If you have been having trouble with your employees repeatedly and are really frustrated with your “bad luck” with hiring the wrong people there are several things you should look into at once in order to solve your problem.
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.
Originally posted on March 10, 2008 @ 8:34 pm