A while back I wrote to about the best ways of preparing for an appraisal. Today I’d like to expand on that by adding a few additional items that will help the appraisal process to run a bit smoother.

Set a Date and Time

Start by letting your employee known exactly when and where his appraisal will take place. Most employees know around what time of year their annual appraisals take place so letting him know the date and time a bit in advance will save him a considerable amount of anxiety. It will also give him plenty of time to gather any information he’d like to present.

Choose a Neutral Venue

Choose a private place within which you can hold your appraisal meetings. Don’t use your office or the office of your employee. Try to find a quiet conference room and make sure that your staff knows not to interrupt your appraisal meetings. Your employees deserve all of your attention during their appraisals.

Positioning

Make sure that no matter what room you are in the layout is friendly and welcoming. Try to choose an informal environment and try to avoid sitting face to face or across from one another. If one person sits at the head of the table the other should sit to his right or left, at a 90 degree angle. It’s a bit more causal and a lot less confrontational.

Be Friendly

Despite your distaste for the appraisal process, you simply must be friendly, positive, and calming. Your employee, regardless of how great he performs, will likely be terrified of his appraisal. Make sure you smile, open with a positive statement, and use open body language at all time. Make sure your employees know that their appraisal meetings are theirs and they are welcome to add their own input at any time.

These are only a few more things you can do to make the appraisal process a more positive experience – for both you and your team members. I’ll have more for you later on! Until then, enjoy planning for your next set of reviews!

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Course

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

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The tasking of interviewing potential new employees is a daunting process all by itself, but sometimes we forget about the process that comes before it – sorting through resumes.

Now let me clarify one point first. The online world is wonderful when it comes to making job postings public. Whereas we were once limited to word of mouth and print advertisements, online job boards give us the opportunity to extend our reach to areas we may not have been able to make contact in before.

And there’s the rub.

We’re exposing ourselves to a wider audience, giving us access to a more talented pool of applicants – but we have to deal with the flood of resumes that comes in as a result – and not all are qualified.

So how can you save yourself from hours of unnecessary sorting? Here are a few things to consider:

• Scan the resumes right away and see if the technical skills, attributes, or education requirements you are looking for have been met. Automatically discard any resume that doesn’t have a certain percentage of the requirements you’re looking for upfront.
• Stick to your guns. If you tell your applicants that the only resumes you will accept are the ones emailed to a certain email address, then don’t accept those that come in via other sources. Throw them away. Your applicant obviously can’t follow directions.
• Will you accept resumes without cover letters? Make this point clear in your job posting. If not, immediately discard all resumes that do not include one. Quickly review the letters you do receive and discard the ones that have no content.
• Include the starting salary for the position in your job listing. Some companies want to see what the salary requirements of their applicants are, but this is a waste of time. Truth be told, if you include a salary in your job posting you won’t get resumes from people who don’t qualify from a financial standpoint.
• Delegate your authority. Is there a trusted team member you can use to help with some of the sorting? If so, get the help you need so you can focus on filling the position without letting your other work suffer.

Remember, you don’t have to bring every person you hear from in for an interview. If you end up with a short-list of applicants you are interested in you can start with a very short phone interview – asking a few qualifying questions. If you like the answers, bring them in for a formal interview. If you don’t, decline the application.

It’s really that simple.

Don’t let the resume collection process become overwhelming. You may receive 200 resumes, but in the end you only have one position to offer. Don’t feel bad about searching for the most qualified applicant!

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Leadership Training

Click below for a:
Free email course “Improve your Management Skills”

As a manager, I’ve always found the interview process both fascinating and nerve-wracking. It’s fascinating because I get to meet and speak to dozens of incredible people – some great for the job and others not – but all from different walks of life. It’s nerve-wracking because I have to constantly stay on my toes, thinking of interview questions that will help me to almost force a person to show his or her true colors.

In my experience, I’ve found that interview questions serve three main purposes. They tell you whether or not the individual in question has the skills needed to join the workforce; they tell you whether or not a person is able to function well under pressure; and they give you a general idea of whether or not the person will be a good fit, personality wise, with your team.

So how do you draw this information out?

Start with their skills. Take a look at the resume presented to you at the time of application and make some comparisons. What jobs does the person list as having done in the past? What skills do you know are needed to do that kind of task? Ask your applicant some very specific questions regarding the skills and how they would be used. You might even give the person a real life example and ask how they would handle the situation. If they have trouble answering the questions, they might not really have the skills they claim.

A person’s ability to handle pressure is important. To get an answer to this question you’ll want to put your applicant on the spot. Many people grow uncomfortable when asked to compare themselves to others and outline why they’re better for a position. Simply asking hard questions that require truthful answers will cause others to become stressed. Ask a person about a past stressful situation – or ask him to tell you about someone he didn’t get along with before. The answers you receive will be very telling.

Finally, consider your applicant’s personality. Someone who talks into an interview looking shy-as-a-mouse probably won’t fit will in an active, boisterous environment – even if he does have great skills and work ethic. Someone who is very loud might not fit well into a quieter office, as he’d likely become a distraction. A person who constantly wants to work flex-hours to work around his children might not get along with a group of people who always work 9-5 with no variability.

It’s up to you to ask the right questions. You’re not looking for the nicest person – you’re looking for a person with a great attitude, good work ethic, great skills, and the ability to fit in. If you find that person, you’ll be well on your way to developing a successful team.

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Leadership Training

Click below for a:
Free email course “Improve your Management Skills”

Motivation. What is it? A motive is a thing – or an idea – that gives person incentive to move forward. Motivation can come in the form of a personal objective or a work-related goal. Whatever the reason for the motivation, it allows a person to continue to progress in life.

If this is true, your employees are constantly searching for some sort of motivation while at work. Motivation comes in many forms but the truth is that if they aren’t motivated they won’t be nearly as productive as you wish them to be. Here are a few things you can do to ensure your team stays motivated.

Consider Each Employee Individually

You can’t look at a group and make a plan to keep the “group” motivated. Each person on your team is an individual with his own goals. The new 20-something sales representative may have huge plans for promotion while your seasoned 60-something customer service representative may simply want to plan for retirement. The things you do to motivate each of these individuals will be completely different.

Consider the Culture of Your Organisation

No two organisations are alike and, as such, neither are two groups of employees. Let’s say, for example, you’re working with a group of highly-educated engineers. For them, motivation may be the opportunity to work on a high-end project. Your young salesperson, on the other hand, is probably more motivated by the opportunity to earn an extra bonus for a job well done.

Talk to Your Employees

The best way to find out what motivates your employees is to ask them – but make sure you ask specific questions. Say your engineer wants to work on a prestigious project but finds out once he’s there that it’s not as exciting (or, to him, motivating) as he thought it would be? Perhaps you need to focus on his memories of a project he really enjoyed and find out if you can find something similar to put him back on track.

You can’t simply look at your employees and determine whether or not they’re motivated. You may see a group of happy faces but, in the end, are they really happy to be working for you – or to be moving along the career paths you’ve set? Ask them and find out. You may be surprised to find you need to make some changes!

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Leadership Training

Click below for a:
Free email course “Improve your Management Skills”

I hope you took a few minutes over the past couple of days to think about some of the coaching myths we covered on Monday. I think that after a while you’ll see how important it is to have a professional or executive coach in your life, especially if you want to continue to climb up the corporate ladder. Today I’m going to share 5 more myths and, hopefully, you’ll undertand what I’ve been trying to say.

5. I don’t need more feedback.

We all get feedback from our managers, peers, and even subordinates. The problem is that they aren’t giving you neutral feedback. They’re giving you feedback based on their personal expereriences with you and they can’t take a step back and look at you objectively. They’re also less likely to let you know if they think your behaviours or attitudes are inappropriate. A coach will give you honest feedback, whether you like it or not.

4. Coaching relationships are short term experiences.

On the contrary, if you seek a professional coach you should seek to build a long-term relationship. The cycle of growth and development never really ends and, as such, you’ll always need a coach to help you reevaluate your goals and objectives and make changes to your plans. Your goals will determine how long you need a coach.

3. I have a mentor. I don’t need another one.

Having a mentor is great but mentors and coaches aren’t the same thing. Mentors are usually people within the same industry you are in – with a focus on helping you learn the specific ropes of that industry so that you can build your career. Coaches, on the other hand, may have skills that complement yours – skills you need to learn that have nothing to do with your industry in general. Mentors focus on work. Coaches focus on you.

2. I’m not coachable.

Everyone who wants to be coached is coachable. It’s true that there are a few people who simply can’t be coached but it’s not for lack of trying. Their attitudes and behaviours simply make it impossible. You can’t expect a coach to do all of the work for you. Your coach won’t even be able to motivate you if you don’t want to be motivated. There are even days when the most coachable people simply can’t be coached. You’ll get over it – and you will learn.

1. Coaching forces people to form dependencies.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Working with a coach will not make you dependent upon him. Your coach is more likely to help you learn to be self-confident than he is to allow you to form a dependancy.

Stop making excuses about why coaching won’t work for you and start reconsidering your options. Having a coach in your life is likely to help you foster your career – and before you know it you’ll be a better manager with a promising future!

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Leadership Training

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