Real Motivation

Managing is basically a process of getting results through people. This process includes a combination of defining responsibilities, organizing, establishing goals, and generally making sure that people know what they’re supposed to do, have the means to do it, and are “motivated” to get it done.

When the subject of motivation is discussed, it is most often looked at from the perspective of how to get people motivated. Let’s change this perspective and make sure that we are not creating situations that are de-motivating or that prevent a motivated individual from making a contribution.

Think about it. The typical human being loses sleep at night over problems and challenges just like the entrepreneur. Just like his boss, the typical human being worries mostly about the things they own. The only difference is that people who aren’t bosses worry about the things they own instead of what the boss owns They worry about their job of course, but also about the mortgage, the leaky roof, their hobby, the kids etc.

It’s easy to look at other people and wonder why they don’t care, but that’s not really the proper question. They do care about many things. What really worries the manager is why they don’t care about the things the manager wants them to care about.

Cynics might, at this point, be thinking this is naive. That most people don’t care and can’t be motivated because they don’t want to deal with the problems. But how can the cynics answer the facts that show that people do want to get involved.

Listen to the chattering over the CB channels. Anonymous strangers are helping anonymous strangers all the time. Why? What motivates Red Cross volunteers and others who get involved in youth and church organizations? Teamwork and cooperation seem ingrained in our race through cultural and perhaps biological evolution.

Now, consider the so-called “unmotivated” employee. He’s not insubordinate but his supervisor has had difficulty with him for years. He is always on time for work but never seems to live up to his potential. He never commits an offense that would warrant a dismissal but his productivity is low and he has to be constantly prodded to keep his work area clean.

“I’ve tried everything,” the supervisor says, “I just can’t get him motivated to get off his butt.” A company full of these guys and you would go broke.

Sound familiar? You bet! Let’s set aside our frustration for a minute and try a thought experiment. If we could somehow follow the “unmotivated” employee around for a typical day, we might discover some interesting facts: They are probably a strict parent, believing in firm discipline. They may be a perfectionist in the workshop or kitchen, which, by the way, is neat and well organized. They work as an effective leader in a volunteer capacity in a church or youth organization. They may operate a small business on the side to help make ends meet.

What you discover about this “laggard’s” life away from the job is surprising. The key thing here is that most every human being does get involved and takes ownership of some problems. They appear motivated in some situations but not in others. Why?

Interest. Importance. Justification. Ability.

These are the key words. Where we find that people seem to be motivated, we will almost always find these four factors operating in the situation. Where people don’t seem motivated, it’s most likely that one or more of these essential elements is missing or has been taken away.

People are motivated to pay attention to interesting things and to get important things done – as long as they see a reason(justification) for doing so and have the ability or power to do so.

It’s from this point of view that the manager should look at this thing called “motivation”. If it’s missing it doesn’t need to be instilled. People are naturally motivated. Instead, in a given situation, something is taking away or standing in the way of the exercise of man’s inherently motivated nature.

Either the job or the responsibility is uninteresting, isn’t seen as important, there’s little perceived justification for doing it, or the employee doesn’t have the necessary power, authority, or skill. The fundamental motivation exists, but it has been rendered latent by and in the specific circumstances.

The question for the manager wanting to keep people motivated, or encourage the motivation of new people is “How do I make sure that the four elements are present in every job?” Because it’s your business, make sure you find the answer.

Joe Driscoll is a management consultant whose column appears regularly in the Monday Herald.

Manage Yourself, Lead Others

Is a good manager necessarily a good leader? Can you poorly execute the fundamentals of good management and still be an effective leader?

These are good questions and they are frequently asked. The concepts of management and leadership are commonly confused. All too often people try to lead by managing or to manage by merely leading.

Management is a science. It has an accumulated body of knowledge that contributes to the development of policies, practices and procedures for the effective accomplishment of agreed upon objectives. Practically speaking however, the job of management often breaks down into getting others to work, something it is not designed to do.

The management fundamentals of planning, executing and controlling are frequently interpreted as processes that we inflict on others. The fundamentals of management and the scientific knowledge about it should first and most importantly be applied to yourself. Manage yourself, your schedule, your goals, your efforts, your time, your results. Be a harsh critic and take corrective action as needed. The greater your responsibilities, the more vigorously you need to manage yourself.

Next, apply those same principles of good management to “things”. Things are projects, budgets, schedules, programs etc. The proper accomplishment of these “things” requires the application of good management principles.

When it comes to others, the place where conventional practice would indicate that management begins (doesn’t everybody say I manage x number of people), shift your focus from the fundamentals of management to becoming a leader. If you have vigorously applied all available knowledge to the management of yourself and your “things”, you are in a position to lead others.

Business and industry has changed a lot over the years and the pace of change will continue to accelerate. But progress is only made by good men and women working hard and together. They will always need effective leaders to be successful. Effective leaders apply their skills with such apparent ease that they are often referred to as “born leaders”. Nothing could be further from the truth. Leaders become leaders through experience and hard work.

There are ample resources available to help improve your management skills. What about your leadership skills? Where do you begin?

You acquire the ability to lead by taking a honest look at yourself. Hold yourself up to the standards that you admire in an effective leader. Examine your performance against those standards. Set objectives for your conduct in those areas that are important to your development as a leader. Begin by looking at some of the traditionally respected character traits of good leaders.

INTEGRITY. When you give your word, make sure you keep it. Your people are depending on you, don’t let them down. All your statements, official or casual, are considered to be true. Make sure they are. If you have made a mistake or created a false impression, don’t overlook it or be too proud to correct it. Credibility takes a long time to establish, but it can be erased in seconds, never to be regained.

KNOWLEDGE. Know your job. The charismatic school of leadership doesn’t get the job done over the long run. Most of us become reasonably expert at recognizing a phony, don’t be one. If you don’t know something, admit it. If it is important, go and find it out. Dis information and disillusionment are often distributed by well meaning individuals that “fake it” when they should have known better.

DECISIVENESS. When making decisions, get all the information that is available to you. Weigh all the facts and then issue your decision in clear and confident terms. We all need direction from our leaders. Don’t quibble over minor points and create ambiguities that will transfer responsibility to those who need direction. When you are wrong, say so. Everybody makes a mistake. The trick is not to make the same one twice.

FAIRNESS. Create an even playing field for those that work for you. Don’t play favorites. Keep anger and emotion out of your decisions. Give credit where credit is due. Recognize the hard work and good ideas of your employees and be grateful that you are associated with quality people. A lot has been recently written about executive perks from parking places to lunch rooms. True leaders get their satisfaction from a job well done and not by first feathering their own nest.

ENTHUSIASM. It is contagious. Put all that you have into the achievement of your objectives and others will follow. Display indifference and you will lead in the wrong direction. Your knowledge, interest and enthusiasm will inspire others more than any other single factor.

Because it’s your business, your career and your life, manage yourself and lead others.

Standards Of Performance

Much has been written about the effective executive. The rewards are for doing the right things, effectiveness, as compared with merely doing things right, efficiency. Does this same wisdom apply to all workers? You bet it does!

It is little wonder that performance, measured by productivity, sales, customer service or quality, falls short of expectations when those responsible for achieving results are not focused on doing the right things. A company’s success will largely depend on how well it can utilize its human resources. A high priority of all managers must be to develop systems that will focus their human resources on doing the right things.

Much lip service is given to the process of goal setting and performance appraisal. But all too often this becomes a hurried activity that is carried out in a subjective, perfunctory manner which yields little benefit and can often result in demoralizing confrontations. While it is often used for less redeeming purposes, it should not be overlooked that the only true purpose of a performance appraisal is to IMPROVE PERFORMANCE.

In order to develop an effective system for the improvement of performance, you must begin with the development of meaningful performance standards. These standards will cause attention to be focused on “doing the right things” and will establish an objective basis for appraisal. This process will improve performance in your business.

How do you get the process started? You begin by thinking through the major elements of each job. Items such as the responsibilities, duties, desired results, influencing circumstances and available options.

A standard of performance is a statement of conditions that will exist when a job has been done well. Good standards of performance share the common characteristics of being relevant, reliable, objective and contributing to the accomplishment of the organizations overall goals.

Effective standards of performance should be developed jointly by an employee and their boss. They should be written to include unambiguous statements of the results required by the employee’s activities. They should include acceptable means of measuring the desired results as to quality, quantity, time and cost.

Let’s examine the development of standards of performance for a position of quality assurance manager. In summary, the major responsibilities of this position are to minimize the the instances in which sub standard products are shipped to customers, to develop practices that will minimize internal waste and to originate programs that will further the company wide objective to efficiently deliver superior quality products.

Look at each one of the major job elements independently. First analyze the level of quality of the products that are being shipped to the customers. Review the company’s historical performance in this area. For example, if customer returns have averaged seven per month, ranging from a low of three to a high of fifteen, examine the cause of the returns to determine if closer scrutiny by the quality program can narrow that range and lower that average.

After jointly reviewing the historical performance, analyzing the causes and discussing corrective actions for improved performance, together establish the standard of performance for this portion of the job. It might read something like this.

“Satisfactory performance has been achieved when monthly customer rejections are not greater than seven per month. Superior performance has been achieved when rejections are three or less per month. Customer rejections in excess of ten in any one month are unacceptable.”

Similar standards would then be developed for each major element of the position of quality assurance manager. This process will provide a foundation upon which your employees will begin to concentrate on “doing the right things”. You will have the basis for conducting meaningful performance appraisals that will accomplish the objective of improving performance.

One of the greatest benefits of writing standards of performance is the communication that takes place during the process. The focusing of your employee’s attention on these performance issues and the focusing of your attention on the employee’s position will pay a substantial dividend.

It will be helpful to remember to concentrate on developing a limited number (three or four) of important and well written standards than generating a long list that may get neglected. The objective, after all, is to get people to focus on “doing the right things”.

Your first efforts at writing standards of performance will be more cumbersome than you think and results may not be entirely satisfactory. However, your first efforts will be better than having nothing at all and you will improve with each succeeding attempt.

Because it’s your business, make sure that your people are doing “the right stuff”.

Spot The Good Manager

“In Search of Excellence” by Tom Peters and Bob Waterman, “What They Don’t Teach You at Harvard Business School” by Mark McCormack, “Managing Through People” by Dale Carnegie and Associates and “The One Minute Manager” by Blanchard and Johnson are some recent best selling management books.

Here are some extractions from those best sellers and one other book that is not so well known. Try to identify the source of each passage. Which does your experience agree with?

1. Busy people have short attention spans, so get to the point. Don’t drag out a presentation…..all you’ll succeed in doing is irritating them, or worse, making their minds wander. Also, learn the attention spans of the those you deal with. In dealing with some, if I’m on any one subject more than forty-five seconds their mind is going to be on something else.

2. The notion of short attention spans probably develops more from impatience on the part of owners than anything else. Keep sessions short. This is for your sake, really, so that you won’t lose your temper and spoil all the effort the two of you have put in.

3. Here’s what you must do to get ready to teach a job. Decide what the learner must be taught in order to do the job right. Have the work place properly arranged. Put the learner at ease. Get him interested in the job and desirous of learning it. Instruct slowly, clearly, completely and patiently, one point at a time.

4. Consistency pays. In training, always use the same words for the same ideas. Make training sessions pleasurable for both of you. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be serious about training. You should. But be pleasant and friendly. Patience, patience, patience. Not that they are such slow learners, but people are often unreasonable in their expectations. When you first start training, make sure there aren’t any distractions.

5. All of us are self-centered, suckers for a bit of praise. But the fact of the matter is that our talents are distributed normally – none of us is really as good as he or she would like to think, but rubbing our noses daily in that reality doesn’t do us a bit of good.

6. Whatever their disposition, you can be sure that they love praise. The only exceptions are those who aren’t on good terms with the boss. If a good relationship exists, they have learned to value your approval over everything else.

7. Put the accent on the positive. Catch people doing something right. When you see something being done right, go over and make contact. Give praise as soon as something is done right. Specify exactly what was done right and be consistent.

8. Besides the emphasis on positive reinforcement, our training technique stresses operant conditioning. What this means to you is that to be effective you must wait until the behavior you want to reinforce occurs naturally. Because this technique follows the natural behavior pattern, it requires a bit more patience in the beginning.

9. Negative reinforcement will produce behavioral change, but often in strange, unpredictable, and undesirable ways.

10. As for negative reinforcement, it is advisable only in cases which you can convince them that the bad consequences come from the environment and not from you. True, they may perform in order to escape the negative consequences, but only when you’re around.

11. Praising works well when you praise immediately. Tell them how good you feel about what they did right. Let them feel how good you feel. Shake hands or touch them in a way that makes it clear that you support their success.

12. If you pay attention to what you’re doing, praising and rewarding the exact behavior you want, they will learn easily and correctly. You’ll soon discover exactly in what form they like their praise. Some want to be pounded on the back, still others, the verbal types, would rather hear the approval than feel it. Whatever form it takes, positive reinforcement should always come in the form of praise or affection.

Here are the answers and the moral of the story. The odd numbered paragraphs come from our best sellers. #1 Harvard, #3 Managing People, #5 & #9 In Search Of, #7 & #11 One Minute Manager. The even numbered paragraphs came from our guest selection, “21 Days to a Trained Dog”. Do you ever remember having somebody tell you that you can learn a lot about a person by watching the way they treat a pet?

In addition to reading all these high priced best sellers, maybe we can learn to spot good managers by the way they treat their pets. Because it’s your business, recognize those who display common sense and a humane spirit.

It Pays To Pays

The completion of a major corporate acquisition was recently delayed for several weeks. When it was finally announced, the chairman of the acquiring company was asked the reason for the delay. He replied that there was just one matter that kept the parties apart. Money! Its always the money.!

When you look at your relationship with your employees don’t underestimate the impact of the money. It may seem obvious, but all too often the obvious is given insufficient attention.

The money you pay to your employees is one of the single largest expenditures in your business and it is most likely your employee’s primary source of income. Your wage and salary structure has an enormous impact on your business. You must recognize its importance and manage it to your advantage.

The proper development of a wage and salary structure is dependent upon a number of differing factors peculiar to each business. However, there are certain fundamentals that must be included in all well administered programs.

All consistently successful programs need a firm philosophical foundation for support. Any number of philosophies on compensation can be successful depending on the type of business involved. What is essential is that you articulate a philosophy and develop policies that are consistent with your objectives and appropriate for your type of business.

With a well thought out philosophy as the foundation of the program, attention must be given to four issues; internal equity, external equity, justification and motivation. Internal equity means that employees are compensated fairly as compared with their fellow employees. External equity implies that your employees are paid competitively as compared to others doing similar jobs in the same industry within your area. Justification means that each employee’s compensation is a worth-while expenditure for the business. And finally the program should be constructed so as to have a positive impact on the motivation of the employees.

The employee’s assessment of the fairness of the structure is important. Pay inequities within a business, whether real or imagined, have a negative impact. The establishment of equitable internal relationships can be obtained through a process of job evaluation. This process measures the relative value of each job to the business. These measurements are then used to establish the salary structure with the highest valued jobs receiving the greatest compensation and the lower rated jobs receiving the least.

It is important to recognize that the job evaluation process measures the worth of the job and not the individual that does the job. The process begins with a job analysis requiring that the content of each job be defined. Using factors such as the required knowledge and skills, complexity of assigned tasks and the scope and impact of the position, the various positions are ranked or grouped in grades. The result of the process will be a ranking of the jobs upon which equitable compensation decisions can be made.

To insure external equity, you now must “price” certain key jobs with wage and salary scales used outside your business. The jobs chosen for comparison should have job content that can be easily compared with outside positions, represent different levels in your internal ranking and include heavily populated positions within your business.

Comparisons can be made with surveys that have been conducted by business organizations, government agencies and other private groups. More than one survey should be reviewed. Caution should be given to comparing job titles. A good survey will include a job content description for each position.

You should be certain that your business is justified in creating each position and employing the individuals in those positions. Aside from the obvious wasting of resources, the continued existence of any unnecessary positions will cause problems.

The subject of motivation goes well beyond the bounds of a wage and salary program. However, incentives should be incorporated into the structure. This is done by establishing salary ranges for each position. This provides an opportunity to recognize individual performance within a particular job classification.

The size of the range will increase with the higher rated jobs. This will permit the largest incentives for those individuals that potentially have the greatest impact on the business. In addition to a salary structure that provides incentive, a good compensation program will provide additional incentives designed to meet the specific needs of the business.

Because it’s your business, don’t forget to pay a lot of attention to that one little issue, money! A well thought out and properly communicated wage and salary program will prevent problems and provide results.

Opening Day

It is the most common of our experiences. It is one that many of us have experienced on numerous occasions. It is one that hundreds are experiencing this very moment. It is the first day on a new job.

How important is that first day? Is it important enough to effect your attitude for a long time, both on and off the job? Is it important enough that it can effect the performance of your business, your employee relations, your customer relations?

Look no further than opening day of the baseball season for the answer. Even the seasoned veterans will tell you that opening day is special. It is in fact the first day on a new job. It is filled with hope, great expectations, fear and anxiety.

You are the boss now, perhaps long removed from the employment line. Take a few minutes and recall the thoughts and images that were in your mind on one of your opening days. Whether it was your very first job or just the first day on a new job, they were all special and made lasting impressions.

What can you as a manager or business owner do to make that first day a positive one for the “new guy”? First, lets make our opening day last longer than 24 hours. As often as a new employee is neglected on day one, they are often showered with attention on day one and forgotten on day two. Let’s view opening day in the work place as a transition period that will vary in length according to the demands of the job and the background of the employee.

New employees will often seem confused. That’s pretty normal behavior because most new jobs are confusing. Make sure that you have a specific plan for indoctrinating the new employee. It should be well thought out, in writing and you should follow it.

I have frequently encountered organizations that hire regularly but treat each hiring as if it were a unique event. It is a routine but important event that your business should be prepared to handle in an appropriate manner. Another common error is having an antiquated procedure that doesn’t make any sense. Not only does it contribute to the confusion, but it is wasteful and sends a negative message about your business.

It is scary to be new. Particularly for those just entering or returning to the work force. How often have you heard a friend or family member say that they were scared on their first day on the job? Try to be sympathetic to your new employee. Give them the impression that they are amongst friends.

Even a veteran who goes hitless in his first few at bats in the new season begins to wonder if that next hit will ever come.

When teaching a job, teach slowly, one step at a time. When you are nervous, as is not uncommon, it is harder to pick things up quickly. Make it obvious that you have confidence in their ability. After all, you hired them. It’s the job of a good manager to insure that a couple of rookie mistakes don’t jeopardize the confidence that is needed for a successful career.

Because of the pressures of being new and the difficulties in learning a different job, new employees can often appear “dumb” if you are impatient. Be patient. Avoid trying to teach too much at one time. Even the best of us have appeared to be “dumb” when faced with new tasks in unfamiliar surroundings.

New employees may appear to be slow and will make mistakes. Learning thoroughly is more important than learning quickly. Don’t rush someone that is performing a task for the first time. Demonstrate each operation carefully and then let them show it to you. Expect some mistakes and don’t get annoyed.

The nervousness associated with newness can manifest itself in many ways. Some new employees may act “cocky” as a means of covering up their fears. Remember that you hired this person and you owe it to them and to yourself to give them a chance. Refuse to get angry. Take a “cocky” beginner aside and calmly talk to them to give them confidence. They will be more likely to drop their defenses in a more private setting.

Treating the opening day syndrome with premeditated care and understanding will pay handsome dividends. Your business will develop a reputation as a good place to get a job. Your new employees will get off to a good start and become a more productive asset for your business in a shorter period of time. Your product quality will be better as will customer service and satisfaction.

There will always be those employees who are not right or ready to work in your business. By being sensitive to the impact of those first days on the job, you will minimize the number of employees that don’t fit. By paying close attention to this critical time, you will also be better able to spot the “bad apples” before they have done much damage.

Because it’s your business, remember that opening day is a special time, even for crusty veterans like you and I!

Higher Hiring

Most definitions of management share the viewpoint that good management is a process of reaching goals by working with and through people. That being the case, choosing your team is the first step to success. Make sure that you get the best people available.

Aim high when you hire. Recruitment and hiring are areas in which a company can substantially improve its performance with very little effort. Getting good people to work for you has the special benefit of becoming an annuity that regularly pays future dividends.

There is hardly a top manager around who does not profess that his or her employees are their business’s most important asset. In reality however, the importance of the human resource still has a long way to go. For example, given a choice between two pieces of equipment which perform the same work, one costing $5000.00 more than the other, most managers will hesitate and investigate the performance advantages of the higher priced machine. Given the same choice between two applicants for the same position, most employers will much more quickly choose the candidate with the lower price tag. Managers have generally learned their lessons about the value of their physical assets better than they have learned their lessons about their human resource assets.

Approach the hiring process from a position of strength. As a result of the great impact that small business has had on the economy in recent years and the instability of many larger firms, small business is recognized as a great place to work.

It is important to anticipate what your personnel needs will be. Too often the hiring process begins after a vacancy has been created. You then have to operate under the pressure of having an immediate need to fill. This inevitably leads to a process that is rushed, incomplete and has a low probability of yielding the best candidate. Regardless of the short term pressures, don’t rush a decision with long term consequences.

It is always a good practice to look within your organization for someone who is qualified. This person won’t always exist and if he or she does, it will create another opening that will eventually need to be filled from the outside.

If you currently have a good group of employees, referrals should be your single best source of qualified applicants. Don’t be passive above tapping this resource. Actively solicit your employees input. Let them know what you are looking for and let them know that you appreciate their input.

Newspaper ads and ex-employees are additional sources. Take the time to write your ads carefully. Ads that supply insufficient information attract inappropriate responses that only waste time. Don’t overlook ex-employees. While it generally was a common practice not to rehire anyone that left a company, that is now recognized to have been an overly restrictive policy with little benefit.

When it comes time to interview, be flexible in adjusting to the schedule of the job seekers. Remember that the best candidates may already be employed. As a prospective employer you should value the applicant who is reluctant to take time off from their current position.

For the purpose of comparing candidates, it is helpful to schedule a block of interviews at one time. Take the time necessary to meet with all the qualified applicants. You may find a good one early on, but a better one may lie ahead. Observe good interview techniques. Make the applicant comfortable, ask open ended questions, look for consistency and patterns of behavior and provide an opportunity for questions.

Reference checking usually begins at about the time that your mind is already made up. This is your last opportunity to get important information prior to making a major decision. Make sure you do it.

Don’t waste your time at the personnel department. Get in touch with the supervisors and co-workers that had direct contact with your leading candidate. Imagine buying a shining late model used car. After a satisfactory test drive and having negotiated a fair price, you are given an opportunity to speak to the people who have driven the car for the last two years. Can you imagine not bothering to call them? You would fully deserve any problems that developed.

If employees are a company’s most important asset, it is the responsibility of the boss to be actively involved in the hiring process. Make certain that you welcome each new employee to your company and personally tell them what you expect from them.

After the effort that you have put into the hiring process, don’t forget to follow-up with proper training and close supervision of the new employee. Regardless of how effective your selection process is, there will be some employees that are not appropriate for your business. For the benefit of those individuals and your business, recognize and remedy those situations promptly.

Many a game is won or lost when the teams are chosen. Because it’s your business, make the effort and take the time to aim high when you hire.

Don’t Delay The Firing Squad

When you first get the idea that you should fire one of your employees, you are probably already too late. That might sound hard hearted but its all too often true. The boss is often the last to know. When it comes to decisions involving a termination, the great decision maker often becomes the great procrastinator.

How many times have you regretted firing someone? I don’t mean that you enjoyed the process, nobody does, but that you were confident that you had made a proper decision. How often after finally firing someone do you wish you had done it sooner? All too frequently is the typical response.

The success of your business depends on the aggregate performance of all of your employees. It’s vitally important that you choose your employees well, train them carefully and regularly review their performance. You must determine those of your employees who are contributing and those that are not. Then you must act.

Hire good people, train them well and you will have minimized your problems. Minimized is the key word, however. For if you are in business long enough and if you employee a sufficient number of people, eventual the inevitable will occur. You will have to fire somebody.

A lot is said and written about the hiring process, about training, developing, motivating and compensating, but very little is discussed about when and how to fire. In this era of personnel lawsuits and the slimming down of large organizations, we are beginning to get more information on the how. Mostly good but sterile procedural information on the do’s and don’ts of terminations.

The key question for the business owner is when to fire. As hard hearted as the boss is often thought to be, it is nearly universally true that these tough decisions are often unnecessarily delayed in the spirit of fairness or in the hope that they might be avoided. These situations can’t be avoided and there is nothing fair about delaying them.

My experience is, barring some very unusual circumstance, that when you first get the idea that an employee is not going to work out, you should start the firing process promptly. Assuming that you have more than just a couple of employees, by the time you have gotten the idea that things aren’t going so well, your other employees and perhaps your customers have already recognized the situation. Despite their protestations to the contrary, the problem employees are always the first to know when they are not getting the job done.

Everyone that is associated with your business wants it to be a success. If it is successful, they have the option of a continuing future with it. The good people that work for you are looking for you to set high standards for employee performance. When you have high standards the good people will measure up to them. When you accept mediocre performance from some, you will be lowering the the standards for the entire organization.

When you have an employee that is not getting the job done, you must take prompt action. To allow them to continue is not only a costly mistake, but it sends a wrong message to everyone involved. Other marginal performers will assume that their marginal performance is acceptable and your top performers will become disillusioned.

When you have an indication that an employee is not working out to your expectations, make sure that they know what is expected of them and that they have the training and resources to get the job done. The only way to be unequivocally sure that your employees are aware of your concerns and expectations is to communicate your thoughts in writing. This does not mean that you have to use some impersonal form or appear to be laying the ground work for an already decided upon termination. A constructive note or memo that reviews your discussion with them will be helpful to both of you.

If the employee’s performance improves and your expectations are met, give some timely feedback and positive reinforcement. If the problems persist, do yourself, your business, your customers, your employee and their fellow employees a big favor, don’t delay the inevitable. Fire’em.

I have seen enough people fail at one job or at one company and then be successful elsewhere, that I believe that there is a right job for everyone. If someone is not in the right job, delaying the inevitable is damaging to everyone. Your business is hurt, you are frustrated, your other employees can be demoralized and you are not doing the soon to be terminated employee any favors. You are leaving them in a position where will be uncomfortable and unhappy (everybody wants to make positive contributions, have some security and be recognized for their efforts). You will really only be delaying their opportunity to move onto a situation where they can succeed.

Because it’s your business, when the inevitable occurs, be compassionate, be generous, be proper but most importantly be prompt. Hopefully you will only have to fire a few, but when you do, fire fast.

It’s Easy, Just Watch

Most things in life are pretty easy to do after you know how to do them. Management is just the opposite. Most everyone knows how to manage (just ask them), but it’s done well all too infrequently (just look around).

I guess part of the answer for the discipline of management being well understood but frequently misapplied lies in the fact that people are involved. Over the course of giving a number of lectures and participating in a variety of training sessions, I frequently hear about some troublesome, but extremely avoidable problems.

No one that I know likes to be criticized or reprimanded in public, but there are managers that do it all the time. Not just neophyte untrained managers, but experienced veterans that should certainly know better.

Those that criticize their employees in front of other most frequently get the opposite reaction than that which they had hoped for. The behavior is rationalized for one of two reasons. First, the manager believes that he or she has tried other means with no success and they feel that criticism in front of others will surely get the employees attention. It gets the attention all right, but generally with a polarizing effect on previous positions. When the boss criticizes you in public your tendency is to justify, rather than change your behavior.

Secondly, a manager sometimes feels that public criticism of an employee is a valid method of sending a message to all the other employees. It definitely sends a message, but the message is that the boss is unkind and overbearing. The intended message can be transmitted in far more effective and human manner.

What’s your reaction when somebody singles you out for criticism in front of others? What do you think of a manager that you observe reprimanding one of his or her employees in public? The answer is simple, but nonetheless it is a continuing problem for many managers at all levels. Just in case the temptation gets great sometime, remember these letters. PC CP. They stand for public criticism is counter productive.

Another frequent complaint concerns managers that delay or postpone taking remedial action with poor performing employees. When an employee is not getting their job done, not only are they aware of it , but so are most all of the other employees around them. When a manager delays in confronting these difficult situations, they are sending a signal to the rest of their employees that poor performance will be tolerated.

Situations like these bother everyone involved, but they particularly frustrate the good employees. It is the good employees that suffer in silence. Remember, that when you delay in taking action in these difficult but obvious situations, a heavy price is paid. Did you ever enjoy working next to a laggard who was paid as much as you? What was your opinion of the manager who tolerated that situation? As a manager don’t delay in facing these tough situations.

In all the years that I have listened to the problems of employees and managers, I can’t ever remember anyone commenting that their boss listened too much. Let your employees talk to you and learn to listen. This one sounds a lot easier than it actually is. The secret to productive open communication is a long term commitment to good listening. The results aren’t immediately noticeable but the long term dividends are rewarding.

About the only thing worse than having a bad boss is having two or more bosses. Even if the multiple bosses are good ones, this is an accident waiting to happen. Don’t put any employee in the position of having to serve two masters. A good employee can provide services to many masters, but they can only have one boss.

Have you ever worked at a company that was acquired by another company? Have you ever been working at a job for a number of years and a new manager comes along and says that there are going to be a few changes made? How did You feel? Threatened is the word. Change is threatening.

If you are a good business person you are going to need to make changes to improve your organization. If you want to make those changes effectively, you better take into consideration that those changes, despite all the expected benefits, can be threatening to those around you. By recognizing the concerns of others, you will expedite the implementation and acceptance of your new program.

Positive re-enforcement is a powerful tool. Good people rarely get all the recognition and credit they deserve. That being the case, don’t be afraid to err on the side of excessive praise, credit and recognition for your employees. Your employees are looking for the feedback. Your acknowledgment of their performance will inspire their continued efforts.

Good management practices are easy to learn, they are just difficult to implement sometimes. Because it’s your business, make the effort to do it right and you will reap the rewards.

No Excuses Please

Ever hear the excuse, “I was too busy.” Don’t buy it.

There may not be enough time to do everything you want, but there is enough time to do anything you want. “Too busy” is the excuse, but failing to establish priorities is the reason.

There’s always a reason when your business’s performance falls short of your expectations. If you accept the excuses, you’ll never find the reasons. If you don’t find the reasons, you’ll be doomed to relive the disappointments of the past.

The difference between excuses and reasons is more than just semantics and personality. Excuses are attempts to justify failure. Reasons identify tangible factors upon which action can be taken. Excuses have the effect of shifting responsibility. Reasons assume responsibility.

When you take the time, it is quite easy to distinguish between reasons and excuses. As managers and individuals it is sometimes too convenient not to make the distinction. Excuses are the “forbidden fruit” of improved performance. Partake of the forbidden fruit and you’ll be denied paradise.

Adam and Eve committed the “original excuse” in the Garden of Eden. When asked why they had eaten of the forbidden fruit, Adam replied in essence, “she made me do it.” His reply was a clear effort to justify his failing while attempting to shift the responsibility for it to another. Do you have any descendants of Adam and Eve in your business?

Excuse making can occur unconsciously. It can be habit forming for an individual and can become part of the accepted culture in a business. While making an excuse gives temporary relief, its long term effect is dehabilitating. It’s a practice that must be recognized and stopped.

It starts subtly, “I was too busy to get it done”, but becomes habit forming. “I was late for work because of traffic.” There are few traffic jams that couldn’t be avoided by earlier departures. In fact, most serious traffic jams occur after you are already behind schedule.

Excuse making becomes an obstacle to achieving important objectives. “I didn’t get promoted because my boss didn’t like me.” If you’re really good, the boss has an incentive to promote you. If you don’t get the promotion, there will be other opportunities if you are good enough.

The major failing of the excuse maker is their inability to take responsibility for their actions. It does no good to shift the responsibility to others when things don’t turn out your way.

We are all responsible for our own successes and failures. When things don’t turn out well, making excuses by transferring the responsibility to others, your boss, your competition, your family, or the stars, will only further distance you from achieving your real potential.

Rather than make excuses to justify failure, the achiever will seek out the reasons, factors upon which action can be taken. Ask the question, “What can I do differently the next time to achieve the desired results.”

The assumption of responsibility is often associated with the bearing of a burden. In fact the opposite is true. The excuse maker, the individual who looks to avoid responsibility for the consequences of their behavior, comes to believe that they have little control over their life. What a truly enormous burden that will be!

“I didn’t make any sales today, but nobody else did either.” That’s an excuse and it won’t put any bread on the table. Does it make any difference what happened elsewhere. Your job is to make sales, not explain why you didn’t.

Is the glass half empty or half full? Excuse makers always focus on what they lack, not on how they could better utilize what they have. When you focus on what you have, you are able to determine how those resources can be better used to surmount the obstacles that lie between you and your objectives.

One Bad Attitude Can Spoil The Barrel

“One bad apple will spoil the barrel.” Same holds true for attitudes. One bad one can spoil the barrel. What’s a manager to do?

Bad attitudes are as difficult to get your hands on as bad apples are hard to find in the bottom of the barrel. You know there’s something wrong when things don’t smell right, but its hard to see exactly what to do about it.

Marshall was one of the partners in a small office. He was talented and successful, even likable on a good day. But when things didn’t go his way, he made life miserable for everyone around him. No one was quite sure what made him fly off the handle like he did, but his attitude made life uncomfortable for everyone in the office.

How do you change a “bad attitude”? The answer is you can’t, so don’t waste your time trying. You’ll probably only make matters worse.

It’s behavior that leads us to conclude that there’s a “bad attitude”. Focus on changing the behavior. Attitudes are subjective and intangible. Behavior is tangible. It’s behavior that impacts performance. If you observe acceptable behavior, you wouldn’t know there was an attitude problem.

It was Marshall’s unacceptable behavior that caused everyone to say he had an “attitude” problem. It was his behavior, his rantings and ravings that was causing the “spoil in the barrel.”

You might be able to get someone to “change” their attitude, but it’s not the sort of thing you can fix by tomorrow. Attitudes are developed over time and change over time. Unacceptable behavior, on the other hand, is something that you can rightfully expect to change right now. It can be accomplished with tangible results.

It really didn’t make any difference how Marshall felt. He probably didn’t feel any different than any one else when things didn’t go well. The problem was how he reacted to it, his behavior.

Before initiating corrective action, ask yourself if the behavior that you are concerned about is important. If the current situation is not detrimental to accomplishing your primary objectives, it might be wise to ignore it. If it is important, you must take corrective action.

Whatever was the cause of Marshall’s attitude, one thing was for certain, his behavior was unacceptable. His partners needed to realize that regardless of his attitude, his behavior had to change.

If you are aware of behavior that requires corrective action, other people are too. If you allow the situation to continue, you are sending a message that the behavior is acceptable. That doesn’t mean you should over-react, but it does mean you must act!

Whether you’re dealing with partners or employees, to rationally determine if you have an on-the-job problem you need to answer four questions. What results do you expect? What results are you getting? What is the difference? Why does the difference exist?

While it may not be true in extreme cases like Marshalls, “bad attitudes” at work are usually related problems people are having in doing their jobs. There are three reasons why people don’t do it, whatever it may be. Either they don’t know how to do it, they can’t do it, or they won’t do it. Before a manager can change a behavior, he must examine these alternatives and determine the real cause of the problem.

If a person doesn’t know how to do a job, providing information and instruction is the appropriate remedy.

If a person can’t do the job, work at building the skills necessary. Consider the confidence level, give an opportunity for practice, and provide the support they need to meet a personal challenge. If there is a fundamental skill or aptitude problem, consider reassignment.

When it’s your business, a “bad attitude” can be frustrating. While you can’t change an attitude, you can’t accept rotten behavior either. Focus on the behavior that leads you to conclude that there is an attitude problem. Determine the significance of the behavior, its cause, and then take appropriate actions. In any event, don’t let a bad attitude spoil the barrel.

Parents and Managers

The title of the feature story in the Wall Street Journal several weeks ago was intriguing, “Paternal, Managerial Roles Often Clash.”

The article, based on a study of 300 male executives, concluded that many successful young men who are competent at managing people in the work place are inept at managing their personal lives. The study reported that “many are finding that the things they are paid to do well at work create disaster at home.”

I was surprised at the findings. It had always been my experience that managerial skills and parental skills complimented one another. The more skills I acquired as a manager, the better parent I became. The more sensitivity I developed as a parent, the better manager I became. People skills were the common denominator

The subjects of this article might have managerial skills confused with managerial prerogatives. In other words, you can get away with some things at work that you can’t get away with at home. At the office, people get paid and most are smart enough to keep their mouths shut. At home, they’ll always let you know what they think. Wisdom comes from the mouths of babes!

Good managerial skills include planning, communicating (listening), directing, negotiating, and compromising. All of those things are indispensable to keeping an orderly household in this hectic world.

Time management is a skill that both parents and managers need to master. When you lose control of your time, it’s easy to become frustrated and rushed, whether it’s with co-workers or family.

The article cited an attorney who successful sets goals all the time at work, but when he tried to set goals and agendas at home, his two young children rebelled. It’s possible that some of the people who he was setting goals for at work rebelled too, but didn’t do so vocally.

Effective goal setting, whether it takes place in the office or in the kitchen, requires input of the individuals for whom the goals are being established. That’s something obviously intuitively apparent to this attorney’s two children, but perhaps not so apparent to Dad.

Another of the participants in the study was quoted as saying, “It is very clear what I need to do to become the CEO. But who sets goals for my family and children?” I think this young man will find as he proceeds along his fast-track career that he will be far more successful if he sets goals with people rather than for people.

The wife of another of these successful young executives was commenting on her husband’s skill in talking with the children. She said, “I find him acting like he’s holding a business meeting and using big words and he completely loses them. It’s hard to go from being a high level manager down to being a daddy of toddlers,” she says.

This guy’s probably held a lot of boring meetings at the office too. Ever been to any? When conducting a meeting or speaking to any group of people, the first and most effective thing that needs to be done is get their attention and their interest. If a young manager doesn’t recognize that, he’ll have difficulty talking with any group of people regardless of their age or relationship.

One valid point the article makes is that it is difficult, if not impossible, to prevent work place problems from spilling over into the home. Preventing the frustrations of a hard day on the job from impacting family relations is not easy. It requires constant work, but it’s a worthwhile objective. When you’re able to separate your work life from your home life, both will improve.

Enough with managerial skills helping on the homefront. How about some parental advise spilling over into the office. On the same day that this article appeared in the Wall Street Journal, I had the privilege of attending a ‘back to school night’ at my daughter’s third grade class. The teacher distributed a poem that read,

“If children live with criticism, they learn to condemn.
If children live with ridicule, they learn to be shy.
If children live with tolerance, they learn to be patient.
If children live with encouragement, they learn confidence.
If children live with praise, they learn to appreciate.”

I know this was advise intended for parents, not managers, but it just might have some relevance at the office. Children are people and employees are too!

Pull Together or Fall Apart

The downing of an enemy aircraft is a special moment of triumph for the solitary warrior who travels at supersonic speeds and engages in split second battles. “Life in the fast lane” takes on a very literal meaning.

Much like the super salesman or the President of a business, the success of the pilot’s mission is dependent on years of training that is focused into split second decision making. Life truly is “lonely at the top” in this profession.

While our eyes are riveted on news reports from the battlefields of the Middle East, we are provided with constant reminders about teamwork and leadership.

A reporter was interviewing a pilot who had just returned from a mission during which he had shot down two enemy aircraft.
The reporter asked, “How do you feel about your victory?”

Without as much as a brief hesitation the young pilot responded, “This was a team victory and I’m only one member of the team. That the mission was successful is a credit to the people that build the planes, design the weapons, and the crews that maintain the equipment and control the missions.”

Team work – the key to success! Not the super star, but the team.

Shift your eyes from the turmoil of the battlefield to the tranquil waters of a placid lake as an eight oared racing shell skims across the water’s surface. Crew is the ultimate team sport. Eight oarsmen pulling together in perfect synchronization at the direction of the coxswain.

Some members of the crew may be stronger than others, but their energies will be wasted if their efforts are not in synchronization with the team. Pull the oars together or the boat will falter in face of competition. Pull together or fall apart. Team success is dependent on the coordinated effort of the weakest and the strongest, all pulling together.

The message is clear for all human endeavors. Pull together or fall apart! The public might well see the pilot’s victory as an individual success, but the wise aviator recognizes he is the final instrument of a team effort. The beauty of the racing shell skimming across the surface of the lake is the unity of crew.

What are some keys to building a good team, being a good team member, and being an effective team leader? Begin by trusting your team members and assuming (until proven otherwise) that they are as committed as you are to the team’s success.

Maintain open communications within the team. Put an emphasis on sharing information, not just evaluation. Build respect, trust, and confidence with one another.

Recognize your responsibility to the team and put forth your best effort. Look for opportunities to give credit to others. What goes around comes around, as they say.

What are some of the things that undermine the building of a cohesive team? Criticism in all its forms is the single largest cause of unraveling team unity. Second guessing, talking behind people’s backs, and taking cheap shots at team members are all guaranteed to cause problems.

Pull together or fall apart. When you criticize part of the team, you’re hurting the whole team.

The message for all managers is clear. Your first responsibility is to be a good team builder. That means getting the right players, developing your people, giving them the ball and letting them play.

Determine where you want your team, your department, or your business to be in the future. Assess what skills, qualities, and attitudes your team will need to be successful. Then start to put the team together that will get you where you want to be.

The major reason people don’t succeed in a job isn’t lack of ability. Skills and ability are fairly easy to quantify and measure. We seldom hire someone who doesn’t have the capability to do the job. Create a climate in which people can get on board the team and perform to the best of their ability.

If you have chosen wisely, your team will develop if they understand their responsibilities and have the authority to meet them. People need freedom to grow, to make decisions, to take responsibility and they deserve the credit for contributing to the team’s success.

The Importance Of Work

“What do you do?” How often have you been asked that question?

If you travel by air, before your flight is over the person next to you is probably going to ask, “What do you do?”

When you’re standing in the corner sipping champagne at your wife’s second cousin’s wedding, some stranger is certain to approach and ask, “What do you do?”

What they really want to know is what you do for work. Are you a salesman, an artist or a carpenter?

The powerful implication in the frequency of the question, “What do you do?”, is that work is important to us. It is not merely our means of support, it is, to a large extent, how we see ourselves in the world.

I don’t mean that our work rivals God, family or country, but it is a way in which we differentiate ourselves from others. It is largely the way in which the world views us.

Do you need more convincing? Read the obituary column on any day. “John Doe, banker…Mary Smith, writer…Tom Johnson, salesman.” Even on the exit end of life we are identified through our work.

Protestations to the contrary, a job is always more than “just a job”. Despite the endless talk of waiting for lunch, waiting for the day to end, waiting for the weekend, waiting for vacation and finally waiting for retirement, our work is far more important to us than just a means of support.

This simple fact forms the basis for all of the “make work meaningful” theories of management. Forget all the bells, whistles and window dressing that accompany these management theories. To better manage your business, just understand the basic fact that supports these theories.

Despite all the grumbling and the moaning, our work is powerfully important to all of us. More important than we’re usually willing to admit when we’re on the job.

Don’t make the mistake of interpreting a casual attitude as indifference to work. Your employees want to care about their job just as much as you care about yours. Give them the opportunity to answer the question, “What do you do?”, with pride and indifference will turn into excellence.

That’s what “Semper Fidelis” is all about. Nobody complains more than a Marine. To hear them tell it, it’s all the worst–the food, the mission, the equipment, the pay. But just ask a Marine “What do you do?” More often that not, you’ll be answered with pride “I’m a Marine”.

Time after time, studies have indicated that employees holding the most difficult jobs in the most arduous circumstances have the highest morale. There are few more difficult jobs than being part of a utility company’s emergency repair crew or being the hammerman in the forge shop. Yet people holding these jobs put forth great effort and take great pride in what they’re doing. Why? Because the feeling of doing something important makes the work meaningful.

Give your employees the opportunity to be proud of what they do and they’ll do it better. Show them that even the smallest task that they perform is important.

You’ll still hear the talk, “I can’t wait for the day to end” and “I need a vacation”. But remember, when they’re on that vacation and somebody asks, “What do you do?”, they’ll respond with pride that they work for your company! You can’t give another human being a greater gift than the opportunity to take pride in what he does and the chance to achieve self- respect from a job well done.

Look forward to the end of the day, the weekend and your vacation, but don’t look forward to retirement. Don’t retire! Work! You can retire from a job, but don’t retire from work. Work gives meaning to our lives. Work for a charitable organization that can desperately use your skills. We all have something to contribute. Whether for one hour or forty, in making that contribution, we give meaning to our lives.

Start the business that you always wanted. It’s never too late. Always have an answer for the question, “What do you do?”.

Make work meaningful for yourself and your employees. Because it’s your business, let people answer the question, “What do you do?”, with pride.

The Bottom Line

Sometimes it seems that business owners are caught in an impossible squeeze. Employees want more pay, higher benefits, and shorter hours while customers want lower prices and better service.

Despite all the talk about creating a better environment for employees and satisfying customer needs, more than one employer has dreamed about how few headaches there would be without employees. The only problem is that there wouldn’t be much of a business left, you can’t “throw the baby out with the bath water.”

Some sole proprietors do nicely without employees, although most businesses require employees. Employees can be compared to a dual edged sword. At times it may be hard to work with them, but you know you can’t operate without them.

Employee performance is often the distinguishing factor between excellent and average results. An outsider’s first impression of a business is based on its employees. How productive, industrious, and courteous are they?

If you are an employer, what are some strategies for minimizing the pain and maximizing the gain? Unfortunately, a good staff is not built over night, it is developed over time.

A traveler stopped to admire a flock of sheep grazing on a farmers field on day. He decided to inquire as to the farmers secret for keeping such a beautiful flock.

“How is it that you have such splendid sheep” he asked.

The wise farmer replied, “I take very good care of my lambs.”

I take very good care of my lambs! Think about it. Isn’t it the well tended seedling that eventually produces the most fruit as a mature tree? The prudent business owner can learn from the wise farmer.

The key to a productive work force lies in selection and training. If you choose the right people and get them off to a good start, there won’t be so many problems down the road.

It takes a lot longer to get rid of one bad employee than it does to hire one good one. Invest the time up front. It costs more to repair the damage than it does to train the team. As the car repairman said, “pay me now or pay me a lot more later.”

An investment in developing employees is a true investment. Hiring new staff doesn’t save time on day one, it takes time. If you are working a ten hour day, recruiting and training may well add to your current work load. You invest the extra time to do things right today so that it will pay dividends down the road.

It is important to anticipate what your personnel needs will be. Too often the hiring process begins after a vacancy has been created. You then have to operate under the pressure of having an immediate need to fill. This inevitably leads to a process that is rushed, incomplete and has a low probability of yielding the best candidate. Regardless of the short term pressures, don’t rush a decision with long term consequences.

Many employee related problems can find their root cause with a busy boss. New employees are usually hired as a response to the pressures of being shorthanded. That pressure often results in hiring without adequate screening and putting people to work without proper training and indoctrination. In the short term, the results are satisfactory. The immediate pressure is relieved, but small compromises in the short term can result in big problems down the road.

Aim high when you hire. Recruitment and hiring are areas in which a company can substantially improve its performance with very little effort. Getting good people to work for you has the special benefit of becoming an annuity that regularly pays future dividends.

Employee related problems don’t occur in isolation. Where there is absenteeism there will be turnover. When productivity is low, accident rates are invariably high. There are no easy solutions.

Just like the farmer that cares for his lambs enjoys the bounty of a splendid flock, like the seed that is nurtured into a strong tree, the employer that invests in selecting and training will eventually profit from the fruits of their labor.

A Practically Perfect Manager

The experienced business owner was explaining his management philosophy to the representative from the management consulting firm. Work should be fun, he said, life is too short not to be enjoyed.

The young engineer from the management consulting firm insisted that it was fine to have fun, but that the work needed to get done first. The owner observed that the work had a better chance of getting done, if the people were having fun while doing it.

The engineer subscribed to the theory that everything should be under control, running precisely on schedule. Managers should be the lords of the castle. Tradition, discipline, and rules were to be the most frequently used tools. Business is a battle to be faced and fought. You’ve got to grind, grind, grind at that grindstone.

The experienced owner wished for the young man to see that there was another approach. He wanted the young man to acquire an understanding that would lead to his becoming a practically perfect manager.

It’s hard to put your finger on it, he said, but as you become more experienced, you can sense it like “a change in the wind.” The results will be most extraordinary. Work is never easy, but “a little bit of sugar makes the medicine go down.”

Too often tasks and projects begun with great fanfare, interest, and promise, become drudgery along the way. “Well begun is only half done.” Business must find a better way. It is difficult, but necessary to maintain enthusiasm over the long haul.

Management must create an environment that will sustain a quality effort. That can’t be done by discipline alone. “In every job that must be done, you need an element of fun.”

Where’s the fun? It’s in little things more than the big things. It’s smiles and satisfaction, not ferris wheels and fireworks. It is the enjoyment that comes from satisfying relationships, not the entertainment that comes from extraneous diversions.

When you find the fun, the job becomes a game and every task you undertake becomes a piece of cake. “A spoonful of sugar is all that it takes. It changes bread and water into tea and cakes.”

What makes work enjoyable? Healthy competition in most every imaginable thing. It includes spontaneous celebrations for all conceivable milestones.

Who is fun to work for? A boss with a pleasant disposition, in good times and bad. A boss that doesn’t mind being the butt of a joke from time to time. Anyone who smiles a lot and likes to laugh.

Everyone is busy. If the work is to be done, it would appear that there is little time for fun. Perhaps that’s the wisdom of making the work be the fun, then there need only be time for one. “A robin feathering his nest, has little time to rest, he knows a song will move the job along.”

Sometimes our responsibilities seem greater than our capacity to manage them. The big jobs rarely get done all at once and nothing ever gets done by talking about it. Get big jobs done a little bit at a time. “The honeybees that fetch the nectar take a little nip of every flower that they see and they find the task is not a grind.”

What makes for an enjoyable work environment? A group of people that aren’t afraid to roll up their sleeves and pitch in when there’s work to be done. That includes the boss and all other able bodies with time on their hands.

The practically perfect manger has unlimited potential. “You can have your own set of wings with your feet still firmly on the ground, you’ll be a bird in flight with your fist holding tight to the string of your kite. Go fly that kite up to the highest height. Send it soaring up through the atmosphere, up where the air is clear.”

If you want to create the practically perfect workplace, managers should be selected for more than just their experience and qualifications. Make sure that all your manager’s understand that if “they want a choice position, they must have a cheerie disposition.”

How do you measure up as a manager? Are you practically perfect in every way? Perhaps, but even practically perfect people have room for improvement. A truly perfect manager wouldn’t develop a habit “not letting the facts get in the way” and “never explaining anything.”

One last piece of advise. “A spoonful of sugar goes a long, long way. Have yourself a healthy helping everyday.” Don’t forget that the boss needs to enjoy his or her work also. It’s a good day when you can say, “I likes what I do and I do what I likes.”

“Good bye, Mary Poppins, don’t stay away too long.”

The 3 R’s Of Management, Reward, Recognition, & Respect

The classroom has been invaded by the computer and other new methods, but the fundamentals of a good education still rest with mastering the three R’s, reading, writing, and arithmetic.

Most companies have been similarly invaded, but the basics of a sound management system still rest on three R’s. When it comes to managing people however, the three R’s include reward, recognition, and respect.

The main element of a company’s reward system is its compensation program. The development of a compensation program is an important opportunity for management. The reward system should be more than an administrative necessity, it should be designed to reinforce and further the objectives of the organization.

There are three essential requirements for an effective compensation program. The program must meet the tests of internal equity and external equity while providing an incentive. Internal equity implies that all employees are compensated fairly according to their respective contributions within the business. External equity implies that all employees are being paid fairly when compared with others outside the business who are performing similar services.

All reward systems should include an element of incentive. In a small business, incentive compensation programs offer the opportunity to share success, focus effort on objectives, and to reduce fixed compensation expense.

Regardless of how well designed or how generous they may be, monetary rewards alone will eventually be insufficient for attracting, motivating, and retaining the best people. All employees need recognition for their efforts and accomplishments if they are to consistently perform to the best of their abilities.

Recognition, unlike reward, depends on the personal touch, not the Midas touch. The impact of rewards are linked to finances The impact of a recognition program is linked to personal involvement.

Successful recognition needs to be personal, timely, and consistent. There is no substitute for the close personal involvement of the boss. Recognition means the most when it is related to and closely follows the behavior or event being recognized. There is little correlation between the cost of an award and its symbolic value. Recognition programs should be consistent with company policies and values.

Management can create opportunities for recognition by breaking company objectives into interim goals. While most companies have an annual sales objective, monthly sales goals provide twelve additional opportunities for success and weekly targets create fifty-two opportunities to recognize success.

Once the opportunities for success have been created, managers should do more than sit back and evaluate performance. If success enhances performance, it’s an important function of management to insure that success takes place. The role of the manager should be that of a coach and helper, not a judge or observer.

The two most common shortcomings in recognition programs are recognizing only the top performers or failing to recognize performance at all. When only the top performers, like the winner of the sales contest, are given special recognition, the large number of other potentially valuable contributors go overlooked.

When a company fails to recognize performance at all, the pride, self esteem and motivation of the majority of employees goes untapped. If there is no difference in the amount of recognition given to those that are willing to make the extra effort and those who don’t, average performance will become the rule, excellence the exception.

People feel better when they are successful. It is difficult to feel successful unless your success has been recognized. Recognition programs are success therapy. People that feel like winners win!

Opportunities for individual recognition are important, but they should never be allowed to interfere with team building. Recognition programs should be carefully considered to insure that they do not pit one employee against another. Opportunities for individual recognition should not be limited to a few, but should be available to all who are deserving.

There will always be those times however, when the rewards and the recognition don’t seem to justify the effort. All the time, but particularly during the hard times, it is important for people to know that they are respected for what they do.

Not everyone can be the best. Every organization has a totem pole. Some are up at the top and some are down near the bottom. But every link in the chain is important. Each and every individual deserves respect. An employee who feels respected for what they do, whatever that may be, will return that respect with a job well done.

Practice Precaution with Pro Nouns

We and they. I and you. Them and us. When and how you use these pronouns can have a major impact on your effectiveness as a manager.

Former Alabama football coach, the late Paul “Bear” Bryant understood the significance of choosing the right pronoun to motivate his team. The “Bear” established himself as a legend while building winning football teams that spanned four decades. He claimed to have but three secrets to forging a group of young men into a winning team.

“There’s three things I always remembered to say”, commented coach Bryant.

“If anything goes bad, I did it.”

“If anything goes semi-good, then we did it.”

“If anything goes real good, then you did it.”

I imagine the “Bear” was over simplifying a bit. He probably knew a couple of more things that accounted for his 700+ collegiate victories, but he understood the importance of “pronouns” when it came to getting the most out of his people.

Managers, like coaches, want their employees to “take” responsibility for their shortcomings while “giving” to the success of the group. There’s a natural reluctance to resist “taking” what is being forced on you and its difficult to “give” what you don’t have.

We know a few things about improving individual performance and accomplishing group objectives. If people aren’t first willing to hold themselves accountable for their shortcomings, “I did it”, they will have a difficult time improving. On the other side of the ledger, we know that ego and selfishness can tear apart any successful organization. When things start to go well, “I did it”, can be the beginning of the end.

What’s the answer? How can managers use “I”, “you”, and “we” to encourage the “taking” of individual responsibility while at the same time “giving” to the group’s success.

When things go bad and a manager says, “you did it”, the manager is trying to “give” responsibility. It doesn’t work. The natural reaction to criticism is defense. “You did it” is an attempt to transfer responsibility, it does nothing to help people “take” responsibility.

Good people natural feel badly when something they were associated with is not going well. They’re willing to “take” responsibility if it is not forced upon them. When things went bad, coach Bryant discovered that if he said, “I did it”, those around him would “take” responsibility. If he said, “you did it”, there was resistance.

When things go well, you can’t expect someone to share the credit unless they have some credit to share. If the manager says “we did it”, the individual will think, “how about me, don’t they appreciate what I did?”

When a manager “gives” credit, “you did it”, the individual has something to share. If a manager personally gives credit to each member of a group, their collective response will be “we did it.”

Another famous coach, John Wooden of UCLA, the most successful college basketball coach in the history of the game, understood the intricacies of giving credit and building a winning team. Coach Wooden said, “it’s amazing how much can be accomplished if no one cares who gets the credit.” When things go well, managers must be prepared to “give” the credit to others. “You did it”.

While we want people to take responsibility for their actions, we accomplish little my associating failures with individuals. Examine the following example.

A piece of equipment in your business, a forklift, breaks down. The employee operating it at the time, Bill, reports the breakdown to you. With Bill right there, you pick up the phone and call your boss.

“Hey boss, Bill just told me ‘he’ broke the forklift. Do you want us to call the service man?”

How do you think Bill feels? Probably angry. He doesn’t think he broke the truck. You didn’t mean to suggest he did. You could have just as easily reported, “the forklift broke down”, but that little pro noun just snuck in there. It might seem like a small difference, but it can cause big problems.
It’s important for all the employees in a business to understand that they share their success. A sales person won’t get the order unless the receptionist answered the phone, the factory produced the product, the shipping department sent the merchandise, and the accounting department took care of the details.

Its important to build a “we” attitude for a winning team. But when things are going well, every member of the team needs to hear “you” did a great job every now and then.

Younger Workers, Faster Times, Stronger Supervisors

The landscape of the job market changes rapidly. Many of today’s jobs didn’t exist ten years ago and ten years from now, the change will be greater yet.

There is one thing, however, that we share in common with the generations that preceded us and those that will follow. We all began our careers young and inexperienced. Everybody had to start somewhere.

Unfortunately, our culture no longer establishes a healthy work ethic at a young age. You are far more likely to find a youth who knows how to operate all the controls on a VCR than to find one who knows how to start a lawnmower.

Today’s younger workers are not less capable or interested in work than their predecessors. They do however, lack the experience and the socialization to work. Work is the main course of life. Leisure is the dessert. While the dessert seemingly brings the pleasure, without the main course, you will become undernourished and unable to enjoy the pleasures that follow.

While adults who spent their youth working need to take tennis and golf lessons, the coming generation has spent considerable time playing and may need some work lessons. They are just as capable and willing, they sometimes just don’t know how.

You can hire and develop good young employees. You may not share a common taste in music or other outside activities, but you will have compatible on the job interests.

Take nothing for granted when training new workers. Invest the time to unambiguously specify your expectations concerning even the smallest of details. Items such as punctuality, dress, and conduct, which you normally assume to be understood, need to be spelled out.

Done upfront, new employees will welcome this clarity. When they understand the rules, newer employees are the best at following them. Once they are established, correcting irritating behavior is difficult. While it may take some patience to train a puppy, it’s harder to teach an old dog new tricks!

Have high expectations for even the most inexperienced workers. Be patient and supportive while they develop the skills necessary to meet those expectations. Positive expectations send a powerful message. Let someone know you think of them as the low man on the totem pole and they will remain there. Let them believe they can climb the ladder and they will.

Even the newest “helper” needs to have job ownership. New and inexperienced workers should be given some level, however small, of independent responsibility. Based upon the execution of those responsibilities, their duties should be increased appropriately.

Delegation is not an optional activity for a supervisor. It often seems easier to do something than to show others how to do it. “Oh never mind, I’ll do it myself.” Delegation is an investment. It’s time consuming in the short run, but its the only way to develop employees.

“Tom Sawyer” is alive and well. Be careful not to become a victim of “upward delegation”. “You do it so well, could you show me one more time”. Most of us are activity oriented, poor delegators, and disarmed by flattery, all of which makes us vulnerable to the “Tom Sawyers” of the world. Keep an eye out for “Tom”, if you’re a good manager, he could be your best pupil.

No one every learned to ski without falling down a few times, so be tolerant of the early mistakes of the inexperienced worker. While they may seem nonchalant about it, their attitude generally masks a real concern and embarrassment.

Workers that are too concerned about making mistakes will be reluctant to take initiative. Remember, its usually the home run hitter that strikes out most frequently. Give the inexperienced workers the support they need to get by some of the early mistakes, but hold them accountable if the situation doesn’t improve.

Newer, inexperienced workers are sometimes described as having “different” attitudes. Different attitudes are alright. It’s on the job behavior that we are concerned with. It’s performance that counts. You can’t change attitudes, so don’t try. Focus on behavior.

Are there certain actions on the job that contribute to your assessment that a newer employee has a “bad attitude”? If so, address the actions, not the attitude. Specify what behavior is acceptable and hold the new employee accountable for it. You will be pleased with the performance.

The only thing I have against younger workers is their age. But I guess we all had that advantage at one time or other. Fortunately because somebody gave us the chance, we had the occasion to learn and take advantage of that opportunity.

The Wizardry Of Good Management

Leading and developing people are important tasks for all managers. Inspiring people to rise to new peaks of performance, levels they didn’t realize they would be capable of attaining, is a key to becoming a management wizard.

If you want to excel at developing people, learn to empower them with knowledge, caring, and confidence. Developing people is a demanding, but rewarding task. It is work only for those who are young at heart.

Examples of good management and effective leadership can be sometimes found in the most curious places. Since its always best to start at the beginning, let’s begin by following the yellow brick road.

When young Dorothy Gale set out on her journey in search of the Wizard of Oz, little did she realize the management skills that would be required to successfully complete her mission. Dorothy’s leadership was evidenced by her ability to enlist the support of others in her quest to reach the Emerald City. Her leadership inspired them to greater feats than they had previously thought themselves capable.

Dorothy was effective as a leader because she clearly defined the objectives, displayed a high level of personal commitment to the task, created a sense of purpose on the part of her followers, and she was prepared to share the benefits of successfully reaching the objective with her followers.

The Wizard himself had already developed a reputation as somewhat of a turnaround specialist for his management of the Emerald City. Through his positive leadership, it has been transformed from a stressful, unproductive environment into a delightful place. Its inhabitants went about their tasks with confidence and optimism, secure in the knowledge that they had a strong supportive manager behind them.

Despite his reputation for super human accomplishment, the Wizard was every bit as mortal as the rest of us. His “wizardry” resulted from his ability to get the most out of those around him. Even on this side of the rainbow, that’s the skill that distinguishes superior managerial performance.

On her journey, young Dorothy encountered a man who lacked confidence because he believed he had “no brains”. While a bit scared to accompany Dorothy on her journey down the yellow brick road in search of the Wizard, he recognized that the wizard could give him a brain. Good managers can give their people the confidence to tap the knowledge that they have. Progress results less frequently from genius than from the diligent application of common sense.

Dorothy’s first companion was wise enough to know that management itself is primarily a thinking exercise. He initially vowed “not to try to manage things because I can’t think”. However, his performance as a problem solver on the journey proved that common sense is of greater value than any degree that can be bestowed. He was wise enough to observe that although he had no brains and could talk, there were many others who talked without using their brains.

Another of Ms. Gale’s companions longed for a heart. A third member of Dorothy’s team signed on for the journey believing he lacked courage. To disguise his lack of courage and confidence, this beast had a bark much worse than his bite. He often used it to intimidate those less formidable than himself. He hoped that the long journey to the Emerald City would result in his getting real courage. If he became truly courageous, he would no longer need to bluff others with his intimidating growls.

By merely agreeing to join Dorothy’s team and face the uncertainties of the journey, he displayed a courage that he hadn’t previously recognized. Courage, after all, is not measured by how loud you can growl, but rather by how silently you can do the job that has to be done.

It’s true that the Wizard managed the Emerald City with much pomp and ceremony. But even after the magic of his wizard’s powers were exposed to Dorothy and her fellow travelers upon their arrival, his ability to develop people enabled him to deliver the brains, heart, and courage that his callers sought. His real “wizardry” was his ability to bring out the best in others.

Having given his three visitors the confidence to utilize the skills that they each possessed, he developed managers that could continue to run his organization in his absence. His ability to develop people thus freed him to take a long over due vacation and to move onto bigger challenges.

Because its your business, before the hour glass is empty, develop your organization by letting your people appreciate their brains, their hearts, and their courage. Give them the confidence they need and they will respond with a whirlwind of activity.

Theory “Why” Management II

Most managers are familiar with the “alphabet” theories of management. It started with Theory X and Theory Y, soon there was Theory Z and the Theory of the Rising Sun. Now, hardly a year goes by without another letter of the alphabet being canonized as the theory of the year.

Each of the theories is an attempt to explain human behavior. Once explained, it can be understood the thinking goes. Once understood, perhaps management action can be initiated to enhance performance.

Each of the theories presents an interesting explanation which contributes to understanding of organizational behavior, but all are flawed in their attempt to present a universal model for managerial success.

While theories of explanation are interesting, management needs tools of application. What can be done to improve the performance of this organization now!

Enter Theory “Why”, named in honor of one of the most powerful words in a manager’s vocabulary. Theory “Why” is action oriented, not explanation oriented. Theory “Why” is a powerful management tool that can be applied in all areas of management, but particularly in three critical ones, staffing, operating, and controlling.

Management has been defined as “getting things done through people”. There is then, no more important management task than staffing your organization with good people.

Interviewing is universally used in the staffing process. While most managers have experienced numerous interviews, few are experienced interviewers. There are many techniques that you can acquire to improve your interviewing skills. However, remembering to ask the question, “Why?”, is one of the most powerful.

Typical candidates for a job have strikingly similar answers to most questions. Asking “Why?” an applicant has a particular objective or made his last career move will begin to scratch the surface and reveal the substance.

In an interview it is the responsibility of the manager to determine the reasons a person is looking for the type of job that is available and to determine whether the applicant will be able to satisfy the needs of the organization, and if he or she will be happy will doing so. No other tool will be as helpful and revealing to the interviewer as the question, “Why?”.

When it comes to operations, people perform better when they understand “why” they are doing what they are doing. The manner in which assignments are made will have a significant impact on the manner in which they are carried out. The logic supporting “Theory Why” management is simple, but sound.

Compare the impact of the following. The sales manger instructs his secretary, “I need this letter and quotation typed by 5 o’clock.” With little extra effort he might add, “I have to leave to catch a plane at five and if we get this quote in tonight’s mail we have a chance at getting a big new customer.” The little effort taken to add the “why” will most likely improve the chances of getting the job done on time as well as enhancing the mutual respect in the long term relationship.

“Theory Why” management requires little effort to implement, costs practically nothing, yet will frequently pay handsome dividends.

Theory Why is an important tool that can be applied to the control function of management. In order to improve or maintain performance, it is necessary to understand it. When sales exceed expectations, you must determine the reasons why. It is equally important when results are better than anticipated.

Don’t accept results at face value. Ask, Why? When you understand the cause and effect relationships underlying a particular result, you are in a position to build on a strength or to address a weakness.

While the end result of business activity is communicated in the language of numbers, daily management decisions are based on comparisons of better than and worse than. To make those decisions, managers need to ask, Why?

Perhaps the best reason to be an adherent of Theory Why is that its risk/reward ratio is low and the return on the investment is high. It’s simple to apply and invariably yields good results.

Theory “Why” Management

It was Private #1’s first day in his new unit. His sergeant lead him to an area on the perimeter of the camp and ordered him to dig a foxhole. Private #1, as he had many times in training, dutifully, but grudgingly, begun the task of digging the foxhole.

On Private #2’s first day with the same unit, his sergeant lead him to a similar area and told him that later that evening it was quite probable that their unit may come under attack. He told him to dig a foxhole so that he would be able to avoid the probable rocket and rifle fire expected that evening.

Which foxhole do think was dug faster, deeper, and more efficiently? People perform better when they understand why they are doing what they are doing. This is the basis of “Theory Why” management.

The logic supporting “Theory Why” management is simple, but sound. “Theory Why” management requires little effort to implement, costs practically nothing, yet will frequently pay handsome dividends.

The sales manger instructs his secretary, “I need this letter and quotation typed by 5 o’clock.” With little extra effort he might add, “I have to leave to catch a plane at five and if we get this quote in tonight’s mail we have a chance at getting a big new customer.” The little effort taken to add the “why” will most likely improve the chances of getting the job done on time as well as enhancing the mutual respect in the long term relationship.

It is necessary for any organization to plan in order to become what it wants to be. But planning for the future, while necessary, is not sufficient. “Theory Why” management is the logical extension of corporate planning. It is an application tool that enables the daily activities of an enterprise to be focused in support of its overall mission. Any activity in an enterprise can only to be justified by its congruence in support of the overall mission.

Managers from sergeants to supervisors, from C.O.s to C.E.O.s often feel that their authority is such that they don’t have to give an explanation when they give an order. They’re probably right. But what happens when they do? Didn’t the foxhole get dug deeper, faster, and more efficiently? Isn’t that what the job of management is all about?

By giving an explanation, some may feel that that they’re asking instead of telling. They are concerned with diminishing their authority. After all, a boss is supposed to boss. In fact just the opposite is true. By showing courtesy and respect, your functional authority is greatly increased. You’ll be the type of boss that “people will do anything for.”

There aren’t a lot of foxholes to be dug today, but there are a lot of reports to type, inspections to be completed, and calls to be made. Any of those tasks, from the smallest to the largest, will be done better if they are done by someone who understands why.

There are occasions when there isn’t time or the subject matter is such that even the briefest explanation can’t be made. Your consistent application of “Theory Why” management won’t undermine your authority in these exceptions. A reservoir of goodwill and understanding will have accumulated.

When you just flat issue an instruction your employees will know that it must be important and that you have a good reason for doing so. If you have always given an unending stream of orders without explanation, your people will not be able to discriminate one from another.

It is just plain human nature that the more people understand about the purpose of their work, the better they will perform. That doesn’t mean that you will have a hard time getting someone to do the “grunt” work in your organization.

On every successful team, only one person can score a touchdown at one time. But for each touchdown, there had to have been a number of successful blocks. For each blocker there had to be back up players to practice against. And for each player, there are numerous supporters along the way.

Successful organizations know that team work, not stars, is the key to success. Successful organizations are known to be as strong as their weakest links. Each link in your organization will be as strong so long as you enable it to understand its importance to the overall mission of your organization.

The receptionist must anticipate that the next call could be the customer whose order will exceed the company’s sales goal. The riveter of the airplane’s wing must recognize the importance of that rivet to the national defense and the life of the pilot.

Too often work is assigned without purpose. Providing a “Theory Why” explanation with a work assignment is an important self test. If there isn’t a good explanation, perhaps the job should be eliminated.

Because its your business, put “Theory Why” to work for you. If that seems difficult on occasion, remember that’s WHY they call it work.

One On One

Although the game of basketball was designed to be played on a full court with five players on each team, if you are going to be a basketball player, you’ll spend plenty of time playing “one on one”.

It’s a game that’s played on school yards and basketball courts throughout the country. Larry Bird and Dr. J lent their names to a popular computerized version of the game a few years ago. Depending on the participants the rules may vary from time to time, but the basics of the game are always the same.

While the basketball player plays “one on one” for enjoyment, going “one on one” is an essential part of a manager’s job. If you are going to be a manager for long, you’ll need to develop the skills for playing “one on one.”

Just like in basketball, the rules may vary according to the participants and the court, but there are certain basics that every manager should learn in order to play the game right.

1) Always play “one on one” in private. Choose a location that is appropriate for the topic to be discussed. Make sure that you pick a time when you will have the complete attention of the other participant. Everyone feels more comfortable expressing their opinions in a private setting.

Nobody likes to be reprimanded in front of others. Harsh or public criticism of even the worst of scoundrels will only make friends for them.

2) Attack the problem, not the person. Managers are most often called upon to play “one on one” when there are problems. Managers can be more effective when they direct their energies at solving problems, not changing people. Problems can be discussed objectively, people react defensively.

3) Be specific. If you want to be good at any game, you need to show up prepared. Spontaneous meetings to discuss generalities rarely serve any long term purpose. Use data to show the importance and implications of the subject.

4) Don’t be judgmental. Make sure that your purpose is always to be helpful and constructive. A judgmental posture rarely leads to anything other than a hardening of previously established positions. Try to describe problems without evaluating them.

5) Don’t overwhelm people with multiple problems. Unless you are awfully good, you’ll lose if you try to play “one on two”. Tackle problems one at a time. It allows you better concentration, avoids confusing different issues, and builds a base to solve the next problem.

6) Get feedback. The effectiveness of communication is judged by the reception, not the transmission. Be sure that what you said is the same as what was heard. Take the time to make sure that you are listening to what is being said.

7) Maintain control and self control. You started the discussion with a purpose in mind, don’t let the game go in another direction. As important as it is to maintain control of the subject matter, it is equally important to maintain your self control in the heat of a discussion. It’s no different in any game, if you lose your composure, you’ll lose the game.

8) Be receptive, not defensive. A strong defense is more helpful on the basketball court than it is in the office. Display a genuine interest in hearing what the other person has to say without cutting them off with a defensive reaction. People will be more receptive to your opinions if you respect theirs.

9) Be prompt. “One on one” management discussions are most effective when they are held promptly. Promptly doesn’t mean immediately. If a problem has occurred, it’s best to allow the dust to settle and tempers to cool.

10) Focus on the future, not the past. The participants in “one on one” are often teammates in a larger game. Regardless of the past, conclude the game with a positive eye on the future. The real purpose of a “one on one” discussion is to improve tomorrow’s performance, not to dissect yesterday’s problem.

At the highest levels of both basketball and management, the best performers pride themselves in their ability to play “one on one”. Since its your business, you can vary the rules on your home court, but don’t forget that the basics of the game never change.

Follow These Instructions To Give Good Ones

If you depend on people to follow your instructions, it only makes sense that you give some thought to the manner in which you give those instructions. At sometime or other, we have all been frustrated when the “simplest instructions” were not followed.

The orange juice machine was empty and needed refilling. As the lines grew on one side of the counter, a small gathering grew around the orange juice dispenser on the other side. None of the pleasant but inexperienced counter personnel were able to replace the empty juice container.

Out from the kitchen dashed the morning manager to the rescue. As the she proficiently replaced the container, the manager barked instructions on how to refill the machine.

“Now does everyone understand how that’s done so you can do it the next time?” While the employees all nodded affirmatively, I think they were primarily concerned with avoiding a re occurrence of the problem by discouraging orange juice sales.

Managers are constantly giving instructions. It’s a key part of the job. It’s done so frequently that giving instructions often becomes an unconscious act. It’s so important to getting results however, that it should always be done with cold blooded pre-meditation.

The first and most important consideration in giving effective instructions is picking the right time and place. Choose a setting where you will have the full attention of your employee and sufficient time to cover all relevant information.

For an inexperienced worker, standing in front of a line of customers while a machine is being repaired is a pressure packed situation. We learn some things well under pressure, like when to duck if somebody is shooting, but generally, we comprehend and retain instructions better in a more serene environment.

The nature of many jobs is such that a lot of instructions are given on the fly. That’s O.K. as long as performance is acceptable. If, however, the results are less than satisfactory, give consideration to choosing a better time and place for delivering the instructions. The less experienced the employee, the more important the setting.

Take the time to explain the purpose of the instructions. Remember “Theory Why” management. Comprehension and performance are always enhanced when people understand the purpose of their work.

Clarify all the specifications concerning the assignment. The “Who, What, When, Where, and How” checklist is a reliable standard. Be specific about the objectives. People may have different approaches about how to do a job, but there should be no ambiguity about the results and how they will be measured.

Be clear about the outcome, and when possible, be flexible concerning the means. The more an employee is allowed to contribute to the means, the greater their commitment will be to the task. And who knows, they may come up with a better way!

Review all the potential problems that may arise and suggest methods for dealing with them. Define the individual’s level of authority and specify under what circumstances they should seek assistance and where they can go for help.

Establishing the responsibility for reporting progress with your employee reduces your need to hover around checking up. Everyone will be happier. When an employee comes to you with a problem, be careful how you handle the situation. If you are too judgmental, it may be the last time a problem will be voluntarily reported.

Feedback is the most reliable means of determining if your instructions have been understood. Successful communications are determined by the reception, not the transmission.

After giving instructions, the most commonly asked question “Do you understand?” invites a one word response. Regardless of the level of comprehension, the reply is inevitably “yes” because most people are too ashamed (or polite) to say “no”.

Questions such as “How are you going to go about doing this assignment” or “What is the objective of this job” are more effective at eliciting the feedback necessary to determine if your instructions have been understood. While the employees gathered around the juice machine all nodded “yes”, I doubt that any of them could have repeated the procedures for refilling the juice machine.

As a point of style, it is usually more constructive to “ask”, not “command” when giving instructions. There are times when you will need to “command”, however, they are usually obvious, but infrequent.

Less experienced mangers, feeling the need to establish themselves, are more inclined to take a “command” posture. It’s counter productive. Everybody knows who the boss is, you don’t have to show it. This “command” posture often is greeted with subtle resistance. There is a little rebel in most of us. The truly powerful and confident executives are often the most gracious. It’s effective and it’s classy!

Management Development For Competitive Advantage

You have been doing your job so well that your are going to be promoted. Instead of doing the work that you have done so well, you are now going to be asked to supervise and direct others in doing that work. Welcome to management!

Most managers, whether newly appointed supervisors, sales managers, or business owners, achieved their management position because they succeeded in doing “things” well. Success in management is different however, the emphasis shifts from “doing the work” to “getting things done through others”.

The people that you will now be responsible for supervising most likely don’t do the job as well as you did (if they did, they probably would have received the promotion). Unfortunately however, you are now held accountable for the work that will be performed by people less skilled than yourself. It’s no small challenge.

Accountants, engineers, nurses, machine operators, and sales people all must adapt to a new role when they begin to manage the work of others. The new role is no longer that of the “doer”, you now must take charge of all the “doings”. It is no longer sufficient to be responsible for your own time, you now must manage other peoples time.

In your former role you received the satisfaction of knowing when your work was done. Management is much like motherhood, the work is never done. The work of the supervisor is intangible, there is no finished product to admire. This lack of tangible output often tempts the new supervision back to the role of “doer”, but this temptation only complicates making the transition to becoming an effective manager.

And perhaps one of the most difficult transitions of all concerns how your performance will be evaluated. As a “doer” you were evaluated on what you did, now, as a manager, you will be evaluated on what other people did.

A well run business has a responsibility to provide a healthy and challenging work environment for its employees. The profitability of a business and its responsibilities to its employees are mutually compatible. Neither objective is well served by promoting people into management and supervisory positions without proper training. Their performance will suffer, their personal job satisfaction will be effected, and the relationship between the people they supervise and your business will deteriorate.

Most people view their relationship to their work through their “boss”. If you want that relationship between your employees and your business to be good, you must insure that all the “bosses” are properly trained. Any union organizer will tell you that the relationship between the first line management and the employees is one of the factors with the greatest impact on unionization.

Training managers is not a panacea for all the problems within an organization. Hard work, co-operation, and good intentions are equally important. But, hard work without training and preparation is a prescription for frustration. While training is not the solution, it is a prerequisite for maximum performance.

You see it in sports all the time. Raw talent will dominate in the early years. But talent will only get you so far. When the competition gets stiff, only those who are willing to work hard with the proper training and preparation succeed. Is your business competitive?

In competitive business situations, the talents and resources of the competitors within an industry are often quite comparable. It maybe difficult to achieve and sustain a 2% advantage in operating costs, however, a 20% increase in management effectiveness is usually obtainable. Management development is a tool for strategic competitive advantage.

The term “management” covers a broad spectrum of responsibilities. The spectrum goes from “doing” to “getting things done” to “deciding what to do”. It begins with supervision, includes middle management, and ends with the chief executive.

People enter the ranks of management because they do things well. They move up the ranks of management because they get other people to do things well. While success at one level is generally a prerequisite to promotion, it is by no means a predictor of performance at the next level.

Top managers achieved their positions because they were able “to get things done through others”. Now the focus of their attention must shift to deciding “what needs to be done”. Planning. This is the strategic challenge for the top management of businesses of all sizes.

Management is a learned discipline. There are no naturals. Because its your business, develop your managers for a lasting competitive advantage.

The Best That You Can Be

Not too long ago I had the pleasure of sitting next to Bobby Knight, coach of Indiana University’s basketball team, while on a cross country flight. Coach Knight was returning from giving a basketball clinic and I was traveling to a meeting with a group of managers that had been working at turning around a troubled business.

We had a brief but pleasant conversation. I told Coach Knight about a young man who was a serious basketball player. He works hard at improving his game and hopes to be able to play at the college level in a few years. I told Coach Knight that the young man would appreciate his advice.

He took the time to make a thoughtful response and wrote a note that included the following. “The best advice I can give a young player is to work toward being the best player you can be without worrying what that is. Don’t back yourself into an end result, but concentrate on what you can do now to become the best that your abilities will allow.”

Focus on “being the best that you can be without worrying what that is.” That’s great advice for a young ball player, but it’s also great business advice. “Don’t back yourself into an end result, but concentrate on what you can do now to become the best that your abilities will allow.” That’s how successful businesses are built.

You need a vision, a dream to justify the hard work and commitment that it takes to get to the top in any endeavor. You need to have a long term perspective in order to make the correct strategic decisions. Just as the young basketball player needs the dream of a college playing career to make the sacrifices and to justify the year round commitment, the business owner needs a vision of eventual success.

For both the young hoopster and the aspiring entrepreneur to achieve that success however, the focus of attention needs to be on each day’s activities. The question is ,”What can I do today to make this a better business today?”, not “What can I do today to become a ten million dollar business?”

The business that I was visiting later that day had begun in 1985. Its energetic and personable President had a strong vision of where she wanted to take the company. In mid-1986 sales for the following year were forecast to be eighteen million, one giant step to the big time. Customer interest appeared to be sufficient to support the ambitious projection, but the company had yet to produce a profit and the systems and personnel to support an eighteen million dollar sales volume were not in place.

As the 1987 year approached, the company’s ambitious goals became too much to swallow at one time. Performance was less than desirable on the initial business, costs mounted, dissension grew, and potential customers lost interest. A business that once held great promise deteriorated rapidly. The company had focused solely on its vision of growth and had neglected to concentrate on being the “best it could be without worrying what that is.”

Although the management was replaced, many observers believed that the company would not be able to survive. Customers were disenchanted, employees were demoralized, costs were high, and cash was low. Those that remained had little choice. They did the best that they could with a few remaining orders for those customers that remained.

The new management retained their vision for a successful company, but they concentrated their daily efforts on being the “‘best that they could be without worrying what that is.” Those few remaining customers were pleased with the quality and the service that they received. After several months more orders were placed, moral picked up, costs were reduced, and the long journey back had begun.

In nine short months the company returned from the brink of disaster and had established itself as a viable enterprise with profitable operations and annual sales of nearly seven million dollars. A dramatic turnaround made not in one giant step, but rather with a daily concentration on “being the best that you can be without worrying what that is.”

When an athlete or a business person becomes preoccupied with their long term goals, they can become vulnerable to unnecessary disappointment. They may cut too many corners that will eventually prove costly or they may overlook other, more suitable opportunities that develop along the way.

The world has been blessed with great surgeons who once had been determined athletes, with small companies that became big, not by design, but rather because of performance. These successful individuals and businesses share a common commitment to excellence in all their undertakings. It was not a focus on greatness that enabled their success, but rather a concentration on excellence, step, by step, day by day. While it may seem a bit methodical to someone just beginning the journey, it is the fastest and the only way to the top, “whatever that may be”.

The Hawthorne Effect

The managers at Company X continually cited the need for upgraded facilities and new equipment when confronted with their failure to compete effectively with Company Y. The corporation that owned Company X decided to invest several million dollars in upgrading its factory. State of the art equipment was installed in the new, carefully engineered production line.

Company Y continued to operate from its antiquated plant in the old warehouse district. It looked pretty rundown from the outside and it had been some time since any new equipment had been installed.

Despite Company X’s physical advantages, Company Y continued to be the market leader. Company X changed management and continued to invest in upgraded facilities and equipment. Frustrated and puzzled, the corporation that owned Company X eventually sold out.

Why wasn’t Company X able to compete effectively with Company Y? As in all complex situations there are a number of factors involved, but most likely one of those factors is an underestimate of the human dimension involved in production.

The behavioral approach to management emphasizes that there is a human as well as a physical dimension to production. Behavioralists stress that improved performance results from the appreciation and understanding of people. The behavioral approach traces its origins to a series of studies begun in 1924 at the Hawthorne Plant of the Western Electric Company.

The initial phase of the study was done to analyze the effect of illumination on production workers. It was assumed that as illumination increased, productivity would increase. The intensity of the light for a test group was increased while the lighting conditions for the rest of the employees was held constant.

As anticipated, each time the lighting conditions improved, the productivity improved. To validate the hypothesis, however, the researchers then decreased the illumination for the test group. To their astonishment, productivity increased again. In fact, every time they made a change, up or down, the productivity of the test group was higher than the base group.

From the results of this first phase of the Hawthorne study, it was clear that no predictable, exclusive relationship existed between illumination and productivity. Back in 1924 it was extremely unclear, however, why productivity had increased.

A second phase of the test was commissioned to investigate the unanticipated results of the illumination experiment. The impact of a variety of working conditions such as rest periods and the length of the workday on productivity were analyzed in this phase.

Again, the results were surprising. Without regard to the experimental variation, the productivity of the test group continued to exceed the base group.

Extensive interviewing of the employees was done to determine why productivity continued to increase throughout the test. It was concluded that the employees enjoyed the extra attention they received being involved in the test.

The monotony of their every day job had been changed by being included in a novel and seemingly interesting experiment. The special attention that the researchers paid to the workers in the test group caused their morale and productivity to improve, regardless of the physical working conditions.

The experiments at Hawthorne Plant of the Western Electric Company resulted in the recognition of a phenomenon called the Hawthorne effect. Researchers have come to understand the Hawthorne effect to mean that the mere act of observation alters the activity that is being observed.

Turn the lights up, productivity increases. Turn the lights down, productivity increases. It became clear that the workers were responding to the personal attention and the feeling of importance that accompanied being part of the test.

There is an equally important message for managers. Pay attention and let people know they’re important. Letting them know you care and what they’re doing is important and can have a greater impact than perfect working conditions.

The results of these early Hawthorne experiments plus an additional study analyzing group incentives stressed the importance of viewing the human element of an organization. The studies revealed that the needs of employees are both physical and social. They underscored the existence of the informal social group as a natural outgrowth of the behavior patterns inherent in the formal structure of an organization.

Because its your business, invest your time in the human relations dimension of productivity when you invest your dollars in new lighting.

One Bad Attitude Can Spoil The Barrel

Barbara had her hands full keeping up with the department’s work load while training new people. She didn’t need a problem employee. “One ‘bad attitude’ can spoil the barrel.”

It wasn’t long after she had taken over as manager that Barbara realized she had a problem with Angela. Although Angela was one of the more experienced employees, there were certain assignments that she just wouldn’t accept. She always had a different excuse, but the results was always the same. Angela’s “bad attitude” had to change.

How do you change a “bad attitude”? The answer is you can’t, so don’t waste your time trying. You’ll probably only make matters worse.

It’s Angela’s behavior that has lead Barbara to conclude that Angela has a “bad attitude”. Focus on changing the behavior. Attitudes are subjective and intangible. Behavior is tangible. It’s behavior that impacts performance. If you observe acceptable behavior, you wouldn’t know there was an attitude problem.

You can try to get someone to “change” their attitude, but its not the sort of thing you can fix by tomorrow. Attitudes are developed over time and change over time. Unacceptable behavior, on the other hand, is something that you can rightfully expect to change right now. It can be accomplished with tangible results.

Before initiating corrective action, ask yourself if the behavior that you are concerned about is important. If the current situation is not detrimental to accomplishing your primary objectives, it might be wise to ignore it. If it is important, you must take corrective action.

If you are aware of behavior that requires corrective action, other people are too. If you allow the situation to continue, you are sending a message that the behavior is acceptable. That doesn’t mean you should over-react, but it does mean you must act!

To rationally determine if you have an on-the-job problem you need to answer four questions. What results do you expect? What results are you getting? What is the difference? Why does the difference exist?

In Barbara’s case, it’s clear she has a problem with Angela’s behavior. Barbara has a right to expect that all department employees will share assignments equally. It’s clear from a long string of excuses that she is avoiding this responsibility. But the question remains, why?

There are three reasons why people don’t do it, whatever it may be. Either they don’t know how to do it, they can’t do it, or they won’t do it. Before Barbara can proceed with handling her problem with Angela, she must examine these alternatives and determine the real cause of the problem.

If a person doesn’t know how to do a job, providing information and instruction is the appropriate remedy.

If a person can’t do the job, work at building the skills necessary. Consider the confidence level, give an opportunity for practice, and provide the support they need to meet a personal challenge. If there is a fundamental skill or aptitude problem, consider reassignment.

Angela’s case was apparently a “won’t do”. Having followed an orderly problem solving process, Barbara continued by arranging for a private discussion with Angela, not to discuss her “bad attitude”, but rather to determine the reasons for avoiding job assignments. With Barbara focusing the discussion on the specific behavior problem in a non-judgmental manner, Angela reluctantly disclosed her problem.

Angela hadn’t been willing to admit it, but she was scared that she would fail at the jobs that were unfamiliar to her. She incorrectly assumed that the consequences of avoiding the work would be better than having her inabilities exposed.

Instead of being confronted with the frustration of dealing with an employee with a “bad attitude”, Barbara, by focusing on the specific unacceptable behavior, has pinpointed a tangible problem. She now has the opportunity to remedy the situation by implementing an appropriate corrective action.

Angela’s “won’t do” was a result of insecurity. Barbara was ready with the right support. She gave Angela the confidence to take the training by guaranteeing Angela that she could have all the time she needed to learn the new equipment. Barbara assured her that if she tried and was unable to master the new tasks, she would give her work assignments elsewhere.

When it’s your business, a “bad attitude” can be frustrating. Focus on the behavior that leads you to conclude that there is an attitude problem. Determine the significance of the behavior, its cause, and then take appropriate actions.

The final results aren’t in as yet, but my guess is that Angela will be one of the best operators in the department.

A Good Team Makes A Good Manager

Yogi Berra, Hall of Fame baseball manager and renowned practitioner of one line wisdom, was once asked what made a good manager. Yogi is said to have replied, “A good ball club”.

Truer words were never spoken. Whether on the ball field or in the board room, a good team will always make a good manager.

The message for all managers is clear. Your first responsibility is to put a good team together. That means getting the right players, developing your people, giving them the ball and letting them play.

Developing and holding onto good people is one of the most important tasks for the manager of any business. You begin by creating a climate in which people can perform to the best of their ability. That sounds easy enough, but most companies fall short of the mark. While most people would like to perform at 100% of their capacity, few organizations can claim such results. Check the recent record of the New York Yankees if you don’t think climate has a major impact on performance.

Determine where you want your team, your department, or your business to be in the future. Assess what skills, qualities, and attitudes your team will need to be successful. Then start to put the team together that will get you where you want to be.

The major reason people don’t succeed in a job isn’t lack of ability. Skills and ability are fairly easy to quantify and measure. We seldom hire someone who doesn’t have the capability to do the job. When we do, the mistake can be corrected quickly by training or reversing the decision. Skills can be taught easier than attitudes can be changed.

When people don’t succeed it’s often because they don’t fit in. That can be a result of the character of the individual, the climate in the organization, or the blending of the two. Just like in our friend Yogi’s business, sometimes the chemistry is not right on a team. An otherwise good ballplayer just doesn’t fit in and a trade is necessary.

Once you have established a climate for success and identified the type of person within the given skill range that your business needs, you must recruit, attract, and retain your team. There’s good and bad news here. The bad news is that there are no fool proof systems for perfect hiring. The good news is that you can substantial increase your percentages if you are willing to get involved and work at it..

Getting the right people is hard work and it’s too important to delegate. In recognition of this fact, it is becoming increasingly common for the Chief Executives of progressive companies to be active in the hiring process at all levels in the organization. Not too long ago that would have been considered meddling.

Develop people by improving your understanding of what people are seeking for themselves. Determine how their personal objectives can be advanced at your company. If those objectives can be accomplished, show your people how and give them the support and encouragement they need. Harness and enroll their self interest so that it will work for you. Get them to sign on to your program and demonstrate their benefits for doing so.

Your team will develop if they know what they are responsible for and have the authority to meet those responsibilities. People need freedom to grow, to make decisions, and to take responsibility. Authority is the power to create a success.

Develop strategies that will bring out the best in people. Clouded objectives and direction cause confusion that prevents people from bringing their best to bear on the problems at hand.

It is always more expensive to fix things than to do them right the first time. Make sure that you spare no effort when you staff your team. Develop a climate that will bring out the best in all your people.

Attitudes towards work are an important consideration when you are choosing a team. You need to choose individuals whose attitudes and objectives are compatible with the direction of your organization. You must further recognize your responsibility to follow through on the promise and expectations that your players bring to the team.

An observer watched three professional baseball players practicing at spring training camp. The observer asked each of the players what they were doing. The first replied, “my job”. The second replied, “playing baseball”. The third replied, “getting ready for the World Series”. Which player do you want on your team?

If good teams make good managers, there is no more important task for any manager than developing people. Because it’s your business, that means recruiting, training, and retaining the right players.

Screamers

We used to call them “screamers”. They were great guys on the ground and proficient aviators when they were at the controls. But while they were teaching you how to fly, they deserved their nickname.

The “screamers” had two opposite tendencies. They were so accomplished as aviators themselves, they would hardly let you make a mistake before they corrected you. While it can be deadly to go to far, it’s hard to learn without being able to go far enough to recognize your own mistakes.

At the other extreme, a “screamer” would let you go almost too far in a maneuver that was unfamiliar to you. They would then grab the controls in a display of superior airmanship and save the day. While perhaps ego gratifying to the savior, all in all not the type of experience that builds confidence in the pupil.

Hard driving business owners will often exhibit many “screamer” tendencies as their businesses grow. Much like the flight instructors, whose fate may one day be dependent on the skills of the pupil, the fortunes of the business will one day be dependent on the development of the management group.

The independent business owner is usually an admirable person. The sort of person we all respect for their accomplishments, their abilities, and their frequently generous personalities. Again, much like the young flight student who admires the experiences of the veteran flight instructor, the young manager looks with respect to the boss who has built the business. But watch out when the “screamers” are in the air or on the job.

The boss has generally “done it all” at some time in the building of the business. It is easy for him or her to spot a problem and make an early adjustment.. It not so easy for them to stand back and wait for someone else to recognize the problem. After all if this business goes down, its over for everybody on board.

As a result of the boss continually seizing the initiative as problems arise, initiative and independence are stifled for the others in the organization. The boss develops a secret fear that everybody else is either incompetent or doesn’t care.. The aspiring managers become frustrated and believe whatever they do won’t be good enough. The boss will do whatever he wants anyway.

In addition to having the skills and experience of having “done it all” before, the boss is equipped with an overall perspective and authority that others in the organization don’t possess. The boss can allow an employee to go nearly to far in the wrong direction with an assignment and then “grab the controls” with a display of superior skill to save the day. Again, far from a great confidence building experience for the employee. And worse yet, it reinforces the bosses erroneous view of indispensability.

Most young aviators survived the “screamers” and moved on. Some, I am sure returned as “screamers” themselves one day. In the business world however, its not so easy to move on and the consequences for the “screamers” themselves can be great. Without the ability to develop responsible, independent managers and employees, your own development and the growth of your business will be limited.

Unlike the larger public corporations where there is often little difference in experience and authority amongst the top executives, in the privately owned business there is often an enormous gulf between the boss and the next level of authority. The head of the privately owned business must be sensitive to this potential communication gulf or they will become isolated.

You have to be confident enough in your own abilities to let someone go far enough to learn through their own mistakes, and wise enough not to let them go so far that a confidence shattering emergency occurs. While it is no less easy to let an employee experiment with your business than it is with an airplane in which you are flying, it is nonetheless just as important if you want to develop managers that can one day fly on their own.

Managers and employees in your business are looking for independence, not interruptions. It is important to recognize, define and communicate to your managers what limits their independence will have before you will interrupt them. Those limits will expand as they grow in experience and you develop confidence in their abilities.

Your good people want you as a supporter, not a savior. Let your employees understand that they can come to you for direction. Show them that you view this as wisdom not dependence. Let them see that you can patiently provide assistance without rushing to usurp their responsibilities.

Because its your business, don’t be a “screamer” and both your business and your employees will fly to great heights.

A Special Thanks At Retirement Time

What can you say to a valued employee at the time of their retirement? How can you show your appreciation for years of dedication and valuable service?

Most of our adult lives are dedicated to our careers. If you add the actual time spent on the job plus the hours spent thinking about our work and the time spent getting to and from work, more of our waking hours are spent on our work than at home or with our families. People that work the majority of their careers for one employer don’t make that kind of commitment for a paycheck alone.

Above and beyond that paycheck, people make a greater kind of commitment to their work and their employer because they have hopes, expectations and dreams for their future. Not all those dreams will come true, but it’s important that they be kept alive and that the possibilities exist. It is because of those possibilities that long term relationships develop.

The enormous personal commitment that is made over the course of a working career merits a personal response. There is a big difference between working “for” a company and working “at” a company. When people have made a life long commitment to their job, they want to be able to look back and say that they worked “for” someone not just “at” a job. They want to look back on their employer with pride. Proud of what they contributed and proud that their contribution was appreciated.

What can you say at retirement time to show your appreciation for all that a valued relationship with a loyal employee has meant to you and your business? It’s too late to say a mere thanks, you just have to hope that your actions over the years have said thanks in many small ways on a daily basis.

The important qualities we all look for in a good employee, integrity, dedication and loyalty, aren’t ones that we can demand from people, they must be earned and given time to develop. They are built over time in a mutually respectful relationship. It’s a company’s responsibility to create an environment where that relationship can develop. Once the relationship is built it should be respected and protected.

Of all the management books that have been written, I have yet to see one that addresses the subject of meaningfully recognizing a career of loyalty and dedication at the time of retirement. If there was such advice, it would probably include all the traditional items such as a party, a gift and a plaque or watch that would indicate the years of service. But after the euphoria of the ceremonial moments are over, it is the respect and appreciation that was shown on a daily basis that will let a person know that they wisely invested their life’s work for an employer that appreciated their effort.

It is difficult to put a value on all the small sacrifices that a dedicated employee makes over the course of their career. It’s one thing for the owner of a business to be working late or coming in early when there is a project that needs to be done, but its something special when you have employees that have that same commitment. There are some people that always make that extra effort, just like it was their business.

An employer expects to have a number of different employees with differing personalities over the years. Sometimes it’s not so easy for a long term employee to adjust to the different personalities of supervisors and co-workers over a number of years. Some on the job conflicts are inevitable but the dedicated employee makes the adjustments so that the work gets done.

The appreciation that you show to someone who has put forth the extra effort and made those adjustments over a number of years can’t be too great. The real thanks at retirement time should have start on day one.

How can you say thanks to special person on the occasion of her retirement? You can’t, you just have to hope that your actions over the years have said thanks in many ways. Because it’s your business, make sure you take the time to say thanks and keep the dreams alive for all those people that you will miss someday.

Pay, Productivity, Performance And Profit

It’s a situation that we have all experienced. You walk into a store with the intention of making a purchase. You look for some assistance from a sales person. There are a few people around, but its hard to tell if they are employees or customers. Frustrated and impatient you ask for help and finally someone strolls over with all the enthusiasm of a hibernating bear.

You walk into a different store, perhaps a car dealership or a clothing store. As you casually stroll in the door, what appeared to be a small huddle of employees immediately disperses and one of the group descends upon you like a hungry hawk leaving their perch to pounce upon the innocent prey. Your presence is so tantalizing that the hawks have been even known to fight over whose customer you were.

What’s different about these two situations? Is it the type of business? Most likely its a structural reason, the compensation system. One group of employees is paid a straight wage and the other is paid a commission based on what they individually sell. Guess which is which?

What’s the same about these two situations? Well there are probably lots of things that are similar but the most important observation is that while both situations are common, neither makes sense for most businesses.

Compare for a moment an accounting system and a compensation system. An important element in the design of an accounting system is to structure the system the way in which you want to view the business. For example, you group sales categories that are effected by common factors and expense items that have common control. In this manner you have some accountability for the various elements of the business.

In designing a compensation system the same principals should be followed. Design your compensation system so that it impacts the way your employees view their work. If the employees have no discretionary impact on the operations of the business, pay them a straight wage. If you want some individuals to prosper while others falter, construct an individual commission system.

If the performance of all your employees has a significant impact on the performance of your business, construct a compensation program in which your employees will be impacted by the overall results of the business . Whether it be in fashion or at a factory, in service or in sales, company wide incentive programs make sense.
I am not talking about a “drippings” system with a year end profit sharing payment. That is appreciated but doesn’t really impact daily actions during the other 364 days of the year. A meaningful program calls daily attention to the factors that impact the bottom line.

Employees need to know the factors within their control that influence the operating results of the business. Regardless of the level of responsibility of the position, if a position is important enough to exist, performance in that position will have some impact on the company. A lot of small contributions can make a big difference. If you are certain that the level of performance can’t impact the company, eliminate the position.

It maybe difficult to envision the development of a company wide incentive system. At first it may appear too complicated. But there is an important principal involved, if the employee is significant to the result, the result has to be made significant to the employee. Once accepted, the principal can be incorporated in many customized, common sense formats.

If your employees aren’t regularly called upon to exercise human judgment to influence the operating results of the business, you need robots not employees. If you need robots get them, but don’t treat employees as if they were robots.

It seems logical to some, and perhaps rightfully so, that when you hire somebody to do a job and you pay them a fair wage, they should do the best that they can. It seems logical enough but that’s just not the way things work. Incentives make our system work. Properly structured they can get everybody focusing their attention on the relevant issues and pulling the oars in the same direction. It brings out the best in all of us.

Concerns are often raised that group incentives penalize the best and benefit the laggards. Properly designed, group incentives should support the high achievers, provide an opportunity for others to raise their performance and expose those that have no place in your business. Because it’s your business, give your employees the incentives that will get all the oars pulling in the right direction.

“Oscar The Guard”

For those of you not yet familiar with Big Bird, Bert and Ernie, Oscar the Grouch and the rest of the Sesame Street gang, read no further. For those of you already familiar with those children’s characters that have a lot to teach adults, let me introduce you to “Oscar the Guard”.

My morning travels take me through a security check point that is staffed by a number of people, two of whom stand out for differing reasons.

Guard #1 has a positive presence. He invariably has a smile on his face and a pleasant word to say. His bearing is businesslike and professional. If you really needed help, he is the type of security officer you would want. A crisp friendly greeting from Guard #1 is the sort of contagious contact that gets your day started in the right direction.

I frequently have a traveling companion and we have started to affectionately refer to Guard #2 as “Oscar the Guard”. He must be a close relative to Sesame’s “Oscar the Grouch”. My companion and I have yet to see a smile or hear much more than an unpleasant mumble from our “Oscar”. Passing by Oscar can be like seeing the sun fade behind the clouds.

The contrast between the two guards has frequently directed our morning conversations to a discussion of work attitudes. It’s clear to us that Guard #1 has set out to do the best job that he can in a positive a manner as possible. The approach he takes to his work benefits himself and those around him. We can testify to his impact on others and he appears happy and energetic.

Oscar, on the other hand, is a different story. Now that we have become accustomed to his frowning face, we greet his scowls with amusement. Prior to christening him “Oscar the Guard” however, his gruff manner was regrettably as contagious as his co-workers smile. I’m quite certain that on many a day he is greeted with frowns that glare back in response, “What are you so grumpy about today”. The greetings we receive are often mirror images of those we send.

Whatever work or activity that you are engaged in, strive to be the world’s best. Pursue that objective with a positive attitude for everyone’s benefit. Whether you are in surgery or security, firefighting or finance, if you strive to be the best, you will be happier with yourself and you will positively impact those around you. There are enough problems in the world to put a frown on all our faces, but a face without a smile is just one more problem for somebody else.

If you are unhappy with what you are doing, do it to the best of your ability until another opportunity comes along. Habit patterns develop consistency. Excellence is no exception. Develop a pattern of excellence in your work and it will carry over to your next job and into all facets of your life. The bottom line is that a positive attitude pays.

As the holiday season approached my traveling companion and I decided to present Guard #1 with a small gift as a token of appreciation for his courtesies. I suggested that in the spirit of the “golden rule” that we should get Oscar a gift in the hopes that it might improve his disposition.

My companion had some interesting objections. If you did that, he said, what would Guard #1 think. Wouldn’t he feel that it didn’t make any difference how he did his job if he saw the grouch getting the same reward?

I responded that he probably never would find out ( I should have known better than to say that, they always find out) and if he did, it probably wouldn’t have any effect on him. I was less than convincing even to myself at this point. But the “golden rule” I reiterated. “Great”, my companion replied, but Oscar has had every opportunity to be like Guard #1, but he’s not.

While the dialog continued with no easy answers in sight, the contrasting personalities of these two guards raised interesting questions concerning employee attitudes, motivations and rewards. These are the questions that we face as managers on a regular basis.

One of the lessons to be learned from these early morning conversations is the power of a smile and a positive attitude. Put that smile on your face and project a positive attitude about your work and those around you will become mirrors that reflect your image.

Each day that I see Oscar I am reminded how a sour disposition can have a contaminating effect. We all bear burdens that can justify a frown, but a frown will never lessen the burden. I know I’ve been guilty from time to time, it’s not always easy when it’s your business. The #1 Guard reminds me how contagious a smiling face and positive attitude can be, especially if you are the boss.