Improve Employee Performance

Thursday, July 14, 2005

Drew Stevens, Ph.D., The Results Doctor, http://www.gettingtothefinishline.com

Drew Stevens, Ph.D., The Results Doctor and past president of the American Society for Training & Development (St. Louis Chapter), talks about the importance of optimizing employee performance.

Why is improving employee performance important for small business owners?

Stevens: One of the issues that small business owners have is trying to do more with less—less with budgets, less with personnel and less with time. For those entrepreneurs, time is money and the more productive employees and contractors can be, the more profitable a firm will be.

Since we conduct business 24x7x365, we allocate little time for training and even less time to analyze the factors related to performance. However, the optimization of time, talent and resources will save more [money] and increase profits down the road.

Q: How can a small business owner tell that the company's employees are working effectively?

A: An owner simply reviews the body language of the employees. Are they energetic and enthusiastic about their work? Are there fewer administrative mistakes? Are they working well together and with clients? Are they arriving to work on time and with few unexcused absences? All of these illustrate that they are operating efficiently and effectively. On the other hand, if the opposite is true then employees may not be working effectively and that needs to be remedied right away.

Q: What has the most impact on employee performance?

A: I find several issues that affect performance. First, and of utmost importance, is the lack of upper level management and prioritization—a lack of focus and understanding. This can cause confusion with tasks, dissension within the staff and frustration with clients.

The way to set the course is by informing employees of your vision of the company: why the firm exists, the industry it serves and why clients do business with it. Next, set goals and objectives for tasks, projects, employees and even for the firm overall. When employees understand the direction they need to take, the focus they must have and the reasons why they work on their tasks, they are more apt to do so.

Benefits of these changes should include improved client communications, better collaboration among peers, better communication among employees, glowing testimonials from customers, quite possibly referrals and—the most important—increased profits.

Q: Can you provide examples of how business owners have successfully implemented these methods?

A: I am working with a small chemical company in southern New Jersey. When I initially walked on site, there was infighting among union and nonunion employees, and work was conducted at a frenetic pace with little accountability and limited planning.

Initially, I conducted a needs assessment and developed a personality profile for each of the 165 employees. Understanding how to communicate to employees and hold them accountable provided the foundation for instruction and direction.

Next, I began an in-house institute for management training in time management and supervisory skills. While this is a two-year project and I am currently in the first year, the firm already has seen an increase in productivity by 30 percent, as measured in recent performance reviews, and the profits have now grown by a little more than 3 percent in nine months.

Another example: I previously worked with a small, eight-person company that manufactures rollers for golf course greens. When I arrived there was little direction, no mission and the employees were unaware of their goals.

The first mission was to outline what was wrong and what required change. We developed a corporate mission that everyone took part in developing. Next, we outlined goals, especially for the two field service representatives and, most importantly, the president, and I developed metrics for the sales people to not only measure performance, but also to track issues in the field. By enabling employees to communicate and help develop the process, the employees felt more empowered.

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