The other day we started to discuss a few of the things you can do, as a manager, to retain your good employees. Today I’d like to add 5 more tips to the list. Combine them all, using your own personal management style, and before you know it you’ll see your employee relationships improving.

• Listen to your employees. Your team members, if you listen to them, have valuable ideas and most of them want to contribute to the process. Listen to what they have to say and make sure they know the lines of communication are always open.
• Help them find opportunities for growth. No one wants to feel as though he or she is stuck in a dead end job for a lifetime and you, as a manager, can’t expect them to be happy in the same position forever. Help your employees identify opportunities for growth, both short-term and long. Employees working towards goals are always happier.
• Encourage flexibility. I’m not saying you have to adjust their schedules every other day and make ridiculous concessions but you can find ways to encourage them to find balance between their work and persona lives without decreasing productivity. This means not being rude when they’re really sick or when they need to take care of their children.
• Encourage personal wellness. Healthy employees are happy employees and stress is certainly not healthy. Surprise them with special breaks, give them gift certificates to their favorite restaurants or spas as an acknowledgment of their loyalty, or have a yoga instructor come in for a morning class. They’ll appreciate the break from the regular routine.
• Finally, please remember to say THANK YOU to the people who work for you. Whether they’re permanent employees or independent contractors, everyone appreciates knowing you recognize, acknowledge, and appreciate the things they do. Nothing else you do will matter if you never utter those two simple words.

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Training Course

Click below for a:
FREE email course “Improve Your Management Skills”

As a manager you have a huge amount of repsonsibility when it comes to hiring and firing employees. You’ll do your best to hire the candidates you think are the best and you’ll have to document incidents in order to fire those who turn out to be not as great as they presented themselves. In the midst of all this, managers tend to forget one group of people - the good ones - the ones they should be working to retain.

A good employee isn’t one you can just leave alone, monitoring only when it comes time for the annual review or when you need to assign new work. Even good employees need attention and if they don’t get it, or feel appreciated, they might start to look elsewhere for work.

So what can you do to help retain the employees you already have and want to keep? Here are 5 things to consider.

• Pay them well. Money really isn’t the only factor people consider when it comes to taking or keeping a job but it does play a huge role in the decision. If your employees feel overworked and underpaid they’ll start to wonder if they can find what they feel to be a fair level of compensation elsewhere (and they probably can).
• Treat your employees fairly. Truth be told, you are all simply people. If you want your employees to feel good about themselves, treat them as if you are on an equal playing field. You know, as if you are all members of a team instead of them being the team with you as the leader.
• Make one-on-one time for each member of your team - whether it’s an informal cup of coffee in the morning or a trip out to lunch. Find time where neither of you feels pressured and let your team members know, on an individual basis, that you actually care about their growth and development.
• Allow space to breathe. Sure, there are rules, but everyone has their own way of getting the job done. Let your employees be creative in their work. As long as they aren’t breaking the law or any important rules - and they’re getting the work done on time - you’ll find they’re happier if they’re able to express themselves.
• Be personable. Be a great leader, with heart and spirit, and let them know you respect and appreciate what they do. The more respect you have for them, the more they’ll have for you.

On Friday we’ll go over a few more tips for employee retention. Until then, think about the relationships you have with your team members. Are they strong enough to survive?

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Leadership Training

Click below for a:
FREE email course “Improve Your Management Skills”

As a manager you will have an important and unique role - one you may not have expected to adopt. You’ll be not only a manager but a mentor as well. Being a mentor means being able to communicate with your team members, or those you are mentoring, on a more personal level in order to help them develop the skills essential to growth and improvement.

Good mentors are able to embrace and develope four main skills. Without these skills you will not be able to communicate with or aid in the enhancement of anyone’s performance. These skills are as follows:

• Observation skills are important because you must be able to see and understand what the person you are mentoring is currently doing and/or is capable of.
• Analytical skills will give you the tools you need in order to determine where the person you are working with is falling short and what changes may need to be made.
• Questioning and active listening skills are essential. When mentoring, you don’t feed the person you are working with a set of detailed instructions. You have to probe and ask questions about what he does and does not understand. You’re not a teacher, you’re a guide. If you don’t ask questions and listen to the answers you won’t know what needs to be done next.
• Feedback skills are incredibly important as well. You must be able to give honest feedback in the form of constructive criticism. Negative feedback isn’t appropriate in most mentoring situations. You must be able to correct the actions and behaviours of your trainee without making him feel as though he failed at a task. Embrace the learning curve.

Have you taken the time to develop these mentoring skills? If not, get started. 2010 will be a long year full of confusion - for you and your teammates - if you don’t.

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Leadership Development

Click below for a:
FREE email course “Improve Your Management Skills”

I’m going to keep things short and sweet today but I’m going to ask you a hard question and I want you to think about it over the weekend.

Are you a leader?

In my experience, I’ve found that leaders do two main things - and two things only. They have the skill and determination to get things done and they have the ability to inspire and motivate those around them.

Do you get things done?

Do you motivate others?

Take some time to reflect on your performance over the past year. Did it feel like you were pulling teeth when working with your team members or were they glad to work with you? And - there’s a question right there - were they working for you or were they working with you?

So, are you really a leader? And, if not, will you become one this year?

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management

Click below for a:
FREE email course “Improve Your Management Skills”

As a manager you shouldn’t strive to do the mininimum amount of work possible to get by each and every day. Your ultimate goal should be to become the absolute best manager you can be - not just a good manager but an excellent manager.

So what can you do to set yourself apart from the rest? Evaluate your performance to determine whether or not you’re adhering to the fundamental concepts of excellence. They are as follows:

• Are you a results oriented person? Are you always looking towards the final outcome or are you merely interested in the here and the now?
• Are you focused on your customers? They’re the backbone of your business. If you have no customer focus you’ll eventually lose all your business.
• Do you manage your team based on your personal beliefs or do you stick to the facts and processes implemented by the company.
• Are you constantly striving to improve yourself, taking continuing education courses to learn about innovative new ideas and technologies?
• Do you have a sense of leadership and purpose?
• Are you focused on developing your relationships with your partners, both internal and external?
• Do you have a sense of corporate responsibility? Have you made your organization’s goals your own?

Take a step back and evaluate your own performance as a manager. There are things you can do to improve your performance. Are you ready to meet the challenge?

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Development

Click below for a:
FREE email course “Improve Your Management Skills”