Feedback is the Breakfast of Champions: 10 Tips for Doing it Right

Whether from bosses, spouses or friends, it’s not easy to hear about our shortcomings. And letting others know how they can do better is almost as uncomfortable. Feedback can stir up all kinds of self-doubt, defensiveness and career worries – and if handled poorly, it can go radioactive.

But I think about feedback differently. For me, it isn’t about pointing out others’ weaknesses; on the contrary, it’s about helping them eliminate stumbling blocks in order to build on their strengths. That’s why I call feedback “the breakfast of champions.”
And it's essential. Operating without feedback is like driving a car with no speedometer, learning to cook without ever tasting your food, or playing basketball without a scoreboard.
Many organizations don’t train teams in how to give feedback. As a result, many of us have been on the receiving end of vague, unnecessarily negative feedback, with no clear plan for improvement. But, done the right way, feedback can be transformative and redemptive. Here are a few guidelines:

1. Don’t wing it. The words you choose will matter. Practice what you’re going to say and how you plan to say it -- and even consider rehearsing with a trusted partner. Your attitude, the accuracy of what you say, and the care with which you say it may matter as much as the specifics.

2. Lean positive. Every time you offer feedback, some (if not most) of it should be positive. Look for opportunities to praise successes even as you offer suggestions for improvement. Celebrating performance has a salutary effect on everyone and is much more powerful than disciplining shortcomings. Dispensing encouragement is infectious.

3. Be specific. There’s no point in telling someone they need to be “more punctual” or “more diplomatic.” Give examples and specific suggestions for improvement. Replace “you need to be more punctual” with “let’s keep track of what time we start our weekly staff meetings in the coming month and then talk about how it went.”

4. Don’t limit it to a big annual event. Encourage regular and informal assessment. Don’t limit feedback to annual performance reviews where you bring people into a conference room. Instead, make a deal with your team to offer (and accept) real-time tweaks to enhance performance. Indeed, the best opportunities for this are when you “catch people in the moment” -- when you can point out a missed cue or a better way a situation could have been handled. Make talking about “how we’re doing” regular and easy.

5. Keep it cool. Don't use "high velocity" language. Labeling someone “lazy" or “inept" will invariably come back to bite you. And never shout, stand or be animated. People will recall how they felt, not what you said; so reduce the drama.

6. Don’t deluge. People can only process so many suggestions at once. If you have more than three items for someone to address, group them under a general heading, like goal-setting, cooperation, or communication and offer an example of each with a specific suggestion for improvement.

7. If it’s serious, say so. Occasionally, you may need to let someone know that unless they make specific changes, their job may be in jeopardy. If so, be direct. Let them know if something is getting in the way of their professional development, and that it could lead to dismissal if unaddressed. If this feedback is offered encouragingly – along with a plan to follow up – it can light fires that lead to improvement.

8. Follow up. By noting improvements on the spot, you'll reinforce that you're paying attention. Check in soon about the plan you made together, and as you notice efforts to improve, point them out.

9. Think of feedback as a gift. There are "no percentages" in giving a peer or organizational superior feedback about things to work on. In other words, there’s plenty of risk and no direct reward -- it’s safer to do nothing. So if a subordinate has the courage to offer you that kind of input, thank them and make a special effort to reward their risk-taking.

10. It stays confidential. Feedback sessions are private. Don't ever share the conversation with someone else. In giving feedback, you're seeking to help the person and the organization. Nothing good will come from sharing one person's issues with another.

The aim is to build a culture where people feel confident about sharing feedback without the fear that it will be taken personally. Honest, thoughtful feedback is an important and valuable tool for building a good team and a good business. With better feedback comes more trust, more team bonding, and more progress – that’s why it’s the breakfast of champions.

****http://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20131011052926-11846967-feedback-is-the-breakfast-of-champions-10-tips-for-doing-it-right?trk=mp-edit-rr-posts

The Top 10 Books For Professionals

Books make great gifts, but they’re even more meaningful with a story behind them.
 

This month, over 60 of the most powerful figures in business shared the one book that got them where they are, and described how reading it transformed them professionally and personally. “The Book That Changed Me,” November’s feature series of Influencer posts on LinkedIn, amounted to a library of life-altering books. Some were inspirational, some serious, and others downright silly. But they all had a profound impact on the lives of leaders, among them Virgin founder Richard Branson, executive recruiter James Citrin and GE CMO Beth Comstock.

LinkedIn’s members enthusiastically participated in the series, and added another shelf to that library. Your responses in the comments and on social media layered new meaning onto some Influencer favorites and offered a whole new selection of great books.

Now, we’ve developed a list of pivotal reads that the LinkedIn community recommends. To assemble it, we looked across the list of Influencer posts for the books that members talked about the most, and the books with which members were most engaged. Then we added in the books Influencers didn't mention but members rallied around. Below, you’ll find the top ten books that LinkedIn members and Influencers say changed their lives.

 

 

One book resonated particularly loudly with the LinkedIn network: Doris Kearns Goodwin’s Lincoln biography “Team of Rivals,” which Influencers Giovanni Colella, CEO of Castlight Health, and Phyllis Wise, Chancellor of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, both say made a profound difference in who they are as professionals. LinkedIn member Patricia Sullivan-Taylor agreed, responding:

Rather than attempt to ignore his weaknesses, he chose to place people around him that were a good complement to his skills. I've discovered this is both a good rule for business and marriage.

The ten most buzzed-about books for professionals

1. "Mandela's Way: Lessons on Life, Love, and Courage" by Richard Stengel

LinkedIn Member Pramod Kumar Srivastava on Stengel's book:

He saw the innate hidden aspirations in his people - to be equal.

2. “The 7 Habits of highly Effective People” Stephen R. Covey

LinkedIn member Inna Stelmukh:

Often common sense is hidden in the routine, and therefore when someone like Mr. Covey brings it to the surface again, it starts making even more sense.

3. “The Alchemist” Paolo Coelho

LinkedIn Member Charles Hurst:

The journey of Santiago and following his personal legend has changed the way I look at my life.

4. “How to Win Friends and Influence People” Dale Carnegie

LinkedIn Member Barney P. Popkin:

Understanding your customer in depth is a brilliant yet obvious and often overlooked concept.

5. “Atlas Shrugged” Ayn Rand

LinkedIn Member Donna Greiner:

[Rand] was a bit ahead of her time, but also very much a woman of her time. There is much to admire about her, and also much to disagree with.

6. “Les Miserables” Victor Hugo

LinkedIn Member Chris Burton:

It teaches us the importance of justice, redemption, words with actions, commitment and endurance, faithfulness and love. And it's a great story.

7. “As a Man Thinketh” James Allen

LinkedIn member Erika Powell-Burson:

It's a short, pithy read, advocating a change in thought process to change outcome...I sing its effectiveness whenever I can!

8. The Bible

LinkedIn member Sam Lee:

The proverbs are full of incredible wisdom regarding how to conduct yourself in your personal and business life.

9. “Think and Grow Rich” Napoleon Hill

LinkedIn member Talha (Terry) Husayn:

Nothing has changed me more ...I would be grinding away in medical school if it wasn’t for Napoleon Hill.

10. "Team of Rivals" Doris Kearns Goodwin

Lincoln member Ross Gibson:

Lincoln’s understanding of people, of the necessity to listen, to bring divergent opinions into the conversation and take decisive action … are all things we should learn. http://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20131203190537-28723569-the-top-10-books-for-professionals-plus-doris-kearns-goodwin-answers-your-questions-on-leadership?trk=eml-mktg-inf-m-booklist-1204-button

10 Simple and Easy Ways to Give Thanks for Your Employees

So on this day of giving thanks, take a few minutes to review this list and commit to using one of these methods to tell your employees “thank you.” I’ve used many of these strategies myself and can attest to their effectiveness.

In the spirit of today’s Thanksgiving holiday in the United States, I thought I’d share ten simple and easy ways to tell your employees “thank you.” Telling an employee “thank you” is one of the simplest and most powerful ways to build trust, yet it doesn’t happen near enough in the workplace.

Whenever I conduct trust workshops with clients and discuss the role that rewards and recognition play in building trust, I will ask participants to raise their hands if they feel like they receive too much praise or recognition on the job. No one has ever raised a hand.

 

1. Let them leave work early - This may not be feasible in all work environments, but if you’re able to do it, a surprise treat of allowing people to leave early does wonders for team morale and well-being. I use this technique occasionally with my team, usually when they’ve had the pedal to the metal for a long period of time, or if we have a holiday weekend coming up. Allowing folks to get a head start on the weekend or a few hours of unexpected free time shows you recognize and appreciate their hard work and that you understand there’s more to life than just work.

 

2. Leave a “thank you” voice mail message - Don’t tell my I.T. department, but I’ve got voice mails saved from over ten years ago that were sent to me by colleagues who took the time to leave me a special message of praise. The spoken word can have a tremendous impact on individuals, and receiving a heartfelt message from you could positively impact your employees in ways you can’t imagine.

 

3. Host a potluck lunch - You don’t have to take the team to a fancy restaurant or have a gourmet meal catered in the office (which is great if you can afford it!), you just need to put a little bit of your managerial skills to practice and organize a potluck lunch. Sharing a meal together allows people to bond and relax in a casual setting and it provides an excellent opportunity for you to say a few words of thanks to the team and let them know you appreciate them.

 

4. Give a small token of appreciation - Giving an employee a small memento provides a lasting symbol of your appreciation, and although it may cost you a few bucks, it’s well worth the investment. I’m talking about simple things like giving nice roller-ball ink pens with a note that says “You’ve got the write stuff,” or Life Savers candies with a little note saying “You’re a hole lot of fun,” or other cheesy, somewhat corny things like that (believe me, people love it!). I’ve done this with my team and I’ve had people tell me years later how much that meant to them at the time.

 

5. Have your boss recognize an employee - Get your boss to send an email, make a phone call, or best-case scenario, drop by in-person to tell one of your employees “thank you” for his/her work. Getting an attaboy from your boss’ boss is always a big treat. It shows your employee that you recognize his/her efforts and you’re making sure your boss knows about it too.

 

6. Hold an impromptu 10 minute stand up meeting - This could be no or low-cost depending on what you do, but I’ve called random 10 minute meetings in the afternoon and handed out popsicles or some other treat and taken the opportunity to tell team members “thank you” for their hard work. The surprise meeting, combined with a special treat, throws people out of their same ol’, same ol’ routine and keeps the boss/employee relationship fresh and energetic.

 

7. Reach out and touch someone - Yes, I’m plagiarizing the old Bell Telephone advertising jingle, but the concept is right on. Human touch holds incredible powers to communicate thankfulness and appreciation. In a team meeting one time, my manager took the time to physically walk around the table, pause behind each team member, place her hands on his/her shoulders, and say a few words about why she was thankful for that person. Nothing creepy or inappropriate, just pure love and respect. Unfortunately, most leaders shy away from appropriate physical contact in the workplace, fearful of harassment complaints or lawsuits. Whether it’s a handshake, high-five, or fist bump, find appropriate ways to communicate your thanks via personal touch.

 

8. Say “thank you” - This seems like a no-brainer given the topic, but you would be amazed at how many people tell me their boss doesn’t take the time to express thanks. Saying thank you is not only the polite and respectful thing to do, it signals to your people that they matter, they’re important, valuable, and most of all, you care.

 

9. Send a thank you note to an employee’s family - A friend of mine told me that he occasionally sends a thank you note to the spouse/significant other/family of an employee. He’ll say something to the effect of “Thank you for sharing your husband/wife/dad/mother with us and supporting the work he/she does. He/she a valuable contributor to our team and we appreciate him/her.” Wow…what a powerful way to communicate thankfulness!

 

10. Give a handwritten note of thanks - Some things never go out of style and handwritten thank you notes are one of them. Emails are fine, voice mails better (even made this list!), but taking the time to send a thoughtful, handwritten note says “thank you” like no other way. Sending handwritten letters or notes is a lost art in today’s electronic culture. When I want to communicate with a personal touch, I go old school with a handwritten note. It takes time, effort, and thought which is what makes it special. Your employees will hold on to those notes for a lifetime.

What other ways to say “thank you” would you add to this list? Please a share your thoughts by leaving a comment.

 

Randy Conley is the Trust Practice Leader at The Ken Blanchard Companies and his LeaderChat posts appear the fourth Thursday of every month. For more insights on trust and leadership, visit Randy at his Leading with Trust
http://leaderchat.org/2013/11/28/10-simple-and-easy-ways-to-give-thanks-for-your-employees/ 

Invest In Your Staff

 

Most fitness facility managers will tell you that their most important resource is their people. In fact, a 2007 study,⁴ which detailed feedback from 20 managers at high-performing fitness facilities, illustrated the importance of ongoing staff training, development and education. Accordingly, 40 percent of respondents listed staff training and development as the primary critical success factor to their organization. If this is the case, then why is it that fitness facility managers spend far too little time cultivating their greatest resource? The answer lies in the scarcity of time and resources, which forces managers to emphasize the life-blood of their organization — revenue — in order to secure short-term success. However, this emphasis is misplaced, as managers then fail to capitalize on building the foundation for long-term sustainability: competent, proficient employees.

To achieve success, managers must balance "production time" and "investment time," and understand that investing time in developing "human resources" leads to increased performance and productivity. The importance of investing in ongoing staff training and development cannot be overstated, and the financial benefit is realized almost immediately. Research illustrates that competent employees are happier in their jobs, perform at a higher level and contribute more to the organization.¹ The key is to employ a variety of staff training and development methods that give each team member the best chance for success in the attainment of organizational goals.

One-on-one coaching

Fifty-five percent of the participants in the fitness center management study emphasized the importance of conducting frequent one-on-one coaching with employees. Every encounter with a team member, formal or informal, can be a coaching opportunity. These can include scheduled, weekly coaching sessions or impromptu conversations at the front desk. In either case, coaching sessions must include both production-focused (goals tied to revenue generation) and investment-focused (personal/professional growth) dialogue. For example, production-focused coaching may include developing performance improvement plans that outline the daily actions required to achieve financial goals, such as achieving the benchmark for sales from fitness assessments performed, capitalizing on clients scheduled to quit the facility or gaining new training clients. Conversely, investment-focused coaching may include developing monthly action plans that allow managers to help a team member to hone a skill, such as role-playing sales dialogue for membership tours, learning to develop safe, accurate weight-management programs to enhance a client's results, or cultivating interpersonal communication skills.

Managers are the ones who are in control of their organization's performance. If exemplary performance is the focus, and they use production-focused and investment-focused coaching, success is sure to follow. If they focus on developing a team of superstars, managers can capitalize on the critical success factor needed to thrive as a business entity. Managers should emphasize areas that each team member needs to improve on, continually assess competency and proficiency, and then measure their progress versus historical performance to identify opportunities for improvement.

Further, it is essential that each coaching session be viewed as a priority so that each team member will do the same. Communicating your role as manager in assisting them achieve each goal serves as a critical element in the effectiveness of one-on-one coaching sessions. Do not hesitate to highlight that their professional development is important to you. This serves to keep the lines of communication open, which fosters relationships of trust and integrity.

Create a vision for your facility, and cultivate an environment that allows your team members to progress in their work, as day-to-day tasks can become mundane. Charge them with alternate tasks that contribute to bottom-line results or enhance member satisfaction. Be sure to emphasize the psychology (the "why") and not just the protocol (the "how") of the work performed. Constantly remind your staff why their work matters — that their efforts help change lives for the better.

Continuing education

Ongoing internal and external continuing education allow you to ensure the highest degree of competency possible. As service-driven businesses, fitness facilities must maximize each member interaction by delivering timely, accurate information from qualified staff. Formal training plays an important role in this pursuit,3 as it gives you insight into the strengths of your team, and opportunities for improvement. You must learn to identify and capitalize on the existing strengths of individual team members, while engaging in practices that will "whole-up" limitations.

The critical component to developing a team aligned with the mission and vision of your organization is to train them yourself. For example, Ritz-Carlton provides 80 percent of its training and education in-house.² Ritz-Carlton firmly believes that, to cultivate employees who will deliver exemplary customer service, each employee must learn directly from leaders within their organization. Within fitness facilities, this approach should take the form of weekly team meetings that have a singular focus: enhancing performance and productivity through education. Such meetings should include topics such as sales techniques and role-play, the development of exercise protocols or what it means to provide exceptional service. During these meetings, avoid "housekeeping"-related topics, such as payroll or time-off requests, as it detracts from the atmosphere of learning. Each meeting should consist of a formal agenda and clearly defined desired outcomes, as such training and development initiatives should lead to tangible results, and not be diminished to knowledge for its own sake.

There are many external continuing education programs available. It is important for you to evaluate the course content and reputation of the partnering organization, and all expenses associated with pursuing this type of initiative. Primarily, the course content should empower team members with enhanced skills or applicable information that provides value back to your organization (e.g., enhances the member experience). It should also align with the underlying philosophy of your organization to ensure it supports your overall mission and does not undermine the culture you have created. Further, you will need to account for travel, lodging and food-related expenses, which is in addition to the program cost itself, and the "lost" time of not having team members at the fitness center. If the benefits outweigh the costs, external continuing education programs serve as a credible staff training and development tool.

Team building

There are innumerable sources of information from which managers can learn "best practices," but sifting through all that is available can be a daunting task. This is further exacerbated knowing that you, typically, do not have an appropriate amount of time to dedicate to developing staff training programs. Despite your best intentions, most opportunities for staff training and development, such as weekly meetings, devolve into a review of "housekeeping" or protocol-related issues, rather than actual learning. How can this inherent challenge be resolved?

First, focus on team building. While the notion of "team building" fills the pages of best-selling management and leadership books, the fundamentals can prove essential to success. Forming teams creates a sense of belonging and an acknowledgement that the work being performed transcends punching a time clock. This enhances the meaning and value individual team members find in their work, as most everyone desires to be a part of sharing in success with others. Further, there is an element of "social pressure" that serves as an accountability of sorts, whereby team members strive to elevate their own performance to ensure that they do not let other team members down. A little time and energy spent in this area goes a long way in achieving desired organizational outcomes, especially as it relates to achieving production-oriented goals.

One of the best resources you can use in team building is your high-performing, experienced team members. The purpose of this is two-fold. First, leveraging the skill sets and competencies of high-performing team members frees up time for you to focus on business operations, or to emphasize leadership coaching initiatives, such as one-on-one coaching. Second, experienced team members can serve as mentors by allowing employees to learn from their expertise. This may include working one-on-one with team members who need more work in defined areas, or providing a broader education during team meetings. These mentors can demonstrate their best-practice strategies first-hand, such as new member conversions during fitness assessments, instructing on the varied resistance training protocols for specific client populations and/or teaching appropriate nutritional strategies. This not only proves invaluable to team member learning, but it also enhances the meaning and value in the mentor's work, and serves as a way to build teamwork throughout the organization. This dynamic serves as a critical step for you in cultivating a culture of learning.

Foundation of success

As a fitness facility manager, you can employ numerous methods related to staff training, development and education. Immaterial of the approach, the most important element to remember is that you are consistent in the execution of training initiatives, as it will make or break your success in developing highly qualified, competent team members. Ultimately, people want to get better and be part of something special. Do not ignore your charge as manager to build the appropriate foundation to ensure the long-term viability of your business. Your team's success is a reflection of you. Train them every day, and your fitness center will reap the rewards.

	The Top 10 Errors New Managers Make By Martin Seidenfeld, Ph.D. When fitness center employees are noted to be good at their work, managers may decide to promote them into supervisory positions. But, although excellent at their hands-on work, these employees usually have little or no experience or training in managing other people. They tend to make some common mistakes. Here are the 10 most common: Being too authoritarian. New power can go to employees' heads, and they can become overbearing and domineering. Some relish the idea of being "boss," and become strict and over-controlling. Their dictatorial style quickly leads to their being feared, and virtually assures that staff members will react to them passive-aggressively. Being too undemanding. Fearful of not being liked, some new managers hesitate to ask their employees to do what they're supposed to, and fail to require them to perform up to snuff. Ultimately, this style of supervision leads to poorly run operations, lowered staff morale and a sense among employees that "anything goes." Being fearful of being disliked. We all, to some degree, want to be liked and accepted. When newly promoted managers have too strong a dose of this need, they may hesitate to give undesirable assignments to staff members for fear that they will not like them or will become angry. This can result in new managers assigning themselves the least-desirable tasks in an attempt to avoid garnering negative feelings from employees. Becoming friendlier to some employees than to others. Like all humans, new managers find themselves feeling closer to some employees than to others. So, they tend to have lunch with them and spend more time with them — resulting in other employees feeling left out and thinking their supervisor plays favorites. This can lead to resentment and an unwillingness to give maximum effort to the job. Focusing on doing, rather than leading. Because new managers were good at their previous work, e.g., as a trainer, they want to keep on doing that job. Also, they realize that they don't know a whole lot about managing other people, so they keep doing the technical work they love and are good at — but neglect managerial responsibilities. Failing to delegate. By definition, a manager is someone who gets things done through others. Because managers are superior workers, they know that if they perform a specific task alone, it will get done quickly and up to their own high standards. They reason that if they delegate it to an employee, they will need to take time to train that employee and the task might not be performed to their level of excellence. But, by failing to take the time to delegate and train others, new managers end up doing various tasks long-term, and feel overburdened. Failing to reprimand. When employees violate a rule, such as by being late, they must be reprimanded. Failure to do so condones the improper behavior. Other employees may feel, "If Jim can get away with that, why shouldn't I?" This results in a general laxness and poor discipline. There is also a loss of respect for the manager for allowing an employee to "get away with" breaking a company rule. Neglecting employees' motivation. Managers must continually strive to improve their employees' motivation so that they become more involved with their work and love it. This means coming to understand what motivates each employee to do his or her best. Without strong motivation, employees may become apathetic and just go through the motions. Setting a poor example. Supervisors must understand that their behaviors and attitudes will be emulated by their employees. If they tend to ignore rules, e.g., by coming in late or not strictly following the dress code, they are practically invhttp://www.athleticbusiness.com/articles/article.aspx?articleid=3375&zoneid=39iting their employees to do the same. Supervisors must be aware that their general work ethic and how they behave will be imitated by their employees. Failing to exercise true leadership. Managers must be true leaders. This means taking the time to get to know each of their employees, training them to perform better, motivating them to love their jobs, and setting a great example of hard work and personal integrity. Moving from being a worker to being a manager is not easy, and not all who are promoted will make the cut. But, by being aware of these common mistakes made by new managers, those promoting and those being promoted can increase the odds of success. Martin Seidenfeld, Ph.D., is a psychologist with more than 30 years' experience as an organizational consultant, clinician, author, university professor and seminar presenter.

References

1. Dymock, D., and C. McCarthy. Toward a learning organization? Employee perceptions. The Learning Organization 13(5), 525-536, 2006.

2. Johnson, L.K. Helping new managers succeed. Harvard Management Update 13(2), 4-5, February 2008.

3. Latham, J., and J. Vinyard. Baldrige User's Guide. John Wiley & Sons Inc.: Hoboken, N.J., 2005.

4. Slover, E. A case study: Why commercial health and fitness facilities achieve defined key performance indicators (Doctoral Dissertation, University of Phoenix, 2007). University of Phoenix ProQuest Digital Dissertation Database, 2008.

Edward Slover, Ph.D., has 11 years of diversified experience within the commercial fitness industry, and holds a Doctor of Management in Organizational Leadership. Presently, he works as an account manager and master educator for the Apex Division of 24 Hour Fitness Inc. He can be reached at ed@apexfitness.com.

By Edward M. Slover
May 2008

This article originally appeared in Fitness Management magazine.

How To Keep Your Employees Happy And Successful: The 6 Best Ways To Invest In Your Colleagues

One of the most difficult parts of being a young entrepreneur is hiring the right people. And once you have the right people in the door, it can be even more difficult to keep them happy so that they stick around.

If I’ve learned anything, it’s that the organization I serve would have not gotten off the ground if it weren’t for my team of extremely talented colleagues. Beyond their natural talent, I like to think that some of my team’s strength and motivation came from the positive practices we developed within our own walls, virtual as they may have been at the outset.

The Global Good Fund’s mission is to accelerate the leadership development of high potential young entrepreneurs to achieve social impact. But our objectives to foster leadership aren’t limited to the entrepreneurs we invest in; we invest in our team too.

I was honored when one of our fantastic summer interns said that “being a part of The Global Good Fund was like taking a leadership development course.”

So what is it about our team and our values that make us tick?  Bottom line: we make investing in our employees a priority.

Here are the 6 best ways (proven from our own practices) to properly invest in YOUR colleagues:
 

1.   Get Your New Hires Started On The Right Foot – Coach Them Up!

One of the reasons new hires joined your company is because they see your organization as a great fit for their ambitions. Reassure new hires that they made the right decision in choosing to work for you by getting them started on the right foot in your organization.

Pairing a new hire with an internal ambassador allows new hires to be trained by a trusted colleague in an unintimidating, casual environment. It allows your new hire to establish meaningful relationships with other colleagues in the organization from day one, which will put them at ease in a new work atmosphere.  Further, it creates a shared learning experience that empowers “old hires” to practice leadership skills that help them grow within your organization.
 

2.   Put Your Employees In Stretch Role

If you hire the right people, they will be driven and will want to grow beyond their starting position. They will seek to go after stretch roles in the company and will be eager to take on new responsibilities that allow then to “climb the ladder.”

But in so many situations, employees do not get the chance to prove themselves in these roles and are stuck in the same position for years. As a result, many employees lose motivation, decide to move on to greener pastures, and leave the company.

Try giving people ownership of projects and put the decision-making capabilities in their hands. While it may be scary at first, handing over the reins on targeted projects gives employees a sense of ownership, authority, and responsibility within the organization.

Having trust in your employees and putting them in stretch roles will also help them iterate their management and leadership skills, growing the team through trial and error.
 

3.   SUPPORT Your Employees In Stretch Roles

So you put your employee in a stretch role… Now what? One common mistake I see is giving employees the opportunity to prove themselves in stretch roles, but then not giving them the support and tools they need to thrive in the new roles.

To help avoid this scenario, encourage employees to take risks and go for that stretch role. Then support employees through continued coaching and in-house training to help them succeed in their new roles. As CEO, I try my best to make myself available, aiding directly in the development of my employees. Beyond formal coaching and training in-house, I make sure my employees know they have an opportunity to get mentored by professionals outside the organization.  Several members of the team have taken me up on the offer and we consider it crucial to our business to help them find appropriate mentors externally.
 

4.   Hire Within

The process of scouting out potential new hires, interviewing candidates, and managing new hire orientation/training can be daunting and a huge time suck. One way to avoid this bottleneck is to hire in-house. Instead of playing the risky guessing game of bringing new people onto your team, why not leverage the talent of your existing team members for new and exciting roles in your company?

When hiring for new roles in house, you are already fully aware of a candidate’s professional capabilities and his or her ability to work with your team. In addition, allowing employees first dibs at new roles within your organization keeps employees motivated and demonstrates your loyalty to them and their professional development.

At The Global Good Fund, we like keeping our people in house and helping them grow professionally, in addition to hiring new people when necessary. We take many measures to help our employees grow and become effective leaders, including support for personalized leadership development and time spent on issues like personal finance that employees perceive to be an added bonus of doing their jobs.  Going the extra mile to keep employees maintains our team cohesion and builds on the strength of our core values.
 

5.   Ask Your Employees To Identify And Share Their Goals – Hold Them Accountable!

Having employees draft goals and development is common in many organizations. The key, though, is to keep on top of these goals and actually continue to work with employees on achieving their goals.

As opposed to drafting personal aspirations only to have them stored in a filing cabinet, we work together to hold each other accountable and to regularly take actionable steps towards achieving personal and professional ambitions.

To do this, I have my employees and interns write down their goals – both personal and professional goals (financial, hobbies, family etc.). Not only do my employees identify their goals, but they are also responsible for mapping steps for how they will accomplish their ambitions. Every team member then has the opportunity to share his or her goals with colleagues, resulting in accountability and visibility into each other’s aspirations.  From there, we have personal achievement sessions and fun team meetings around achieving personal goals.  I perceive such meetings to be as important (if not more important) than our long-term strategy meetings.  After all, there is no long-term strategy without our people!
 

6.   Encourage Employees To Explore Their Strengths and Weaknesses

My colleagues take ownership of achieving personal and professional goals because we set goals as part of a team effort.  The result is that we work hard to uplift and coach each other.

Beyond goal-setting, one great way to invest in your colleagues is by helping to bring awareness to their strengths and weaknesses so that you both have an understanding of the best ways to leverage skill-sets within the company. Making this investment allows employees to determine where they could use additional support in their leadership development and gives you visibility into how to train and mentor colleagues moving forward.

At The Global Good Fund, members of our full-time staff are currently taking our trademarked leadership assessment tool in order to identify their own leadership capabilities, strengths, and areas for improvement.  Then we have a conversation about how the individual’s strengths and weaknesses apply in our organization and how, through a leadership development plan, we can grow our people and thereby grow our business. We plan to make the leadership assessment tool we use publicly available in the future, but for now it has been a great tool to test out on our own team as we grow together.

Our business is about accelerating leadership development – and we practice what we preach. We know that in order to coach young entrepreneurs on leadership skills, to arm them for future success, everyone within our organization needs to be a strong leader as well. As such, we make it a priority to invest in our employees to continually help them towards self-improvement and excellence – both personally and professionally.
 

Your Turn: What are some tips you have for investing in your colleagues to keep them happy and to help them grow?

Carrie Rich is the co-founder and CEO of The Global Good Fund, an organization dedicated to investing in the leadership development of high potential young entrepreneurs committed to social impact.  Carrie enjoys photography, other people’s cooking and jogging, on occasion.

Image Credit: Shutterstock.com

 

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