ARE YOU LISTENING?
Is it time to have a strategic team assessment and development plan in place?
Do you always listen to what what your clients are saying? How about your agents and your staff?
You might be surprised that some organizations that never ask how they (management) are doing. But fear of hearing bad news will not make the bad news go away. Ignorance is not bliss although it appears to that many owners are just not comfortable asking the ultimate question, “How are we doing?”
It is easier for groups with retention problems, for example, to focus on compensation issues. But, according to Gallup around 30% of employees are engaged at work. That means that 70% are not engaged in their jobs at your company.
Recently Gallup released a new survey on staff engagement. When we read the commentary, we can see that engagement is not static. It moves with organizational dynamics, culture and time. There is a take away and that is that we can’t make a universal supposition of what engages people. Instead, we need to understand the diversity of our people which includes gender, culture and the different generations. Engagement factors are dynamic.
Or with regard to clients it is easier to think all is well because there are not a growing number of customer complaints.
What action would you take if your staff were to give a negative answer to the statement, “At work, I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day?” Of course, you would want to give them work that made use of their skills. Do you know how to do that? Meaningful work means different things to the different generations in the workplace. Consider not only generational differences but also cultural differences. Get to know your people and what is important to them. A baby boomer’s wants and needs are different from Generation X and the Millennial Generation is different from the other two generations. The engagement solution does not involve pushing a round peg fit into a square hole but rather to match each person to a position where he or she can be the best.
If your organization is suffering from a retention challenge the costs can be high. When you consider recruiting and training, lost customer service, lost productivity, and lost morale in others who are left, the cost is at least two times the person’s compensation. However, someone engaged in work becomes more valuable as he or she grows. In addition, high-performing teams have loyal customers because they have loyal members.
If you are the CEO or the head of Human Resources you need to have an engagement strategy. The same is true if you are a broker owner. This should be a line item on your P&L. The strategy should include careful selection to see that an employee is matched to a job where he or she has a chance to excel, an assessment plan to identify key strengths, and a development plan to leverage those strengths.
Is it time to have a strategic team assessment and development plan in place?
For a similar post on our web site please see LISTEN FOR WHAT YOUR STAFF AND CUSTOMERS ARE SAYING.
Learn how to start a DIALOG with your staff.
or call 914-953-4458.
Business Coach - Strategic Plans - Sales and Marketing Coach
Grant Schneider - Leadership and Business Coach Creating Successful Business Outcomes
President Performance Development Strategies
- Business Performance and Strategic Business Plans
- Organizational Effectiveness
- Time Effectiveness and Organization
914-953-4458, Armonk NY 10504 grant@pdstrategies.com
Visit my website www.pdstrategies.com for information on how you can obtain quantum leaps in your business performance.
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