Managing Employees

How do you know if your employees are in the “burnout” zone?   Sometimes a tired employee is still a happy employee…one who has worked hard and feels totally satisfied from their accomplishments.  Other times, the employee is stressed and barely holding on to their performance levels. 

Burnout is when your employees are exhausted and don’t have the energy to do their job with enthusiasm and high levels of performance.   The causes can be the job responsibilities, the business structure or even their own personalities can impact stress levels.  

A “people friendly” environment reduces stress, decreases turnover, and supports higher levels of performance with employees.  Organizations today are addressing the “people friendly” environment with additional programs that support work-life balance.   And..that is great. 

It’s a good idea to ask yourself if you are a “people friendly” manager.  Managers have good intentions and try their best to support their staff, yet it can be easier to manage the business vs. managing employees. 

My focus in this post is to stop you long enough to reflect on your interactions with your staff…when you are managing your employees, how do you treat them. 

Ok…it’s been awhile since I’ve created a post…I’ve been on vacation in “not so warm” Florida.   Since my post today is about goals, I have to share that I have a goal to go on two vacations a year.  

When I go on vacation, I leave behind my work.   Unless there is a true emergency, I use this time to think, play and surround myself with new interests to build up my creative juices.  I then come back and take time to think about my goals.  It’s important to regularly review where you are with your personal goals.  Remember, work is one part of your life. 

In my last post, I said my next topic would be “different types of employee goals”…but I decided to write on another topic.  A question that all managers face in managing employees:

…can I make mistakes with my employees and still be effective in managing them?  

Note:  Some mistakes are illegal…become familiar with the federal and state employment laws.

The mistakes I’m talking about are human in nature….being too busy to focus or to listen to your employees.   

I’ve certainly made mistakes with my staff….didn’t listen enough, was annoyed, rescheduled 1:1’s with my staff more often than I should, and yet I still managed to do a fairly decent job in managing them.  

Happy New Year!  

My wish for you this year is a strong working relationship based on mutual respect between you and your employees.

Creating Employee Goals

The business goals are in place and now it’s time to align your employee’s goals to the business. 

Most businesses have two parts to their performance management systems…evaluation of last’s year’s performance and creation of this year’s goal(s)…employee deliverables.  I would suggest that you use “deliverables” to your employees as it’s clearer regarding what is expected of them…to deliver.