Many factors contribute to the overall success of an organization – from strategy formulation to company leadership. Employee management also contributes to an organization’s ability to achieve its objectives. Employees are likely to be more productive and engaged when they are properly managed.
However, it’s not always easy to be a good manager. If you’re looking for insights on how to manage your employees, you’re in the right place. In this article, we outline key employee management tips to help you become an effective leader and bring out the best in your employees.
Communicate more effectively
One of the best ways to strengthen your employee management skills is by making an effort to communicate with your employees effectively. Employees who often have one-on-one interactions with their managers are more likely to be engaged at work. But what is the proper cadence for effective communication? You should ensure that you communicate with your employees openly, clearly, and often.
Most managers encourage having weekly one-on-one meetings with employees. However, every employee is unique and will have different needs. A good manager acknowledges the individual needs of their employees and uses them to chart an effective communication strategy. The one-on-one provides an opportunity to discuss tasks, projects, and goals.
When managing employees, there are some things to avoid. For example, you should avoid scheduling too many face-to-face meetings and micromanaging employees. Instead, adopt other communication channels, like emails, chats, and phones. You should also consider partnering with a software development company to create an employee management system that allows seamless communication across the organization.
Remember, communication is not all about using words. It is also about body language. As a business leader, you should be aware of your body language and that of your employees. This is important because most communication in the office is non-verbal communication.
By reading non-verbal cues, you can tell what mood your employees are in or whether they are engaged.
Manage performance expectations
A good manager should set clear performance expectations and motivate employees to improve. Ensure that you provide opportunities for employees to give feedback. Two-way feedback will make you a better manager and encourage employees to stay on track.
There are different approaches to managing performance reviews, such as 360-degree feedback from colleagues, supervisors, and managers and employee ranking systems.
Collaborative goal setting is also a common approach to performance review. However, ensure that you adopt a performance management system that allows you to successfully manage employees and enhance career growth.
Define your management style
A manager can only be as good as the team of employees behind them. Therefore, you should have a basic understanding of every employee’s role. With this knowledge, you will understand the impact of your decisions on the employees and the day-to-day operations of your organization. Be available at work and ensure that you understand all the key projects in every department.
Do not overly control your employees because this could lower their confidence and self-esteem. This will, in turn, translate to poor performance and higher employee turnover.
Taking time to understand your management style, including its strengths and flaws, helps you build your leadership skills. The journey to becoming an efficient manager requires self-observation, reflection, and growth. Take every interaction with employees as a learning opportunity.
You can strengthen your relationships with employees by being socially and emotionally aware. However, beware of the ripple effect. If you make a bad decision that upsets one employee, the effect could trickle down to the rest of your employees and affect the entire office environment.
Employees highly focus on you as their leader, and you must ensure that you maintain positive energy. If you walk around the office looking worried or upset, the employees may make the wrong assumptions.
Reward your employees
Recognize and appreciate the individual skills and attributes of your employees. Learn to focus on your employee’s strengths, not just their flaws. Instead of making assumptions, listen to your employees’ opinions and thoughts. Never adopt the attitude that you’re always right and your employees are wrong. The more involved employees are in discussions regarding the business, the better.
One of the best ways to make your employees feel appreciated is by recognizing and rewarding them by providing perks and incentives. Encourage employees to achieve their targets by establishing a goal that they can work towards. Have in place a way of displaying your employees’ progress and establish a metric to measure their performance.
Encourage employees who show initiative and self-motivation. Also, personalize the methods of rewarding employees to ensure rewards have more meaning. Rewards and incentives can be through a raise, special recognition, time off, or a lead role in an assignment.
Learn to delegate
The title “manager” comes with many obligations. You cannot effectively manage and lead employees if you don’t know how to delegate. Ensure that you plan, strategize, and organize for the team. Then delegate responsibilities to employees who are suited for every role. When necessary, coach and mentor staff on new skills. Then delegate tasks to them to help them strengthen those skills.
When delegating tasks to employees, be clear about what is required for the assignment. Answer all the questions the employee may have when handling the assigned tasks. However, this doesn’t mean that you should micromanage your employees. Instead, let them know that you will be available to support them if they need you. Set aside some time to go through the delegated tasks and discuss the results with the employees.
Handle disciplinary actions skillfully
Every manager is likely to encounter a difficult employee at some point. You can make disciplinary action more effective by discussing the issue with the employee. For instance, if an employee is underperforming, you should outline in detail how he/she is failing to meet expectations. Inform the employee of the potential consequences for continued poor performance. If you try everything and the disciplinary action is unsuccessful, you may have no option but to terminate their employment. Even when handling disciplinary issues, always ensure that you remain calm and professional.
The Bottom Line
Becoming a good manager takes time. However, despite your many responsibilities, you should strive to make your organization an enjoyable place to work. While it is ultimately up to every manager to establish their employee management style, adopting the tips outlined above will help you manage your employees effectively and enhance their productivity.
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This article, "Startups 101: A Guide to Managing Your Employees More Efficiently" was first published on Small Business Trends
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