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

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FREE email course “Improve Your Management Skills”

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Management, to be honest, isn’t easy. Sure, there are pros and cons to becoming a manager but the reality of the situation is that you need to jump on the management path not only because someone thinks you’d be good at it, or because you think you’ll make more money, but because you really want to be a leader.

Any other reason is unacceptable and, in the end, if you’re not willing to be a leader you’re going to find yourself very frustrated with your career path. Let’s take a look at some of the negative and positive aspects of a career in management.

First, we’ll list some of the drawbacks:

• You won’t be able to develop as many close friendships with your team members because doing so will cloud your ability to make objective supervisory decisions. You may begin to feel lonely.
• You’ll receive very little immediate feedback about how you’re doing with your work. Most of your goals will be long-term. As such, you may feel unsure of yourself.
• Managers often have to sign legal documents, including employment contracts or contracts with customers and vendors. This means you can, on some level, be held legally liable if there is a problem.
• Management positions are competitive. There are more team members than there are managers -always. And there are always more people looking to move up than there are spots available. You may feel some tension as others vie for your job – or for those similar to yours.

There are, of course, plenty of positive aspects to management:

• Your status as a manager may earn you some sort of prestige – especially if people believe your title sounds powerful.
• Managers sometimes feel as though they have some sort of power. They do, on some levels, but it is important to remember that even managers have work delegated to them before they can delegate it to others.
• Managers, in most cases, receive better pay than those beneath them. There are instances in which this is not true. For example, some companies pay based on the value of your contributions. Who do you think gets paid more – a nuclear chemist or the guy who “manages” the plan in which he works. My guess is that the nuclear chemist is actually making a more valuable or important contribution to the overall goals of the organisation.

It’s up to you to weigh the pros and cons of management. If moving up the corporate ladder is something you’ve always dreamed of, then go for it. If not, do you really want to add that type of stress to your life?

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Training Course

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

Back in the early 1900′s there was a guy by the name of Vilfredo Pareto. He, upon studying the distribution of wealth in the country that he lived, realized that about 20% of the people living in his country owned 80% of the wealth. The truth is that when we think of Pareto’s Principle today we are not talking about the distribution of wealth. In the 1940′s, another doctor inaccurately named the 80/20 rule of time management to Pareto – and rightfully so – the rule had been applied and misapplied to a number of industries and professions ever since it was discovered.

So what does Pareto’s Principle have to say about time management? The concept is simple. A mere 20% of your efforts are responsible for 80% of your results.

So what does this mean to you?

It means you have to figure out which 20% of your time matters. Usually it’s the first 10% and the last 10%. Only 20% of your day is going to have a direct impact on the end results. If that’s the case, what parts of your day can you cut out – which parts are time wasters – and which should you focus on most? Can you turn the other 80% of your day into something more productive as well?

There’s another theory that interprets Pareto’s Principle as saying that 20% of your people do 80% of your work. If this is true, will you focus on increasing the abilities of that first 20% or will you try to make the other 80% of your team better?

In the end, the results are still the same. Only a small portion of the time you spend leads to direct results. Make sure you’re splitting your time accordingly.

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Development

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

On Monday we kicked off the week by talking about a few of the things you could do to develop your own management career. Today I’m going to spend a few minutes outlining a few more things you should consider as you walk down the path of self improvement. Management, after all, is a continuous process and, as such, your path towards continuous development should be as well.

Develop Your Motivation Skills

You, as a manager, will be responsible for making sure your employees feel motivated at all times. Everyone has different reasons for feeling motivated – saving for a vacation, working towards a promotion, or simply feeling accomplished. It’s your job to find out what motivates your employees so that you an make sure they continue to be motivated.

Lead Your Team

Good managers are not just managers – they’re leaders as well. A simple manager will do just that – manage his team – giving them instructions and orders and going about his day. A real manager will lead his team, giving them their tasks and guiding them by pulling his share of the weight. Guide them in the right direction and they’ll surely follow.

Learn about Money

Unless you’re already in accounting, you probably know as much about money as your department budget requires. The truth, though, is that to appreciate your business as a whole you should really gain a better understanding about how money works in your business environment. What is spent, what is earned, and what you can do to avoid being wasteful. Saving doesn’t mean being stingy – it means being creative.

Focus on YOURSELF

You can’t help others if you never help yourself. What areas of your business life do you think need growth and development? Can you take a class? Can you ask your own managers for mentoring or coaching? The better you are at developing your self the better you will be at helping others.

Remain Ethical

No matter what, conduct all business in an ethical manner – both within your organisation and outside of it. Ask your human resources department or upper management for help if you feel as though you are in an ethical dilema.

Your success as a manager is in your hand. Have you identified any areas you should start working on right away?

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management

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

So you’re a manager. Congratulations. I’m sure you’re doign a great job. Now, I don’t mean to bust your bubble, but what are you going to do to make yourself a better manager. Here are a few things to consider:

Build a Great Team

No manager can be successful without a great team at his side. It’s your job to develop a team full of successful, hard working, and motivated individuals. You’ll need to brush up on your interview skills and work at selecting the right people right from the start.

Develop a Great Team

Once you have the right people working with you, you’ll need to make sure they’re all motivated to get the job done – not only on an individual basis but as a team working together as well. Team members should all have times where they’re doing their own things, but they should be able to work together most of the time as well. If you’re having trouble in that area, you may want to implement a few team building activities to break the ice a bit.

Work on Your Own Communication Skills

Odds are, you judge your employees by their abilities to communicate – with each other, with you, and with clients. But are you setting a good example? Your team members, and even managers above you, will grow dependent upon your ability to convey clear, concise thoughts. You’ll need to work on both your verbal and written communication skills in order to become successful.

Time Management

Time management is rough for a lot of people, especially those juggling busy home lives while they’re focusing on their careers. What can you do to enhance your time management abilities? Do you need to get a better organization plan? Do you need to learn to prioritise better? Figure out what your weaknesses are and learn to improve upon them.

Give Yourself a Break

Your employees and team members get breaks during the day and you should, too. You’re not a superhero and you simply can’t work long days without taking a few minutes here and there to breathe. Take a short walk, get a cup of coffee, or simply shut the office door for a few minutes. Oh, and don’t forget to take your annual vacation. If you’re rested, you won’t become aggravated when dealing with your team.

You are a valuable member of your organisation and you want to make sure you stay that way. Take some time to improve upon yourself and you’ll be successful for years to come.

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Training

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