive for the person to stay – not for a year, not even for two years; try five years or more. A term that has been used for financial incentives that are received for five years to ten years is “golden handcuffs.” The handcuffs part may sound negative, but let’s put emphasis on golden. This refers to incentives such as stock options, setting aside money in a fund that “grows by itself,” or even a lump sum bonus that is given at the end of the “lock in” period. Consider it as a reward for those who stay long enough and perform well at the same time.

The bottom line is showing your best employees that they matter to you and that you are willing to share the success of the company with them.

It may not be the kindest of words but incoming U.S. president has said that if the automobile industry is to survive their financial worries then perhaps asking the fat-salaried executives to step down is a key move that can save them on financial problems. It is nothing personal but practical. There are executives in these companies that procure a large part of their income and if nothing is done about it, it is obvious that they will go bankrupt due to financial mismanagement.

It is not the best news that the leading car companies would want to hear. In fact, they are waiting for the financial support to help them get through their financial worries. However, it just doesn’t seem right to rely on the government for financial bailout at this time. What are these executives doing in the companies since they are supposed to be the ones thinking of ways to get by these hard times?

The situation is nothing new. Some of them have been there in the past and normally they would be expected to draw up some plans to help their companies make it through. Today, the external factor of economic catastrophe is a given but it should not be the reason for them to wave the white flag of surrender. There is definitely an alternative and apparently they are not looking at all possible angles. So why keep them if they cannot do anything at all?

Source

Well, it depends. Ideas will be there and changes to certain systems as well. But support and blessings on the part of upper management is needed since words alone cannot do the job for business professionals. They are not supermen that can make a business flourish with the snap of a finger. There are steps and procedures that they use to point a venture in the right direction.

MBA graduates are merely captains steering a ship towards the proper course. Inflation today is like a wild wave of trouble where you have to decide on what coordinates to use to stir a business away from them. It is not easy. One person’s effort alone is not enough and to be able to ensure overall business safety, cooperation and support for such people is a big must.

The time element is also important. While deadlines are given, it would be surprising to see a business get back on its feet in a month’s time. There is a period needed to work on. While some people believe that it can be done, it is certainly not 100% fool proof as far as MBA graduated being able to help a business recover in trying times such as the economic crisis we are suffering to date.

4.Do not let the HR do the final interview – Having a human resources department is good but if you are hiring people for their technical expertise make sure that applicants will be interviewed by those that have knowledge in their field. The HR department can handle the bulk of the application process but make sure that a team manager or senior employee (if it cannot be you personally) will be the one to do the final interview. This will also be good for the previous tip since the team manager can judge if the applicant will mesh well with the other team members.

5.Do a thorough background check – Though this might seem like the standard procedure in many businesses you might be surprised to know that there are a great number that ask for reference but do not really make the call. Since this can be time consuming you can put this off among the last steps and just do the thorough background check on applicants that you are already seriously considering to hire.

1.List down your minimum criteria and stick to it – Do not be sweet-talked by an employee to hiring him/her if he/she doesn’t meet the minimum requirements. If you already have a list re-evaluate your list to see if they are too restrictive or too lax. You wouldn’t want to weed out good talent because of a strict criteria but you also don’t want to just get anybody. Try to come up with a more holistic list that considers everything from the skills to attitude and personality.

2.Don’t hurry – Take your time choosing among the applicants. If you aonly have one or two positions to fill this is even more important because you want to get the best. This means taking the time to process all applications before making a decisions. If you come across an exceptional person though try to find out whether that person is “in danger” of being snapped up by another company, in which case get ready to ask the person to give you a chance by waiting for about a week for a formal offer.

to be continued…

The first thing you should when you are having problems with your employee is to get their point of view. Ask for feedback so that you can pinpoint exactly where the problem is stemming from. Before giving up on your employees and labeling them as hopeless you should find out the reason behind their poor performance. Some of the things that may be affecting their performance could include:

1. lack of training - If you pinpoint this as the source of the problem you can remedy this immediately by giving them the proper training they need.
2. personal circumstances – If you employee is in an especially difficult time in his/her life right now you might want to encourage him/her to take a break for several days to take care of the personal problem. Not only will your employee come back refreshed and with less problems but also more thankful and with a more positive attitude towards you.
3. misunderstandings – You might be surprised at how easy it is to misunderstand seemingly clear-cut instructions. Remedy this problem by going over job descriptions/details and by allowing them to ask questions in order to clarify instructions/policies that might not be clear to them.
4. gripes about the company and/or you – Though you might be trying your best there is still always that possibility that you have a disgruntled employee. If an employee expresses dissatisfaction about the way your business is being run make it a point to listen so that you can make improvements/changes to address valid issues.

There are plenty of other things that could be affecting an employee’s performance that can be easily remedied once you get their feedback. SO do ask for feedback and keep an open mind as you read/listen to their feedback.

The actual process of hiring a manager is very important since you want to get the right person for the job the first time. If you are in a huge hurry to fill in a position it might be a good idea to hire a headhunter to help you look for suitable applicants. Emphasise the qualities you want and the need for high standards. This way the applicants will be pre-screened leaving you with less applicants to personally evaluate saving you precious time. When hiring a manager some of the most important factors you should consider include:

1. experience/credentials
2. philosophy/outlook - Hire someone who subscribes to the company philosophy.
3. social skills – You want someone that is not only confident but knows how to get along well with people as well as smooth kinks out.
4. stable/dependable – Being a manager is a stressful job. Find ways to evaluate how the person deals with high stress situations.
5. innovative and flexible – Your manager should be able to think for himself. A good manager should be able to make decisions without having to consult every single time.

4. Cross your fingers and leave – This is the time where faith comes in. You need to have faith in yourself that you were able to choose a good employee and that you were able to explain what you expect clearly. You need to have faith in your employee that he/she will do the best job possible and not slack around.

5. Monitor progress - Faith is a good thing but it is just right that you monitor progress once in a while. If the task is something as simple as stacking papers then forget this part but if it is a particularly difficult task it is ok to check on your employee once in a while. Just make sure you aren’t breathing down on your employees neck and that when you do check on him/her you do so with a positive attitude. This is where the timeplan comes in handy since it will help you see the progress of the task and whether it is on time or not. If something seems to be amiss do not get mad at once but offer help. Ask if they need to clarify something or need some equipment or even additional manpower. Encourage employees to learn from mistakes and to go directly to you in case problems that need your attention arise so that you won’t need to check on them. And last but not the least…

6. Praise your employees for a job well done

Once you have realized your need to have team members to help your with your flourishing business then the next thing to overcome is the fears of an employee botching things. The truth is that this fear is very valid but shouldn’t be that big a problem IF you learn how to delegate tasks properly.

Here are some tips that can help you in delegating tasks with the least headaches in end.

1. Decide which tasks you can and cannot delegate – Make sure you do not delegate stuff that only you should take care of. Leave only the most important tasks on your plate to give you more time to concentrate on those things.
2. Talk with the person(s) who you will be delegating the task(s) to – Make sure that you delegate tasks to people who are capable. Instances where in employees botch things up can sometimes be traced back to the employer because the task was either not explained properly or the task given was too difficult for the employee. Make sure that person understands exactly what you are asking and is given all the things he/she needs to finish the task.

to be continued…

An “I can do it myself” attitude - Sure you probably can but having an entire team behind you will probably produce better results. There are people who are not really team players but in business you really need to learn to be able to delegate tasks and work with other people if you want to be successful.

An “I do not have management skills” attitude - This may be true but this is why there are management books, classes, and other resources out there. This is also why you should hire a very good manager who will be a key member of your team.

An “I don’t have the resources to hire people right now” attitude - While it is true that you might not have enough to hire an entire team at once slowly increasing the size of your team is more often than not doable. You might be stuck in present financial figures and do not realize the added value that having a team member brings. If you do everything yourself then your revenue will also be limited but by adding a person to work with you, you can find ways to increase your profits.

A “We don’t have time for team building activities” attitude – Time is limited but in business remember to figure the return of investment of whatever it is you and your team do with their time. A stressed out unhappy team slogging through work will be less productive than a content/happy team. You don’t need to have expensive week long activity. Simple but frequent team building exercises is more important although a special bash now and then would be a great reward for a job well done.

A “My employees are no good” attitude – If you are frequently unhappy with your employees it is time to start taking stock of what’s happening. Chances are it isn’t entirely the employees’ fault. Remember you hired them so you need to take responsibility for your choice as well as your present leadership.

In my next posts I will be explaining how dealing with each attitude will help your business perform better and thus, hopefully increase profits.