Surely you’ve heard of the phrase regarding lousy carpenters.
And lousier tools.

It runs like this: A bad carpenter blames his tools.

===========================================
Well I agree.
===========================================
And I disagree.

A great set of tools are useless, even dangerous in the hands of an
amateur.But on the other hand, a great carpenter should never suffer
with trashy tools.

And I say this, because I’ve seen so many people wasting away their
talents, because they insist on avoiding the upgrade.

===========================================
And this reminds me of a designer I worked with a while ago.
===========================================
There she was doing layouts in this archaic version of InDesign.
Which is fine, but the archaic versions are archaic because they
slow you down.

They do stuff the inefficient way.
They make your process drudgery.
And then you wonder: Where did the time go?

===========================================
The time doesn’t go anywhere.
===========================================
You and I refuse to understand that we need to upgrade.
Upgrade our tools.
Upgrade our skills.
And not just once in five years, but on a consistent basis.

===========================================
But surely you upgrade your skills…
===========================================
Well, when was the last time you went to a seminar?
When was the last time you took three-four days off to learn a new
program?
When was the last time you took a nice big chunk of time to learn
something, or get yourself the tools you need?

===========================================
Remember the designer I was telling you about?
===========================================
She was still using this clunky version of InDesign.
She said she didn’t have the money to spend on a new computer.
Or new software.

Then she went on vacation.

===========================================
And we all do this kind of crazy stuff.
===========================================
We fail to see that the tools and the skills we work with will create
tens and hundreds of vacations. That we’re literally wasting our
lives if it takes us two days to write a decent article.

Or seven hours to do a waffly layout. Or eleventeen days to do a
presentation that’s mediocre at best.

===========================================
You can’t be the world’s greatest rally driver in a crappy car.
===========================================
You can’t be the world’s greatest chef with crappy ingredients.
You can’t be the world’s greatest computer whiz with Microsoft-DOS.

That’s why I bought a Mac when I have five PCs already.
That’s why I bought a ‘Global’ Knife (worth $200) when I have twenty
other knives.

===========================================
It’s not a brand image issue.
===========================================
It’s a real difference.
The Mac works better than anything I’ve worked in PC (and believe
me, I’m pretty well versed in dozens of programs–because I love
tinkering with programs). I can do more, and do stuff faster and
better with the Mac, than I can ever do with my PC.

===========================================
The knife, that ‘Global’ Knife.
===========================================
I wake up every morning dreaming of cutting onions and cutting
garlic.
I savour the thought of slicing tomatoes. I fight with my wife to
make breakfast (and she lets me win most of the times–funny that!)

It’s the equipment.

A person that falls in love with the equipment falls in love with
the process. They have to. There’s little choice.

===========================================
And the opposite applies as well.
===========================================
A crappy knife means I’m indifferent to making breakfast.
A PC means that I do my presentation cursing all the time.

A bad carpenter blames his tools.
But a good carpenter wakes up dreaming of using those magnificent
tools to build a mansion.

And build it fast!

=========================================
©2001-2009 Psychotactics Ltd. All rights reserved.
Wouldn’t you love to stumble upon a sec’ret library of small
business ideas? Find simple, yet electrifying ideas, on
copywriting, public speaking, marketing strategies, sa’les
conversion, psychological tactics and branding.
Head down to http://www.psychotactics.com today and judge
for yourself.

I agree that some policy manuals can really go over board…

Some business owners add a policy for every little issue that comes up.  They’re having trouble with one employee coming to work late every day, so… They create a policy. They’re having an issue because two employees want to take vacation at the same time, so… They create a policy.

The problem with having too many policies is – you have to ‘police’ your policies! Someone has to remember all those policies AND someone has to remember to take action when a policy is violated.

Some business owners refuse to have any policies in their small businesses. I think that’s a mistake. Here’s why…

Certain policies can protect a business owner from being sued. Well, OK, you may still be sued, but having certain policies in place, and adhering to them, can prevent a legal outcome against you.

One of the most critical areas to have policies for is hiring. If you have policies in place here, you can prevent all sorts of problems down the road. Remembering these policies isn’t difficult – every time you hire, simply pull out your policy manual and review.

Now before I give you the critical hiring policies to implement, a little caveat:

“I am not an attorney, nor do I play one on TV! Please seek legal advice before you accept anything I suggest.”

1. Application Policy. Make it a policy to have every applicant complete your application form. Create an application form that is specific to your company. Include everything that applies to your company and situation. Do a bit of research to find out what should be included in an application form.
   

   
   Why make this a policy? Isn’t it a little redundant when they’ve already provided a resume? Actually, no. Resumes often give an incomplete and even misleading picture of the candidate. You need to gather information and data that allow you to make clear comparisons of your candidates.Include the following statement on your application form:

   “I understand that all information I have provided here will be checked, and with my signature I hereby certify that all information is true and correct to the best of my knowledge.”

2. Reference Checking Policy. Make it a policy to do a minimum of three reference checks for every candidate you plan to hire, prior to making the job offer. I say ‘minimum’ because if you find discrepancies from the referees, you may need to do more.

   
   Why make this a policy? Three main reasons, actually:
   1) to verify the truth of applicant statements – verify employment history for at least the past 5 to 7 years. Gaps in employment can be tip-offs to potential problems.
   2) to protect you company, your employees, and your customers or clients.
   3) to avoid legal problems associated with poor hiring decisions. (Watch for an article about Negligent Hiring coming soon.)

3. Background Checking Policy. Make it a policy to do additional formal checks when the position warrants it:
   1) Credit checks for anyone who will be responsible for handling large sums of money or anyone who will have access to the financial business of a company
   2) Driver abstracts for anyone who will be driving company vehicles or their own vehicle as part of their work day.
   3) Criminal Record checks for anyone who will be working with a ‘protected’ group, or who will be entering the homes of clients or customers
   4)Education verification for anyone who will be performing a job that requires specific training. Verify professional licenses where applicable.

These hiring policies are the minimum I would recommend. You may find others that you feel are equally important and by all means add and use them if you need them.

One of the main keys here is consistency. When you implement a policy, you must apply it consistently. If you pick and choose who you’re going to use a policy with, you open yourself up to discriminatory practices. This can be used against you.

Be open with your employment candidates about your policies.  Get a signature indicating the candidate’s consent for reference checks. If you do background checks, indicate so on your application form and get a signature from the applicant providing their approval for this procedure.

Once an employee is hired, there are a few other policies that are critical to protecting you and them during their tenure. We’ll look at these in future articles.

Care to share your opinions or experiences with hiring policies? I’d love to hear them! Please leave a comment.

Sometimes grounds for termination seem very clear cut – for example, an employee is caught stealing property (physical or intellectual) and is fired on the spot.

Most times an employer is looking at a series of problems, over time, that seem to build up into an insurmountable issue.

As an employer you may hesitate to take action for fear of having that employee bring ‘wrongful dismissal’ charges against your company. There are four simple actions you can take to lessen that risk:

1. Put appropriate policies in place before you need them. (Stay tuned for an article suggesting the essential policies to have for your company.
2. Document every employee’s performance on a regular basis. If documentation is kept only to prove one employee’s poor performance, there may be grounds for accusations of discrimination.
3. Documentation must be made as unacceptable occurrences happen. It cannot be reconstructed weeks or months after the fact.
4. You must be able to show that corrective actions were taken and that the employee was aware of the problems. Keep records of meetings with the employee and what actions were taken to solve the issues. Have the employee sign the documents indicating they understand the problem and the suggested solution. Date the documents and keep them in the employee’s file.

Armed with the documentation and policies to back you up, an employee would be hard pressed to win a “wrongful dismissal’ case against you.

Please leave your comments on this article below! Any insights you can offer will help your fellow small business owners.

As an external coach, I frequently have conversations with managers about disagreements and conflicts they may be having with their direct reports, other managers, or their own bosses. I believe one of my roles is to open the lines of communication between people who are having conflict.

One question frequently comes up: “Why can’t the person who has a problem with me come and talk to me directly?”

There are many reasons people hesitate to deal with a person they have issue with. They don’t want to escalate the issue. They don’t want to cause a rift in a work relationship. They may fear being labeled a **** disturber. They don’t know how to talk about the problem. They believe conflict is synonymous with fighting and they don’t like fighting.

My own research, observations and experience point to these 10 tips for handling conflict:

1. Don’t react… respond. As difficult as it may be, take some time out. Take the time to get some perspective on the issue at hand before you say anything. Cool down and take a close look at where your reactions and emotions are coming from. This is tough for me and for many other people. But the first step to positive change is awareness.




2. Seek first to understand. I find it terribly easy to just write off anyone I’m having conflict with as an “idiot”. There must be something wrong with them if they think “whatever it is that’s different than the way I see it”!
   Painfully, I’ve learned that when I discover the other person’s perspective, it makes sense, too. How much better to ask for the other person’s perspective before I fly apart on them! I really don’t like humble pie.
   And as I’ve recently learned, the second step to positive change is understanding.
   Learn to really listen to the other person’s perspective. Step into their shoes for just a minute. It’s amazing how different things may look from where they stand.Once you’ve heard the other person out, you can reasonably ask them to listen to, and hear, your side.




3. Be aware of your feelings. I had a couple of instances in the past two weeks, where I was immediately angry. Fortunately, the second time I was with a friend who made me stop and take a look at my feelings. “What are you afraid of here?” she asked.
   Now that stopped me in my tracks. I know fear is usually the feeling that lies directly under anger. Yup, that’s exactly what was happening for me at the time.
   The fear I was feeling was of someone else “taking me for a fool.” Other fears that can lead to anger are: being taken advantage of; losing control; having something taken away (as when someone else takes credit for your work); being falsely accused of something; even fear of losing one’s job or status.The interesting thing about becoming aware of the feeling underneath my anger, was the intensity of the feeling disappeared very quickly.




4. Focus on the issue, not the other person. As much as you may passionately dislike the person you are in conflict with, stick to the facts. Bringing personality traits into the picture will only make matters worse. State your case calmly, clearly and factually.




5. Focus on mutual problem solving. Ask a few simple questions: What happened here? How can we solve the problem now? How can we prevent a similar problem in the future? Remember: you are looking for a solution where both of you can win. If either of you walk away feeling like you lost and the other person won, you haven’t solved anything.




6. Pick your fights. Parents always hear this one, and I find it’s really valuable advice. Sometimes a conflict is just not worth getting upset about. But here’s a proviso – if you find yourself talking to everyone else about it, it’s probably an issue you do need to confront with the person involved.




7. If you find that calmly talking to the other person accomplishes nothing and no resolution seems possible, you have two choices: 1. ask a third party for help. This may be a manager who is senior to you and the other person, or the Human Resources Department in your company. Or, 2. begin documenting the conflict. Keep copies of all hateful or spiteful memos, e-mails or letters. Record the time, date and circumstances of all relevant incidents. At some point you’ll need to decide who you will take your documentation to. Is there a senior manager you can approach within the company? Is your problem serious enough that you’ll be taking your documentation to a lawyer or making a human rights claim?




8. Timing is everything. If you or the other person is agitated and angry,  tired, or highly stressed, that’s not the best time to try to discuss your issues or problem solve. Make an appointment that will work for both of you and come back to the issue when both of you are at your best.




9. Keep your negotiations private. It may seem beneficial to “have it out” in a public forum, but that’s usually not the case. Making your conflict public just creates opportunity for others to take sides. Confronting another in public also makes it more likely that things will be said that will make the situation worse.It has been my experience that taking the person I’m in conflict with aside and speaking to them privately, has greatly increased their respect for me.




10. Keep the conflict private. Not only should you speak one-on-one with the person you are having conflict with, make a commitment to limit you discussions to that person directly. It is toxic to a work environment to discuss what is going on with others. It serves no purpose other than to stir up more trouble. When you discuss a difficulty with anyone other than the other party involved, nothing will be solved. Your hard feelings, anger and resentment will build as you spread the word, creating sympathy for either yourself or the other person and polarizing the whole workplace. Bitching to others solves nothing. Be a bigger person and deal with your conflict head-on in a constructive, problem solving spirit.

Please leave your own comments and/or suggestions for handling conflict in the workplace.

But for the most part, companies are lying when they make that statement! How do I know? When I see a constant stream of new employees, when I read continual job ads, when I’m looking at a company where employees are not very happy or satisfied in their jobs I know they are not being treated as ‘assets’.

Employees who are treated as important assets, would not be leaving. They’d be telling all their friends and acquaintances about the wonderful employer they have and the company would have a pool of applicants knocking on their door waiting for an opportunity to join the business.

Many companies treat their employees as just another expense. And what do most companies do with expenses? They try to reduce them in every way possible. Keep the wages as low as possible. No training that isn’t absolutely necessary. Make do with outdated equipment. Produce more with less.

And then wonder why their lazy employees aren’t motivated to work harder. “The economy is too good – nobody wants to work.”

And yet, there are companies around who aren’t hurting for employees at all. There are some companies that never run job ads, while others in the very same industries, in the same localities have ads in the paper every couple of weeks.

So what’s the difference? Employees love to work for companies that value them – that treat them as valuable assets. Let’s think about assets for a minute.

Because we usually invest in assets, we check them out before we sink money into them. For example, before we invested in our home, we had a home inspection done. It cost us a few hundred dollars, but we felt it was worth it to know we weren’t purchasing something that would be a source of unforeseen problems.

Employers who value their employees check them out as well, by assessing them prior to hiring them. In doing so, they’re sure the new employee will ‘fit’ in with the company and bring the necessary qualities that will allow them to match the brightest and best current employees.

When we invest in an asset, for example a home, we expect to invest more money in improving and maintaining that asset. We expect assets to improve in value.

Employers who believe their employees are important assets, also invest in improving and maintaining those employees. They provide generous training allowances and work with their employees to choose courses and programs that not only benefit the company, but develop the value of the person as a whole.

Employers who believe their employees are important assets, do what they can to keep them. They know employees want to be challenged, want to be acknowledged and rewarded, want to enjoy coming to work every day, want to be part of something important. These employers know that while money isn’t everything, it does have importance and they provide above average wages or salary.

Employers who believe their employees are important assets are Employers of Choice. These employers are literally chosen by their employees and they have their pick of the brightest and best candidates.

Becoming an Employer of Choice is not something you can do by declaring that you are one. Your actions and results will speak far louder than your words. Becoming an Employer of Choice takes commitment and time, sometimes as long as a couple of years. Is it worth it? Well, do you want your employees to be expenses or investments?

Tell us what “Our Employees are our Greatest Assets” means to you. Leave a comment below!

The ‘No Time’ Boss

You want things to happen, but don’t believe you have the time to hold the employee’s hand and teach them how to do the job properly.
You may even say, “If I have to take the time to show employees how I want the job done, I might as well do it myself, because doing it will take a fraction of the time teaching it will.”

The trouble with this thinking is, by not taking the time to teach the employee how to perform the job to acceptable standards, you’re going to have to do the job forever. Think: short term pain for long term gain. Yes, it may take repeating the instructions several times, or modifying the employee’s process, before the outcome meets your expectations. But look at the big picture. Once one employee gets it they’ll be able to teach it to the next person, freeing you up even further.

The ‘My Way is the Only Way’ Boss

You micro manage your employees, making sure they do things exactly the way you want them done every step of the way.
You believe you’ve worked all the bugs out and found the perfect method for accomplishing the desired result. And maybe you have. Maybe you’ve spent years and mega dollars perfecting your methods.
If this is the case, explain the process you went through to develop your system. Explain why you insist on your method being followed to the letter. Most employees will respect this once they understand it.
If, on the other hand, you are convinced your way is the best way because that’s the way you’ve always done it, prepare to be astounded once you loosen the reins a bit.
It can be much more effective and efficient to explain to an employee what end result you expect (quality, quantity,) what restrictions they must deal with (time or budget,) and then leave them to do the job.
It’s always a good idea to set up frequent check-in points to reassure yourself that the job is on target or to deal with any problems that may have come up.

The ‘You’re on Your Own’ Boss

The opposite of the My Way is the Only Way boss, your employees may feel they have no idea what it is you expect until it’s too late.
You assign tasks or projects, but your employees just don’t have enough direction to accomplish them to the standards you expect. They may feel incompetent when they have to ask you for more details or instruction.
If you have any inkling this may describe you, the solution may be to make sure the outcomes are clear. Give employees ample opportunity to clarify what procedures they’ll use, what standards must be met and any other requirements such as budget or timelines.
Set up check-in meetings along the way and let your employees know either where to get additional information or when it’s convenient for them to get any further clarification they may need from you, once they begin the project or task.
This is especially important when you assign a task to a new employee or assign something unusual to an experienced employee.

The ‘Seagull’ Boss

You guessed it! This boss flies in squawking, craps all over everybody and then flies off again, often still squawking about something.
Think about it. Do you believe no news is good news? Do you notice only the bad things your employees do? Do you wonder why nobody ever seems to take any initiative?
Employees do need to be corrected. Privately, immediately, and humanely.  They also need praise when they’ve done a good job. Publicly, immediately, and with passion. What you focus on, grows!
Fear is a huge demotivator. When employees know the boss cares about them, and will treat them fairly, they’re much more likely to perform well and take innovative risks.

If you have any thoughts along these lines, please share them below!

Distinction: Performance management is the day-to-day encouragement and corrections you engage in with your employees on an individual basis. Performance reviews are the formal assessments you perform with employees, to acknowledge their successes and set goals for future performance.

Performance Management

I like to think of a manager’s role as being similar to that of a symphony conductor. The directions you give, the pace you set, your attention to details, your enthusiasm, the way you treat your direct reports — all contribute to the overall tone and outcome of your company or department.

We all need to matter, to be valued, and to feel we contribute to the success of the company. “No news” kills good behavior and encourages bad behavior. Your job as manager is to encourage productive behaviors and discourage unproductive ones. Your reactions can significantly affect which behaviors are multiplied and which will gradually die out.

Think about the effect your attention has:

• When you ignore good behavior, it decreases. (Why should I bother when no one notices?)

• When you ignore bad behavior, you get more of it (Nobody noticed that shortcut I took, so I’ll continue doing it that way) and the habits formed will be hard to break.

• When you recognize good behavior, you also get more of it. (People like to hear praise and usually like to please others)

• When you recognize (and correct, or redirect) bad behavior, you get less of it (most people want to do a good job.)

Notice great/good performance and reward it immediately, or notice poor performance and correct it immediately. The value of feedback drops when neither you or your employee can remember the details of the incident during the performance review several months later. Oh, and just a reminder, correct in private and reward publicly.

Performance Reviews

I think we all dread performance reviews because they take so much energy, thought and time. We hate to give up that kind of time, especially if what we’re doing seems pointless.

The whole process makes much more sense when we check progress frequently. Two scenarios, which make reviews more productive:

1. Do a formal performance review on the employee’s anniversary date, with short follow-up meetings quarterly.
2. Do short performance reviews quarterly, looking at what has been accomplished over the past three months and what will be focused on in the next three months.

When they are relevant, reviews have a positive outcome for both the employer and the employee. The employee has short-term goals, which lead to long-term outcomes. Productive reviews are followed up regularly to ensure goals are being met and blocks to success are being anticipated and eliminated.

Ideally, performance reviews are a negotiation between the employer and employee. Needs, expectations and goals are met on both sides. What employee needs must be met to ensure success? What employer needs must be met to ensure success?

There are no set rules for performance reviews that work for every company in every situation. Make performance reviews work for you and your employees, with whatever format fits your needs and expectations.

I was visiting with a group of people a couple of years ago, and we started talking about the employment situation in our part of the country. I was told there just weren’t enough people to work at the businesses who pay minimum wage or just slightly higher. I was told these businesses have to be happy to employ people who can just pass the mirror test (they’re breathing) because there are so few people willing to work at these jobs.

Another woman, Cheryl,  spoke up and shared her experience of applying at one of the local fast food outlets. She took her resume in, was interviewed and hired on the spot. Her first two days were spent in front of a computer, (being oriented and trained?) learning about the company history, how to display the merchandise, etc.

Towards the end of her second day, another employee walked in and said, “I hope you know you’re not getting paid for this?”

Cheryl was very unhappy – she had to go home and pay her babysitter for two days and she wasn’t being paid for her time! She was in the red right off the bat.

Once the two days of “orientation and training” were complete, she was shown around the kitchen and front end and shown how to prepare and serve the food. Then as rush hour began, she was told to go start taking orders from customers at the counter. The line-up was already out the door! Another employee was working with her, but customers were getting angry at having to wait while someone, who hadn’t been trained in this position, wasted their time fumbling through the order taking process.

This poor woman finally had enough and walked out, quitting before she had really even begun. The company had supplied her with a uniform, for which she was told she would have to pay $50 out of her first pay cheque. She was also told she would not receive her final pay cheque until the uniform was returned. She would not get her $50 back – that amount was not a deposit, it was more like rent.

Cheryl never received a pay cheque, so did not pay for the uniform. She was so angry at the whole affair, she threw the uniform in the garbage.

What turnover costs did this company lose? They lost the value of the interview time, they lost the productivity of the employee who was with Cheryl at the order counter during her “orientation and training”, they lost the respect of their customers, some of whom may not return, and they lost the cost of the uniform, which Cheryl estimates was worth about $200. Those are the direct costs in this turnover incident.

The indirect costs? I think Cheryl would have been a reliable employee. She was available during the day when student employees are at school. She probably would have stuck with the job. She’s good with people. Over time, she could have proven to be a valuable employee in an industry that finds it difficult to hire and keep good people.

So what would have made this situation turn out more positively?

• Tell the employee up front that she would not be paid for the two days on the computer. Give her the choice of working through the computerized orientation and training program on her own computer at home.

• Find out how your new employee learns best and provide that type of training as far as possible and within reason.

• Provide simulated training on the till before the employee actually does it with customers. These systems are tough to learn under pressure. Yes, it may cost you an hour or two, but customer satisfaction alone would make up for that.

• Be up front with all information pertaining to the new employee. Orient your employee by outlining your expectations and requirements. Cheryl learned all the bad news second hand from other employees. Maybe the information wasn’t even correct!

• Be fair with employees. You really should pay them for anything they do pertaining to your business and that includes orientation and training time. If you require a deposit for the uniform, give the deposit back when they leave your employ. This is a cost of doing business and you can write it off on tax. Minimum wage employees can’t afford to reimburse you for clothing you require them to wear.

• Ask your current employees for their input on what would make your training program more effective. Ask them what they would have liked to have known when they first started with you. They’ve been through it and may have some very valuable ideas.

• Ask your employees what would make your company a better place to work. Ask them if they would recommend your company to other people as a good place to work. If not, why not? You could reduce your costs of advertising significantly if your employees recommended other people they know who would like a job.

• What could you offer your employees that would help to make the low wages more acceptable to them? Get creative! Ask your employees for their input. You may be pleasantly surprised to find out how simple it is to keep your employees happy.

Cheryl walked away from this job because she felt she was being treated very unfairly. Do you suppose our little group were the only people she’s told about her bad experience? Do you think any of us will encourage our children or friends to apply for a job at this restaurant?

The cost of not hiring the right person for the job is high.

So is the cost of not taking the time to orient and train the right people once you’ve hired them.

Last week I was meeting with the manager of a department. He was telling me about one of his employees who had failed his first year apprenticeship exam for the second time. “I can’t figure out what’s wrong with him,” the manager told me. “He does a great job for us, he did well in the course – 87% – but he just can’t seem to pass the exam. He’s been told the only way he can write again is if I write a letter to the school. I can do that, but I wonder if it will do any good? Will you talk to him?”

Of course I will! He brought a young man (Mike) to my office who was bouncing with energy and enthusiasm. Mike told me he loves his job and can’t wait to get to work every morning.

As we talk about the exam, I can see how frustrated and anxious he is about it. He really wants this! He knows he’s good at what he does and can’t understand why he has failed twice in the exam. He’s getting a lot of pressure from the other guys he works with – they’re teasing him about failing. His parents really want this for him and they’re adding pressure from their end. Mike is beginning to wonder if there is any point in continuing in the apprenticeship program.

We talk about his ability – he wasn’t a great student, but doesn’t appear to have a learning disability. We talk about his preparation for exams and how he studies – here’s a possible area for improvement. We talk about his strategy in the exam – he goes in physically prepared but doesn’t really have a strategy. So, we’ve got two areas for possible improvement to work on.

After talking about study habits and exam strategy, we move back to the subject of the exam and re-writing for the third time. He wants to set a deadline to work toward – he’ll set the date a month from now. As he’s talking about this, I can see him getting physically worked up about it already. He voice gets louder; he lifts his shoulders, and tenses his arms and his facial expression becomes one of concern.

I ask if he is required to set a deadline – “no.” I suggest he not set a deadline, that he study and prepare until he knows in his gut that he’s ready and then set an appointment to write. I further suggest that he not tell anyone when he’s going to write again. If the guys bug him about why he’s not going again right away, he should say something like, “We will sell no wine before its time.”

Bingo! The shoulders go down, his face relaxes and I can hear the sigh of relief. I know we’ve found his solution. I can’t say for sure he’ll be successful next try, but I do know we’ve wiped out the pressure that seems to be a big part of his problem.

So what can you learn from this little scenario that will help you coach your employees?

1. Help your employee be comfortable talking to you. Engage in some relevant small talk. Is he happy in his job? What excites him most about his job? Any problems on the job that might be contributing to this situation? Any problems outside of the job that could be contributing?

2. Try to get to the root of the problem. Explore all the possibilities and clues from the past.

3. Share any strategies that have worked for you in the past that might help your employee. Don’t expect you’ll hit the answer right away or that what worked for you will necessarily work for him. What you share is just information.

4. Explore the alternative solutions. What seems to feel like the best solution to your employee? Remember, it’s won’t necessarily be what you would do and that’s O.K!

5. Ask lots of questions and listen to the answers. It’s in this process that the solution is most likely to surface from your employee. It never ceases to amaze me that the answer is inside the person I’m coaching and when I ask the right questions the answer pops to the surface. Some people seem to have trouble asking the right questions. When the questions you ask come from genuine interest and curiosity you’ll find the right ones.

6. As you’re talking, be aware of anything physical that would indicate a reaction to what is being discussed, as well as any changes during the conversation that will let you know when you’ve found the best solution.

I thought about sharing what employees are looking for during the interview, to help them identify a boss or a company they would not want to work for. However, if YOU are a bad boss, that would just help you cover up the warning signs.

It’s important, as an employer, to realize and remember that you are being interviewed, too. And rather than just APPEAR to be a great employer, you actually need to BE one.

Great employers are referred to by several names: Employer of Choice, Workplace of Choice, Preferred Employer, Preferred Workplace, and probably others I just haven’t heard of yet.

I’ve seen career and employment ads that state that this is an ‘Employer of Choice.’ However, declaring yourself an ‘Employer of Choice’ doesn’t make you one. Your current and past employees are the ones who will spread the truth about what kind of employer you are.

If you are truly an ‘Employer of Choice’, you probably don’t need to place job or career ads very often – prospective employees will be lined up at your door; you will always have a file folder full of resumes to choose from. People will be eager and waiting for an opportunity to work for you.

But how does an employer go about becoming an ‘Employer of Choice’?

It starts with your attitude towards your employees. David Sirota, author of The Enthusiastic Employee, says there are four employee relations cultures. I’m going to paraphrase them here, but if you’d like to hear him talk about them, check out a video on his website.

There are four mindsets an employer/company can have towards its employees:

• Employees as children I’ve heard many employers talk about how childish they think their employees are; how being a manager is just like being a parent. If you see your employees this way, that is how you’ll treat them and this is likely how they will conduct themselves.
• Employees as enemies I’ve never heard an employer come right out and say their employees are enemies, but I’ve sure seen the behaviours that scream that belief. It’s an ‘us vs. them’ attitude; there is no trust; managers may even talk about ‘covering each others backs’.
• Employees as ciphers (non-entities) This is an attitude of ‘you’re necessary only insofar as we need the work done. We pay you, so we’re even. Don’t expect us to like you or treat you as a valuable person. You’re here, just do your work.’
• Employees as allies This is the employer attitude that will win the hearts of employees. This is the approach that will “sustain the enthusiasm and the performance that comes from the initial enthusiasm that people bring to their jobs”, as David Sirota says. This is an organization that treats their employees as partners.

Sirota goes on to explain that there are several components that are key in the Partnership culture:

• It’s a win/win relationship – the success of one party depends on the success of the other.
• There is basic trust in/of each others intentions.
• There is a long-term perspective
• An expectation of excellence – the parties set high performance standards for themselves and for each other
• Competence – the parties have confidence in each others competence, or ability to get the job done
• Joint decision making – parties make key decisions jointly on matters that affect each other
• It is a business relationship – not a friendship or a family
• There is open and full communication between the parties
• Mutual influence – the parties listen to and are influenced by each other
• Mutual assistance – parties help each other perform
• Day-to-day treatment and interaction with consideration and respect
• Financial sharing – when the parties collaborate on improving financial results, they share equitably in those results

Any employer or company who will work towards having a true ‘Partnership’ culture will be an ‘Employer of Choice’. They will be an employer top performing employees will line up to work for.

And they won’t need to worry about coming across well in an interview with prospective employees.

(C) 2009 Peak Performance Coaching/Accidental-HR