Getting the best from other people is not an easy task, especially when they are expected to work diligently towards a shared goal as a team. Employees are people drawn from different backgrounds, with each of them coming with their personal strengths and weaknesses. Below are actionable tips to help you as a manager to get the best in your employees’ performance.
1. Appreciating Excellence at Work through Rewards
This strategy is not as easy as it sounds, especially for managers who feel that the fundamental responsibility of their employees is to excel in their roles. With this kind of attitude, the employees work up to a satisfactory level that justifies their pay but are not motivated to push their limits further. With a well-structured reward system where you reward the best employees in each department or office on a regular basis, a healthy competition environment ensues in your company. This strategy gets even more efficient if you introduce gamification in the workplace where, just like in games, excellence is accompanied by gifts, points, medals, or even trophies. The more competitive your employees get, the more they will give their best performance.
2. Lead from the Front
This is a simple concept when said, but tough when it comes to implementation. Your employees look up to you for guidance and leadership; if you succeed in your leadership, your employees follow suit and vice versa. As a manager, you require your employees to uphold high levels of professional ethics. To achieve this, you must set the pace at the top by being the most ethical person in the company. When you and your employees set company rules and regulations, you should be the first to abide by them, and the employees will naturally follow. Eventually, employees will see you more as a leader than a boss and their productivity will increase.
3. See the Potential in Your Employees and Believe in Their Capabilities
From the onset, companies base their recruitment criteria on qualifications; the most qualified gets the job. In some cases, however, employers tend to forget this simple fact and undermine the potential and capabilities in their employees. If you see the potential in your employees and then go ahead to create a conducive environment for them to unleash that potential, then their morale is raised beyond measure. On the other hand, you can cultivate your employees’ capabilities by allowing them to take the lead in important projects as you sit back and give advice. That way, you will succeed in making them own the project as opposed to working on the project. During meetings, give your employees the freedom to share their opinions on all projects that the company wishes to embark on and ensure that you those opinions are considered when making decisions.
4. Be Available, Approachable, and Accessible
There is no denying that managers operate on tight schedules. However, your presence at workplace plays a key role in boosting the morale of your employees. It is logical that you designate some time, no matter how short, to listen to concerns from the employees. But it’s good to understand that being available and not approachable is at times equivalent to being absent altogether. A situation where the employees feel comfortable discussing their professional and even personal lives with you is imperative for any company.
5. Be Ambitious, Not Over-Ambitious
As much as it is good to be ambitious, being over-ambitious may be detrimental. When setting your company’s targets, make sure to set them reasonably high. Targets set too high at times become unachievable and lead to unnecessary frustrations both to you and to your employees.
We hope that the points discussed here will help you succeed in your company. However, have it in mind that implementing them is not as straightforward as they appear. They will require sacrifice, dedication, and commitment.
