The number one motive today for people in searching for new work is to find growth in their careers. Do your employees feel like they’re evolving? Not everyone can or wants to receive that title upgrade, but career progression is something people crave – and it comes in many forms.
You hired your crew for a reason. They’re an invaluable group instilled with your company’s history and values – You want them to continue growing with you! So how can we tap into developing your current talent pool?
Know and capitalize on unique qualities
There’s a huge misconception in people management that assumes treating everyone the exact same is the most fair. Even if everyone has the same job title, each individual will enjoy specific responsibilities or certain work styles more. Are there trades you can make within your team that will make everyone happier? If one person likes more technical work while another is happier pushing new concepts forward, would it make sense to divide their focus by giving them equal parts of both types of work? The technical person can grow their skills in making the current work more efficient while the conceptual person can grow their visions in strategy and innovation.
Going against the grain of natural talent can only be made worse by also ignoring that different people are motivated by different things. Recognizing people’s varied backgrounds and skillsets greatly benefits both company health and employee happiness!
Enter the Mentor
Every company employs people with varying levels of experience. While more experienced employees may not want the management title, instating a mentorship program can give more seasoned employees vitality in sharing their expertise! Of course, more inexperienced employees will appreciate the company investing time to develop their knowledge base. Additionally, this will bond your workforce together so they’re motivated to work better together at a personal level as well!
Having a rotational program or a designated schedule to cross-train your people is another great way to enhance your people and keep them engaged!
Target the attainable
Another misconception within management is that standards need to be set extremely high in order to achieve a fraction of what’s been set. This gives employees the idea that 5-out-of-5 is never truly possible, which can harbor resentment and mistrust in managerial judgment – So why set unrealistic expectations that no one hopes to accomplish without burnout? Where does your company want to grow – is it realistic and does that drive the goals set for your people? A to-do list is disheartening if items can’t be checked off. Set sound targets for employees to hit and assign easy measurements to hold them accountable. This solidifies the short-term and long-term picture in their minds and builds credibility for yourself as a leader.
Drive the constant feedback loop
The annual review is becoming archaic. With technology quickening the pace and amount of work done, more frequent goal assessments are necessary — down to the individual level. In the least, quarterly check-ins, reviews, and settings of goals are timely and effective ways for employees to understand where they stand and refocus themselves with company values. Some managers will touch base with members of their team on a weekly or biweekly basis!
Overall, people need to feel the work they perform is meaningful. Give your employees context so they see the impact they have to the organization overall! Part of this is being as transparent as possible – it’s impossible to know how to optimize one part of the machine without the full blueprint!
New skills from an external candidate can be appealing, but there are valuable internal people ready to make moves upward who already come instilled with your company’s history and values. Go into this new year and new quarter take a hard look at your team. Is everyone in your group well-utilized? Are they happy? These are important questions to answer before looking for external talent to fill any real gaps in skills.
Do you know what your hiring needs are this year? Contact us – we’re here to help.
