In a business, your people is as much important in keeping your business running. Even if you are self employed, you would probably need to hire at least one or two people to assist you. Thus, in order to have them perform more efficiently, you need to put up a good personnel management plan.
However, managing employees is not as simple as giving orders and keeping them in line in order to work properly. In fact, that one is rather simplistic and is not a very good model of staff management. Actually there is more that is needed to be done in order to to have a well managed staff.
The first thing that you need to do is, of course, getting your staff. Skills and working ability are a must to qualify, and you must select the best one for a particular job. However, character is also very important in choosing your employees. After all, even with a skilled worker, work may not flow properly if he doesn't have the right attitude towards it. Though you won't be able to determine the whole personality of an applicant through a short interview, you can still get hints by observing him. If he does show a good deal of interest in the position during the interview, then he is promising.
Once you have your staff, it's now time to settle them in to their positions. Instead of just pointing to the area where they will work, you need to acquaint them with everything about the place, including the other people that they are going to work with. You also need to make the new employee feel welcomed in his new job, this will make him more comfortable working. After which, you need to explain the do's and don't s in the work area.
Keeping your staff working together harmoniously is the hardest part of personnel management. In some cases, you yourself need to act as an in-between to settle disputes among your crew. In order to get along with each other, you need them to follow you first. Thus you yourself need to foster good working relationships with your subordinates. Instead of doing the usual boss-worker routine, you can be more cordial and casual in your conversations with them. This will help them be less tensed when you are around. Avoid shouting at workers at all costs, as this will unnerve them. However, you do need to remind them from time to time that you are still the boss.
However, disputes among workers can never be avoided. So, in order to settle them, you need to show that you are indeed very impartial in your decisions. Never act until you have seen all sides of the coin. And afterwards, explain to both sides calmly how you arrived with that decision. Avoid using the “he's in a higher position than you” reasoning, as this will give them the impression that you are indeed partial and looking at everything through hierarchy.
As a last tip in handling workers, praise everyone's good work every now and then. This will definitely boost their morals and making them aim for better outcomes.
Wouldn't you like to know how to handle difficult situations, especially difficult customer service problems, much more effectively and easily? Whether your business is large or small, your team can benefit from leadership development and coaching and mentoring at FutureAfrica.
Read More From Regie Macalam
|
