Why evaluate employee performance?

Cindi Filer, CEO of Innovative Outsourcing shares helpful advice you can use. First in a three-part series on performance evaluations.

The small business community is abuzz now, debating this hot topic. Is it still correct to do employee performance appraisals?  Some argue that leaders should have “evolved” past this fossil management tool.  I’m going to make an argument that they are still relevant and actually, critical.

Over the next three weeks, look forward to receiving some practical advice on why and how to successfully implement performance appraisals.

Why do performance reviews? Let’s boil it down to these four critical reasons:

• To INFORM employees – “Where do you stand with your boss?” If I asked your employees that right now, would they know how to answer? 
• To INCREASE productivity – Studies show that when you regularly evaluate employees and they know that they are being evaluated based upon a measurable standard, their productivity increases.
• To RETAIN staff - According to the research by Direct Recruiters, Inc , feeling undervalued and lacking feedback are two of the top seven reasons why an employee quits. Both of these issues can be addressed by using employee reviews.  For millennials, this is even more crucial.  They need reviews at least quarterly and perhaps more informally. They crave feedback, and will perform much better if provided appropriately.
• To be able to FIRE with less risk - You have heard this from me before - document, document, document!  Performance review records document that your poor performers have regularly been coached and given deadlines for improvement.  Without this, when you call me for advice on letting someone go, I will likely say that you are in a position of RISK. Employee reviews mitigate this. 

Designing the best performance review is critical, or you could fall into the trap that has given traditional performance reviews a black eye. The key for small business is to make this tool inspire instead of deflate, and make it simple enough that both the employee and the manager find it a valuable use of everyone’s time. Next week, we will investigate the critical task you must accomplish prior to your performance appraisal. In the meantime, I’d appreciate your feedback or questions on this topic.  Email me at cfiler@innovative-outsourcing.com.

The Year Ahead: What Employers Need to Know

Cindi Filer, CEO of Innovative Outsourcing shares a helpful reference from her legal labor resource who offers this concise reference for the year ahead.

When my legal resource, Eric Magnus, Jackson Lewis, P.C, provided me with this very inclusive reference to the year ahead for employers, I knew that you would benefit from this information, too!  CLICK HERE to read the report.

“Employers can expect sweeping changes in the year ahead. Here is of our exclusive outlook, “2017: The Year Ahead for Employers,” an executive summary of key developments in the past year and what employers can expect in the coming months. It is a quick read and ideal for senior management and those responsible for Human Resources. ”

— Eric Magnus

If you have a need for further legal advice on HR topics, please contact Eric Magnus at Jackson Lewis, P.C.  He can be reached at 404-525-8200.

Book Buzz: Dare to Serve

What would happen if we fundamentally changed our leadership style? What would happen to our companies if we chose to serve those we lead? These are the premises of Cheryl Bachelder’s Dare to Serve. 

As the CEO, Cheryl was instrumental in turning around Popeyes over just 7 years, with restaurant sales up 25%, profits up 40%, and market share up 7%. What was the key to this success? It was the direct result of making a conscious decision to lead in a new way. Do we want different results than we had last year? In my experience, Cheryl’s experiment here is real, and if we choose to lead this way, we will see tangible bottom line results.

I know that you are thinking, “Of course Cindi feels this way, because she is an HR person.”  But honestly, this applies to you, too. I'm suggesting that you may want to take some time during this holiday season, when it just seems right to turn our focus to relationships, and read this book. I believe it will be worth your time.

The premise is simple:

• Decide to think positively about the people you lead
• Decide to be a leader who serves others over self-interest

The book is full of very practical ideas you can apply in your business right now such as this one interesting take-away.

Dare to Serve leaders create work environments that bring out the best in their people.  Cheryl says if you have an underperforming team, the easy approach is to say, “I need new people.” As a staffing person, I hear this all the time. So these leaders fire the people they have now, then take the time and incur the expense to hire replacements, only to have this new crop disappoint them as well. Cheryl contends that the work environment can inspire boldness, innovation, and excellence, or it can strangle the capability and productivity of the team. It is the work of the leader to create this environment. Popeyes created half-day retreats once a year to produce teamwork. The retreat exercises focused on using the workers' strengths to help solve business problems. Employees were empowered to think outside the box in role play scenarios where the leaders could be the "students." This was a great opportunity to for leaders to identify their employees' strongest skills. In the end, everyone emerged from this retreat ready to make changes in job requirements based on these newly discovered strengths. 

I’m so sure that this is a problem in our companies that I will make this bold statement: 

I think if we CEOs could embrace this servant leadership model, then 80% of the problems with our teams would be fixed. 

I love this quote from Cheryl  - “Your leadership actions will change lives for the better, leave them unchanged, or regrettably, leave them worse off.  Which will it be? You have some important decisions to make.”

• In 2017, will I humbly serve others over my own self-interest?
• In 2017, will I help others find meaning and purpose at work?
• In 2017, will I teach others the guiding principles of serving others well?

Or in 2017, will you continue to grumble and complain about your employees never measuring up to your expectations?

After reading this book, you may consider the possibilities, but not know where to start.  Please call me for coffee, and together we will set a few next steps.  No charge – and the coffee is on me! This is important, not only to your bottom line, but for how you are impacting the people’s lives that you have been given the opportunity and responsibility to lead.

Thumbs Up! 

I recommend this book for you and the managers on your team. 

How Long? 

It's an easy read, requiring 6 to 8 hours.

Read This Book! 

After reading this book, you will be empowered to begin the steps to create a work environment that brings out the best in those you are leading

Book Buzz - 5 Gears: How to Be Present and Productive When There is Never Enough Time

Do you have a work/life balance issue?  Does your spouse often remind you that you are present but not “present?" Is it challenging to get ahead of your email inbox so that you can really be productive. How are your outside-of-work relationships?

These days, it seems like work consumes us.  Our phones and laptops have allowed us to be “on” right up until we go to sleep and at the first minute we wake up.  In this new electronic world, perhaps we need to learn how to make good boundaries between where work ends and life begins.

5 Gears, by Jeremie Kubicek and Steve Cockram, offers practical solutions to help you find these boundaries. While I’ve read many books with this focus, this one just seems to work. As you might know, I started my business 22 years ago with small kids in tow. I had to have boundaries so that I could be a mom, working only 5 hours a week at the beginning, and until last year (when our last left for college), I never worked more than 25 hours a week. Not everyone can do this, and I know I was blessed to be able to make this happen. But needing to run a company with sometimes up to 75 employees in 25 hours a week, I needed to learn boundaries. The wisdom from this book would have certainly been welcomed.

5 Gears breaks our life into gears, or the parts of our daily lives between which we are constantly switching.

• 1st gear - Recharge Mode - Personal recharge, completely unplugged
• 2nd gear - Connect Mode - Being present with family and friends without work
• 3rd gear - Social Mode - Present with people and can shift up or down easily
• 4th gear - Task Mode - Multitasking, working hard in various ways
• 5th gear - Focus Mode  - Task-centered, fully-focused, and moving quickly
• Reverse - Responsive Mode - Backing up or apologizing when necessary

One of my favorite chapters provides tips on how to shift from work to home successfully.  The authors give a couple of examples, and then conclude with an important point: It must be intentional, and it must be practiced in order to do it well. 

Another great chapter covers being intentional with leadership versus being accidental:

• Hope that their kids grow up to be responsible.
• Hope that they will have income to retire on.
• Hope that their business takes off one day.
• Hope that the new employee that they hire is a rock-star.

If we are intentional with these things, we plan and act with a purpose.  Then this book gives you a plan to make it happen.

Thumbs Up!
I recommend this book for you and your team to become healthy in all areas of your life. 

How Long?
It’s an easy read that can be done in around 8 hours - and would be good to do with you team - or with your spouse.

Read This Book!
After reading this book, you will have a new understanding of what gear each life circumstance demands, and you will be better equipped to switch between gears as necessary.  In the end, the goal is that your life will start feeling a little more under control to you and to those around you. 

How to craft a plan to keep your best employees

Cindi Filer, CEO of Innovative Outsourcing, offers her advice.

Your best employee may have just accepted a new job offer, and the resignation letter is heading to your desk.

In our message last week, and continuing today, I’d like to share with you some alarming statistics on employee turnover, and then offer some equipping advice that can hopefully buffer you from this trend.  A recent Forbes article sited two research sources indicating that 74% of current workers would consider finding a new job, and 35% of those workers are actively seeking a new job. Your business is not insulated from this alarming trend, but there is a strategy you can implement now to improve your chance of retaining your talent. 

So last week, my message asked you to sort the names of your direct reports onto three lists  1) Excellent Employees, 2) Worst Employees, and 3) Everyone in Between.  Then your assignment was to ponder the names on your Excellent Employees list.  It is for those people that we will now be crafting a retention plan.

First, let’s consider the reasons people leave their job.  For each person on your Excellent Employees list, fill in their name as you read each reason:

1. __________ doesn’t feel valued
2. __________ feels they have a bad manager
3. __________ perceives there is a lack of communication
4. __________'s efforts aren’t recognized (pay)
5. __________ did not get a deserved promotion
6. __________ feels a perceived or real lack of training
7. __________ thinks that there is no chance for promotion
8. __________ has too much work
9. __________ doesn't trust management 
10. __________ doesn’t connect to the mission (purpose)

Did this raise some red flags? For example:

• Do they love words of encouragement and due to busyness, those have been few and far between?  
• Has that person stayed at $28/hr for the past three years without a pay raise?  
• Have you increased her workload because she is the most trustworthy, with greatest follow through, so now she works 50 hours a week?  
• Have you not painted a path upon which he can progress in his career and his pay as he develops within your company?  

Identify at least two things on this list of ten that stick out right now as a potential issue for each of your Excellent Employees. In our last message, I asked you to assign a rank from zero to ten of how likely that person is to resign, (remembering that a great employee for whom you think the flight risk is at zero may resign tomorrow).  This will help you assess the urgency of your necessary action. Then construct an plan for those two critical areas.  For example:

• Raise her pay to 5% above market rate by six months from now
• Send her to a leadership development program each month so that she feels you are investing in her and she is becoming more valuable in leading the company.

Now you have at least two action steps in place for each Excellent Employee, and you can prioritize each step based upon pending urgency.

Do you feel this seems rather simple? Actually, I have seen time and time again that this deliberate and consistent approach slows the leak of a company’s best talent.  When you focus on retaining your excellent employees, you can RETAIN MOST OF THEM.  When you consider the expense of employee turnover, even while considering your preventative investment (of your time and company resources), the savings is huge.

Remember those other two lists, the Worst Employees, and Everyone in Between? Stay tuned!  I’ll be sharing some helpful suggestions for those employees, too.  

image: womensday.com

Plan now to retain your best talent

Cindi Filer, CEO of Innovative Outsourcing, offers her advice.

Are you worried that your best employee will hand you their resignation? 

If you are, then you are one step ahead of the curve.  A current survey finds that one in three employees in the US is currently looking for a new job.  That’s 1/3 of your workforce and mine. "Not MY employees," you say.  But what if we consider that this may be a reality brewing right under your nose.  And then, let’s figure out what you can do now to retain your best employees.  Over the next few weeks, I'll be sharing some suggestions for retaining your top talent.

IDENTIFY THE CREAM OF THE CROP: The first step is to determine exactly who are your best employees.  Create a three-sheet reference like this: 

1. EXCELLENT EMPLOYEES - This list should be the top 15% of your work force.  These are the people that you would cry or throw something if they turned in their resignation notice.  They might be the COO or the janitor, but they are good at what they do, and they are great to have around.
2. WORST EMPLOYEES - This list includes the people that, if they resigned, you would cheer and have a party.  You get rid of them, and you don’t have to pay unemployment!  Hopefully, this list is very small, and your goal is to have no one on this list.  Anyone landing on this list should either be trained, become valuable, and make it off the list, or should be let go (after trying training and with great documentation). 
3. EVERYONE IN BETWEEN - The majority of your team will land on this list.  These are good employees who get the job done.  You would be sad if they left, but you could likely replace them. 

This week, let's focus on Sheet One. These are your stars. You need to protect them.  Do you have any idea how close they are to leaving?  Evaluate every person named on this sheet, assigning them on a 1 to 10 scale the probability that they will be leaving the company soon.  Next to their leaving-probability rating, write what you perceive that each person values the most, (time off, money, autonomy, encouraging words, etc.)  

Next week, we will start to create a plan for each person. We call these retention plans, a strategy that you make to keep your best employees in this “Candidate-oriented” job market.

In the meantime, please reach out to me with specific staffing issues you need help addressing immediately. I'm here to help!

How to learn your leadership voice

Cindi will help you understand how to put these concepts to work in your business today.

Does your team suffer from communication issues - people not feeling heard, boring or useless meetings? Do you as a leader not know the best way to get your team on the same page and direction? Are you interested in learning how to keep your best team members and not have them look elsewhere? Cindi Filer, CEO and owner of Innovative Outsourcing wants to help.  She will be the featured speaker at a Lunch & Learn September 21, 2016, and everyone is invited.  $14.95 includes a lunch buffet at The Georgian Club located at 100 Galleria Parkway Suite 1700, Atlanta. Reservations are required. Call the Receptionist at (770) 952-6000 to reserve your spot now. Bring your management team to learn what each person's "voice" is. We'll explore how you and your leaders are individually wired so that you know how to communicate better.

If you are unable to attend this presentation, and would like Cindi to be a featured speaker for your group or CEO roundtable, she would love to discuss this with you.  You may contact her here.

As a Human Resources expert, Cindi pulls upon her years of experience working for Delta Air Lines and Worldspan, along with her staffing and recruiting expertise as the owner of Innovative Outsourcing. Throughout the past 21 years, she has worked with teams of many small to medium-sized companies, helping them find their best possible staff and then helping them learn how to KEEP their staff, and make them more productive. 

3 Ways to Show Employee Appreciation

Did You Know: The number one reason employees choose to stay with their current employer is that they feel valued and appreciated. How do you make sure that happens at your company, especially with your most valuable employees?

You should never assume that your employees know they are appreciated. According to Work.com, 69% of employees worked harder when they felt they were appreciated and 54% of employees would quit working at a company where they didn’t feel appreciated. It’s important to remember that showing your appreciation doesn’t have to be complicated, or even expensive. You just need to make sure you do it.

69% of employees worked harder when they felt they were appreciated.

3 easy ways to show your employees some appreciation and love:

1. Give your employees physical gifts such as gift cards.

2. Provide lunch for the office, just because.

3. Take the team out for some fun team bonding.

You should also regularly tell your employees how much you appreciate them - in meetings when you run into them in the hallway, every Friday, whatever works best for you. Just make sure they know you care.

When was the last time you showed your appreciation?

5 Tips to Inspire Your Employees

Inspiring your employees does not always take a lot of time or effort on your part. Sometimes just a quick one-on-one check in to see how an employee is doing and what you can do to help is just the inspiration they need.

A few ways you can inspire your employees:

1. Take a look at your business goals. Be transparent about these goals with your employees. Have you completed goals for the first quarter? What do second quarter goals look like? Seeing goals completed is great inspiration to work hard to complete even more.

2. Provide some incentives and fun breaks around the office. These are great ways to show your appreciation and give your employees a quick break. This could be as simple as providing breakfast or lunch one day.

3. Take your employees’ ideas and advice when it comes to the business. Employees really start to feel valued when they see leadership taking their advice. Just make sure to give credit where credit is due.

4. Provide recognition and rewards. Thank your employees for all they’ve done to kick start 2016. Recognize those that have completed their own goals or records.

5. Build a culture of positivity. A positive workplace is inspiring. What motivates you? Bring it to the office and share that positive environment with your employees.

It’s important to remember that leaders set the example for the organization. Sometimes inspiration can come from watching others. Are you inspiring others?

We’d love to hear what else you have done to inspire your employees!

What Makes a Great Leader?

Anyone can lead a group of people based on their title, but to see success, it takes more than the name or title of the position. Whether leadership skills come naturally to you or not, there are a few qualities that every great leader possesses. These skills constantly crave improvement, development and work not just for the leader’s benefit, but for those they lead.

What makes a great leader?

1. Communication: Be in constant communication with your team. Interpersonal communication is key. Schedule one-on-ones, meetings, send emails, etc. Be transparent about the organization and your goals. Show your appreciation to your team and the work that they do.

2. Positive Attitude: No matter the situation, always stay positive. Not every day is going to be a walk in the park, but the way you communicate issues and getting around hurdles by offering solutions will inspire others, keeping morale and productivity up.

3. Great Intuition: Trust your instincts when it comes to your work. Be confident in your decisions and those around you.

4. Know your team: Do you really know every member of your team? What are their strengths and weaknesses? What Keep the members of your team close and focused on one goal.

5. Delegate: A great leader knows when to get the job done and when to delegate to others. Micromanagement can lead to a decline in team morale, as this can be a sign that you don’t truly trust your team. A true leader will train and equip their team to handle anything that comes their way. Be there as a resource to offer support, not to suppress.

6. Inspire others: Be passionate about your job and company, and inspire your employees. Set goals along with a vision to reach these goals that are compelling and motivating to your employees.

Whether you’re already in a leadership position, or you aspire to be there one day soon, it’s important to work on the skills above. They are all something we can constantly work to be better at.

Know Your Work Style

There are many different personalities and work styles that make up an office. Everyone is different, and knowing your work style when you head to an interview will be important.

A few different work style categories you may fall under:

1. Doers - You are always focused on executing the next task. It’s all about to-do lists and keeping your head down to finish your work. You’re focused and detailed but can sometimes forget to look around and communicate with others.

2. Leaders - You inspire others and love to create a vision. You take the lead with projects and ensure everything gets done. However, sometimes you can be detached from others.

3. Relationship Builders - You thrive in group settings and focus on creating harmonious relationships throughout the office.You are sensitive and empathetic, but don’t always follow through with detailed work.

4. Learners - You love to research and are always strategic about your day. It’s all about learning more, but sometimes that means a task won’t get done.

It’s important to note that not everyone falls into just one category, and that’s ok. There is usually one work style that sticks out for everyone, and every job requires a different personality.

We always ask for our candidates to take a personality test before they enter the interview part of the process. This gives us a good idea of who they are and who would fit best with the open position. We also take a look at the personalities throughout the office, because it’s usually good to have a mix, depending on the different job titles and positions.
 

What’s your work style?