Send
in questions to Alisa and she will post them here.
If you like, she will send you a personal reply. Anyone
who has input to any of the questions posted is welcomed
to email the input and your responses will be included
– after all, everyone is entitled to an opinion.
Q
- How do you keep your staff motivated
to work hard and put in the hours in an organization
that is downsizing?
Q – How do you instill a good work
ethic in your employees when the owner and boss have
none? This is a small office with only six people. All
the boss wants to do is talk about flying when
he is in and we can’t get anything done?
Q
– How do you keep your staff motivated to work
hard and put in the hours in an organization that
is downsizing?
A
– Motivation during a downsizing can
be tricky, but not impossible. One of the first things
you need to do is to be up front with your staff.
They need to know you are not holding back any secrets.
Once they feel you are not being entirely honest with
them they will begin to pull back and not give you
their all. Be sure to involve them in what is going
on as much as possible.
Another
thing you need to do is to watch your attitude. How
we approach the work and the situation will set the
stage for how our staff approaches things. We are
the “leaders”, so lead where you want
them to follow.
You
can also be sure they know you are looking out for
them and their best interest. If you are making sure
that anyone who falls victim to the downsizing from
your staff gets the best of treatment and all the
assistance available your staff will see your dedication
and show their appreciation by working harder for
you.
It’s
important to remember that your staff works hard for
you, not for the company. So, how you treat them and
fight for them is what’s important. Treat them
right, involve them, have a good attitude, and look
out for them…they will reward you with their
hard work.
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Q
– How do you instill a good work ethic in your
employees when the owner and boss have none? This is
a small office with only six people. All the boss wants
to do is talk about flying when he is in and we can’t
get anything done.
A
– This
can be a tough one. I would say that your problem
isn’t your staff, it is your boss. (you probably
already knew this) Certainly one of the first things
I would suggest is a direct one on one approach.
Before
you do that however, you need to be able to quantify
what the cost is when your boss takes over the office
talking about flying. How many hours are lost and
at what rate per hour plus benefits? Use a number
large enough to make an impact. For example if 6 people
at an average cost of $20 per hour is used up you
spend $120 per hour listening to the boss. This number
may be acceptable to him/her. But, if you figure that
on the average the boss spends an hour a day, 5 days
a week, then in a month the cost is now $2,580. This
may be enough to make an impact.
You
then have to pick a time when you have the undivided
attention of your boss. I’m a big one for feeding
them, so take him/her out to breakfast or lunch where
you can have their attention. Try to sit so you are
facing the door, and wear something that you feel
good in. Ask the boss what he/she expects from you.
You can structure this so that the boss finally gets
to the point where you are responsible to get the
most from the people there. If you can’t get
there then simply ask if getting the best from these
people is part of your job. If so, state clearly and
concisely what the problem is. You struggle with getting
the staff to work hard because…. Try to remember
to phrase things as though you need help, not as though
the boss is messing up. Be sure to state exactly what
you would like to see happen. If the boss really wants
things to work well this will work.
But,
let’s for one second assume the boss doesn’t
care and would much rather spend the time chatting
about flying regardless of the cost, and regardless
of the trouble it causes you. If this is the case
you have two choices. One choice is to go somewhere
else where you can get the results you are after.
The second choice is to accept the boss as he/she
is and realize the boss pays the bills so if they
choose to run things this way that is ok. You will
need to be honest with your boss though and let him/her
know that you will only be able to get so much out
of folks under the circumstances.
And
finally, it is important to remember that your attitude
goes a long way in how your staff will react to you.
Treat them well, have a positive upbeat attitude and
they will work for you, even if it is at a slower
pace than you would like.
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