Women's Life Link Be Well, Be Happy, Be YOU!
As businesses begin to ease out of lockdown and begin to prosper again, many are focusing on growth and improvement. One way to see overall company growth is to improve employee development. After all, the better the relationship employers have with their workforce, the greater the improvements will be at the grassroots.
Taking care of your employees doesn’t simply mean offering fun happy hours and paying for one lunch a week. Each person wants to feel genuinely cared for, and an impactful way to do that is to support their professional enhancement and personal growth. Here are some vital tips to do just that.
Remove Annual Performance Reviews
It is not surprising that the classic annual performance review is no longer what it used to be. In fact, it seems antiquated and less productive by today’s communication standards. An employee cannot be expected to wait for one conversation a year to see if they have improved professionally.
Wilke research proved that 53% of the respondents explain that they don’t feel that the annual performance review develops them professionally. Many want ongoing conversations about weaknesses and strengths and how each can be developed. This can be weekly or monthly or whatever works for you and your staff. Ask them what they would prefer, and how they want to be evaluated.
Offer Professional Training
Offering professional training from the start is a strong way to set up your employees for success. It helps to ask them questions about what they have learned and what their goals are. Use this feedback to create a knowledge base of critical information and best practices for new hires as your team grows.
During the pandemic, it is also important to remember that remote employees may not get the same opportunities to get feedback and one-on-one attention. It might be helpful to set up a special process that is equivalent to traditional reviewing and communication.
Empower Management to Be Coaches
Supervisors and middle management can be extremely important to help develop your employees. They are basically an extension of you and your mission as a business owner. Therefore, it’s imperative to empower them to be the best leaders and coaches they can.
Instruct them to have conversations with the team to provide feedback, maybe once a week check-ins and one-on-one goal setting. Such questions could be “What challenges are you facing?”, “Any wins this week?” or “How can I become a better leader.” These conversations help create deeper connections with your people and also contribute to building a more psychologically safe environment for employees.
These are only a few tips to help get employees engaged. If they are given the right support and the right tools, they become passionate about the businesses they work for. They are emotionally invested in helping organizations reach their true potential and are proactive and productive in their daily approach.
