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August 17, 2022
As a manager or team lead, you’re responsible for quite a lot. And that includes helping to create the best on-site or remote work experience possible for your employees.
Studies have found that employees with highly effective managers have a higher level of engagement and willingness to work hard for their company. What’s more, organizations with highly-effective managers are three times more likely to be on track to meet or exceed post-COVID corporate goals.
For workers to reach their full potential, they need managers who remove barriers to their success. Empowering employees to take full ownership of their work with minimal obstacles gives them a bigger feeling of accomplishment with each completed task. The best managers are also coaches, who take the time to understand their employees’ personal and career aspirations and then provide a roadmap for success through the creation of agreed-upon goals.
Here are four methods managers can adopt to help their team members succeed:
- Be a Great Communicator
An open-door policy can help facilitate a workplace culture where people feel comfortable voicing their ideas and their concerns – helping everyone get on the same page and succeed together. A good manager should be aware of employees’ role in the organization and how each team member is doing. A great way to accomplish this is by scheduling weekly or bi-weekly one-on-one meetings with each direct report. These meetings can be wide-ranging and should be built around what each employee want to discuss. Having an agenda provided by the employee will help facilitate the discussion. Be prepared by reviewing the agenda before the meeting.
- Tie Employee Goals to Company Goals
Having employee goals is important – but for goals to be meaningful and effective in motivating your team, they should be tied to larger organizational objectives. Understanding the bigger picture and where an employee fit is vital to the company and individual success. Employees who don’t understand their role in a company’s success are more likely to become frustrated and disengaged. Work with the employee to create goals they can achieve that feeds into the broader company strategy.
- Create a Plan for Success
Once goals are set, the next step is to break them down into tasks and set interim objectives. Work with your direct report to create achievable milestones, including timelines, and be sure to leave the meeting agreeing on the next steps. Agreed-upon goals should be documented onto an individual’s goals form that can be updated electronically and viewed by you and your employee.
- Monitor Progress
Staying on top of employee progress will help head off any issues. Review both long-term and short-term goals on a weekly or bi-weekly basis. Even your high-performing employees need ongoing feedback and coaching and a forum to ask questions. Be sure to let the employee know that you’re there to help them achieve their goals so they can continue to be a successful member of the team.
Inter-Connect is a free permanent, temporary and temp-to-hire placement service agency that partners with companies throughout the Illinois, Missouri and Iowa Tri-State region. We’re experts in staffing who enable our job candidates to confidentially connect with the right opportunity and advance your career. To learn more, contact us today.