How to get your staff working like a team
All too often the cry is
heard “you can’t get good people!” or “why can’t I get my employees to do their
job?” Well here are a few ideas that will make your life as a business owner a
lot easier…
Consider for a moment, the
business owner who has 10 people working in the business yet he or she is the
one doing most of the work. What’s the point! Might as well go back to running
the business as a sole prop in my home office… Sound familiar?
The solution starts with your
ability to recognize the following fact.
If you don’t have a good team,
the problem is YOU, not the people around you- a hard truth, to be
sure. Here’s what you need to know to turn your situation around!
First, let’s go through the
basics…
Few people in business
understand how important systems are. Systems are essential if you want a
business that runs smoothly and profitably. With good systems in place, it’s
much easier for the right team members to do a bang up job of running those
systems and producing great results. Michael Gerber’s fantastic book The E
Myth Revisited explains how important systems are for businesses to be
successful. The stock example, of course, is McDonald’s. With a food product
that, at best, could only be described as average, McDonald’s now grosses more
than $15 billion a year. And most of the people running those systems are
typical teenagers whose parents can barely motivate them to keep their rooms
clean.
The magic is in the systems!
The point is, get the systems
built in your business. If you feel like you’re banging your head against a
brick wall, take a look at the systems in your business. Look at the most basic
things from answering the phone all the way through to how you produce and
deliver your product or service.
If your systems are not clearly defined,
easy to understand, and printed out, how can anyone understand what you want?This
is the fundamental principle of getting your staff to work like a team.
Now, suppose your systems
have been clearly documented. It’s now a matter of recruiting the right people
to run those systems.
However, the real challenge
still lies ahead of you, even after you’ve got the right people on the bus.
It’s not just a matter of just having the right people follow good system in
order to get the job done. What you’re looking for is SYNERGY!
Synergy comes from having
people who are committed to a “common goal.” If people are involved in setting
the “common goal,” they’re more likely to commit. If you, as the business
owner, are dictating the goal to your team then don’t expect much commitment.
On the other hand, if your team has ownership, they’re much more likely to
achieve. Try asking your team questions like this: “I’m looking for [a certain outcome], how do
you think we should go about achieving that?”
Unsuccessful business owners
have team members that say “I don’t know - you’re the boss.” Successful
business owners have team members that say “I think we should do it like this…”Lastly, be aware of what
you’re teaching your team by your own behavior.
By way of illustration, if a
baby cries and its mother comes running every time, what will the baby learn to
do after a while? Exactly. Let out a cry and I can get anything I want from
Mom. If you’re quick to jump in and do it for your team members when they’re
feeling challenged, you’re saying, in effect, “no-one can do it as good as me,
so don’t bother trying.”
Instead of jumping in to do things for
your team members, make sure they have the resources they need and coach them
through their challenges. Then, you’ll have the joy of seeing them
perform like champs!
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