Proactive Steps To Improve Employee Output
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Proactive Steps To Improve Employee Output
What can you do when an employee doesn’t do things as you expect them to do?
This type of situation can generate frustration and if it’s repeated, can affect your business results. In this blog post you’ll find some proactive steps you can take to improve employee output and performance.
1. Communicate Again Your Expectations And Verify If These Were Understood
It’s possible that the employee didn’t understand clearly what is expected from him/her.
This can happen frequently during the integration period of an employee when he/she has just started to learn the company’s rules and get to know the people they work with. They may be accustomed to different standards or ways of doing things, and they need an adjustment period to unlearn them and learn the patterns from the new company.
For instance, John, a new employee, who has to communicate with external collaborators may send emails to them that you don’t like or that are not according to what is considered appropriate in your company. It may be the situations in which the message is too formal, too informal, unclearly formulated, or has other aspects that are considered inappropriate for a representative of your company.
Also, this can happen often in the case of new tasks or activities. In these situations, the employees may confront themselves with more uncertainty, with situations when they don’t know from past experiences how to act or what are the best ways to act. If they don’t have a map, a leader or a mentor to guide them they may learn from trial and error.
Steps You Can Take
Decide to discuss the task or the tasks that they don’t do well with them
During the discussion, point out the parts that they are doing well and the parts that are not considered alright, and explain why.
Provide them with alternative actions or behaviours that can replace the actions or behaviours that are not desired or that have led to unwanted outcomes.
Ask for the employee opinion about what you said to them and see if they agree with you. At the same time, be open to their arguments to understand why they chose to act in that way. It’s possible that they have good reasons.
Reach an agreement with them regarding their future actions and behaviours. This will bring a higher level of certainty regarding their actions and once, they agreed, their engagement will be higher.
Give them positive feedback when they apply the agreed-upon actions. This will recognize their efforts and reinforce the importance that you give to those aspects of their work.
Some Unrecommended Responses In This Situation Would Be:
To criticize the person. In the above example, if the employee is criticized, he doesn’t receive constructive feedback that helps him understand what he didn’t do well and how he is expected to communicate.
To take away from this person the responsibility that he/she doesn’t do it as expected. The employees in this situation don’t have the opportunity to practice and improve their skills. If these are skills that they want to develop, their motivation will decrease. Also, this action can lower their morale and engagement.
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2. Check If They Have Objections Related To What Is Expected From Them
They may believe that the assigned tasks fall outside their responsibilities
If the employee considers that the task he/she is expected to do is not among their responsibilities, they may do it badly or not do it at all. And sometimes, the employee will not say explicitly why they choose to behave in this way.
You may ask yourself the question: Is this type of task included in his/her job responsibilities?
If yes, explain to the employee how the task that was assigned to him is among his job responsibilities. They may not have made the connections. Did this happen to you?
For Example:
An employee, let’s say Emily, who is in a sales representative position and who is asked to analyse market trends and customer preferences for the company’s products, may be a little confused about this task.
She knows that her primary responsibilities are prospecting new clients, conducting product demonstrations, and negotiating contracts. Emily is puzzled about why she, as a sales representative, is responsible for market analysis. She believes this task falls under the purview of the marketing or product development team.
Because of this thoughts, she doesn’t prioritize the task and misses the deadline for submitting her analysis.
Through a conversation, Emily could realize/agree that understanding market trends and customer preferences is essential for tailoring sales strategies and meeting customer demands effectively. She can collaborate with the marketing team to gain insights and align her sales approach accordingly.
If the answer is ”no”, you have a few options:
You could explain that it is a temporary situation and ask if he/she would agree to perform those tasks until you hire someone to do them. You could compensate the employee’s willingness to do those extra activities with a bonus or something similar.
If you want him/her to do those tasks but they are not included in his/her job description, ask him if he would agree to have those tasks included in his job responsibilities, and if he agrees, modify his job description. If not, you may have to find another person for those tasks.
The laws regarding assigning tasks that are not included in the job description are different in different countries, and I don’t know all of them. However, from an employee motivation perspective, it’s always recommended to have the employee’s agreement when you add tasks that are different from what is included in his/her job description.
It is possible that they don't agree with the way you ask them to perform those tasks or with the expectations themselves.
They may consider that the way you asked them to act is wrong, or they may know other ways to act that are considered more effective.
Employees often bring their unique perspectives and experiences to the table, and they might have innovative approaches to problem-solving. It’s important to remain open to their suggestions and encourage constructive feedback.
Additionally, employees might consider that the expectations are not realistic or are not proper for their role.
For instance, if a sales team is given an unrealistic sales target within a short timeframe without adequate resources or support, they may feel overwhelmed and demotivated. In such cases, it’s essential to revisit the expectations and align them with both the organizational goals and the employees’ capabilities. By setting achievable and meaningful goals, you can enhance employee satisfaction and performance, leading to better overall outcomes for the organization.
3. Asses Whether The Employee Has The Necessary Competencies To Complete Those Tasks
This could be one of the reasons why the employee isn’t achieving the expected results.
In the case of employees who are not new to the company, you probably already know their level of experience and competencies because you’ve had the opportunity to observe them performing tasks. However, it’s possible that some of their skills weren’t utilized in the company, and you may not be aware of their capabilities in those areas. They might have used those skills in other workplaces, but you might not know the extent of their usage or the results they achieved there.
For new employees, things can be even more unclear. Despite passing the selection tests and having an impressive resume, it’s only when you observe them working that you can see how well they perform.
Actions That Can Be Taken
Whatever the case may be, by analysing how the employee tried to accomplish the task and discussing possible actions with him/her to achieve it, you can observe the employee’s level of knowledge and competencies.
If you are not specialized in his/her area of work, involve an experienced employee, or if you don’t have one, an external collaborator to analyse his/her level of competencies and identify areas where he/she needs support.
Based on the skills that the employee has to develop, create a plan to support his/her growth.
4. Determine If They Have The Required Resources To Fulfil The Expectations
Does the employee have all they need to accomplish their tasks? (E.g.: the right devices and software, financial resources, time, space, etc.)
It can also happen that some tasks have to be accomplished in collaboration with other employees, and when one party doesn’t provide the necessary data or resources to the other, it creates challenges.
For instance, if a report requires data from another employee who doesn’t deliver it on time, the report can’t be completed.
In another scenario, if the financial department doesn’t provide money to an employee who was asked to buy supplies for the office, the necessary supplies will not be purchased. Similarly, if the person responsible for buying supplies is overloaded and doesn’t have time to go buy them, there will be no new supplies for the employees.
5. Identify Other Possible Reasons
There could be other reasons for which an employee doesn’t have the expected results. By discussing with the employee, you’ll find their personal reasons, and you will be able to take appropriate actions accordingly.
Some employees may not do certain tasks for various reasons, such as: they don’t like those tasks, they don’t consider them important, they are overloaded, they may not have received recognition for those tasks in the past, the rewards may not be attractive to them, they are distracted by personal issues, and so on.
Key Points:
1. Communicate Again Your Expectations And Verify If These Were Understood
2. Check If They Have Objections Related To What Is Expected From Them
3. Asses Whether The Employee Has The Necessary Competencies To Complete Those Tasks
4. Determine If They Have The Required Resources To Fulfil The Expectations
5. Identify Other Possible Reasons
Let me know what are your thoughts about this blog post. If you have questions I’ll be happy to answer them at: daniela.tancau@improvework.ro
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