Employee Engagement

You’re a morning person, your partner is a night owl. He prefers fried foods, you like everything baked. He’s fine being too warm, but you’d rather be too cold.

In personal relationships, minor disagreements can be overlooked.

But differences on the job can drive good managers bananas.

Most managers have at some point come to the realization that they’re never going to change that one employee they clash with. It’s frustrating – but you have to live with it.

So before you Google a good workplace relationships counselor, try these techniques to put you and your “opposite” employee on the same page.

Click to continue »

What’s the most critical element necessary to keep good employees?

Salary? Well sure, but no. On-the-job flexibility? It’s a good one, but no cigar. Stellar perks, like company credit cards, first-class travel and the like? Maybe.

They’re all key, but those are things good employees can go anywhere to find. And if they’re really talented employees, companies will even fight over them, promising hotter perks and bigger signing bonuses.

But they aren’t THE critical element.

Click to continue »

Are you unintentionally stifling your employees’ natural curiosity?

If so, you could be undercutting your own business. Curious employees are engaged employees.

It happens. We get caught up in the haste to get things done. We move from project to project without delay so that productivity won’t screech to a halt.

But by doing that, we squelch our teams’ natural ability to think through problems, come up with solutions, and generally see the forest behind the trees.

Click to continue »

It takes a lot of practice to stay quiet, and just listen, and let the other person talk.

But that is the key to being a good leader.

Just ask Kevin Hancock. He is the sixth generation to head up Hancock Lumber. For him, going into his family’s business was just something you did. As for learning to keep quiet, he didn’t have much of a choice with that, either.

In 2010 Hancock developed spasmodic dysphonia, a disorder that constricts the vocal chords, making it near impossible to talk.

“It felt like it took a major athletic feat to push out just a few short sentences,” he said.

The affliction led Hancock to a greater level of self-awareness – and in the end, that made him a better listener and leader. He even credits it with saving his company.

Click to continue »

I’ll let you in on a little secret.

To keep great employees, all you really need to do is … stop creating stupid company rules, AND treat people like professionals!

Yep, sometimes it’s that simple.

A lot of companies, however, create rule-driven cultures that give executives and management a sense of control but crush creativity, enthusiasm, and passion and send the best employees packing.

Sure, you need rules. But you don’t need dumb rules.

Here are nine rules you need to seriously reconsider:

Click to continue »

 

Every good manager knows it’s essential to have genuine, meaningful and productive conversations with employees, right?

But most employees say that’s not working out so well.

In fact, The Right Management Global Career Conversation Study reports that 85% of employees say they do not connect with their bosses at all.

Rather, they say their managers talk at them and fail to listen well because the boss usually is:

• distracted by technology and workload
• not prepared to dig deep, and
• unaware of the positive impact genuine conversations have on people and processes.

Click to continue »

Your last department update meeting said it all: When you went around the room asking everyone for an update, the most common response by far was: “Nothing new here.”

Nothing? Not a challenge to face, a problem to solve, a conflict to discuss? Not even a nagging “people problem?”

It seems either your team is firing on all cylinders – or it’s sputtering.

Resourceful managers regularly set goals and give their teams the tools to meet those goals.

And while not feeling appreciated is a top reason good employees head for the doors, a close runner-up is boredom. So how can you best keep the fire lit under your team without burning them out?

Consider some of these suggestions on how to fire up your team:

Click to continue »

We’ve all probably said at one time, “that idea’s so crazy, it just might work!”

It usually comes right after we have run out of “real” ideas – or after all those ideas were tried and flopped.

Some ideas are born from desperation, as in, “We’ll try anything at this point!”

While this approach can get you in big trouble, it might also be the start of something big, something that could turn your management outlook or your entire business around.

So dig out that once-nutty idea you thought would scare everyone and present it. Start with “I know this sounds crazy, but…” and let it fly.

Or consider one of these six ideas – they might be just the jump-start you need to generate fresh ideas.

Click to continue »

What’s the first thought that pops into your head when you hear the words team-building exercises?

Mine is run for the hills!

I’m not a fan. They make me very uncomfortable!

But experts say they have their place and purpose. They facilitate better communication, break down barriers, foster collaboration and creativity, and boost morale.

So maybe there are team-building activities that are fun, effective and don’t completely suck. Maybe I just haven’t participated in the right ones.

So I set off in a search of them, and here’s what I found:

Click to continue »

Thanking your employees and showing them you care is important. But how to express that is hard!

Reason: Different strokes for different folks.

Not everyone is going to like one specific reward.

And, most importantly, not every company has lots of money to spend on elaborate gifts.

So what’s a manager to do?

The experts say give options and get creative when offering morale boosters.

Here are 14 suggestions to help spark your imagination:

Click to continue »