Some time ago I shared how much I hated to be “surprised” by an employee. BUT it is only fair that you don’t surprise an employee either.
Think about this- as a cleaning or restoration contractor you bear serious responsibilities. 1) Your family trusts you to provide… well… everything! Your clients trust you (and your staff) inside their ‘inner sanctum‘- their home! And your employees? They trust you with the future financial security of their family. (You can also greatly affect your employee’s emotional well being.)
This is especially true when sitting down with your workers and evaluating their job performance. (And giving them clearly defined steps to improve.) So for everyone’s sake…
NEVER ‘ambush’ an employee.
I know. You don’t mean to “surprise” your people on their bad past performance. But A) you are busy plus B) we all hate confrontations so you put off giving ‘corrective counsel’. The problem here? Your oblivious employee merrily proceeds down their bad path!
However, finally your employee’s big day comes- their yearly evaluation! They merrily waltz in expecting praise and maybe even a raise and you… ‘ambush’ them by laying all their bone-headed screw-ups over the past year on them!
This “employee sin dumping” is incorrect on so many levels. Your procrastination has brought down company morale, cut into your profits and you have lost respect as a manager! (Plus your “Employee Totem Pole” has been plugged up for far too long!) Even worse…
It is wrong to treat even the worst worker badly. (And yes, screaming at your employees is BAD!) Even marginal employees deserve to be treated with respect and dignity. (Not too mention you don’t need workplace violence!) So don’t wait for a formal evaluation to correct wrong behavior. Instead…
Perform “Instant Evaluations”. Just take an erring employee aside, commend them first (“John, I really appreciate your reliability…”) and then clearly explain what they are doing wrong and how to perform the task correctly. Then hold your worker accountable by following up!
NOTE #1: A valuable principle is “Praise in public, reprove in private!” Public Reward and Recognition events are HUGE! Public scolding and shaming? Not so much!
NOTE #2: When you implement a shared Employee Efficiency Bonus they put pressure on each other which is exactly what you want! This is why you as a manager should focus on adding more Shared Accountability.
NOTE #3: Yes, sometimes you need to say “bye-bye”! HERE is how to respectfully fire a bad employee!
Want more ‘High Profit’ customers? Then focus on your ‘Lead Conversion’ procedures in my online SFS: ‘Winning over your caller’! LIVE seminar. ‘Convert’ just one skeptical caller and you’ll pay for your entire seminar!
Steve