Managing PerformancePresented by:Jim Rogers, Executive Coach & David R. Carothers, CIC, CRM

Recruiting and Hiring

• Know what to look for during an interview by reviewing the characteristics/competencies that are expected of your team members.

• Utilize behavioral questions during interviews. This will allow you to learn how candidates have handled situations in the past and will also help you predict how they will handle similar situations in the future.

• Use the same questions for all candidates so you can compare answers after the interviews

• Make hiring selections by including others in the interview process. Better selections are made when there are multiple interviews conducted.

• Take notes during the interview process. This will help you rate the candidates later.

Recruiting and Hiring

• Allow time for candidates to interview you. This will give them an opportunity to get their questions answered about the company. Any hiring decision needs to be a good fit for all parties.

• Think about what makes your organization unique and a great place to work. Be prepared to sell talented candidates on your company.

• Actively participate in the orientation of new team members.

• Volunteer to recruit at Universities

• Keep a list of people that you have hired. Periodically review it. What has happened to them since they were hired? What can you learn from your good hires as well as your bad hires?

Coaching

• Interview your supervisor as well as your peers and find out what works for them.

• Interview team members about how you can help them develop their job skills and improve their performance.

• Develop a questionnaire to identify possible coaching needs of team members that you lead.– Ask them to list job tasks and problems for which they would like to receive additional coaching– Ask them to identify areas that are not part of their current jobs but in which they have an interest in

receiving additional instruction.– Consider team members’ interests as well as the needs of individuals and the group in determining

coaching priorities.

Coaching• Identify each team member’s strengths and developmental needs.

– Discuss these with them in the context of their short term and long term goals.

– Work with them to draft a development plan– Follow up regularly, recognizing accomplishments and providing

assistance

• Look two levels ahead for your team members. – What skills are needed at that level?– How can you incorporate those skills into their development plans?

• Seek feedback from your peers– What do they see that you do not?– Incorporate their observations in assessing your team members.

Training

• Train others. One of the best ways to hone your own skills is to teach them to someone else.

• Conduct orientation for new team members.

• Have team meetings and make time for team members to share their successes and failures so everyone can learn from each other.

• Develop a training session for a current topic or issue within the company. Deliver the session and get feedback from the team.

• When training others, pay attention to your trainee’s reactions. What works for you as a trainer? Keep a list of these items.

• Develop peer trainers within the company. Meet with them often to give feedback on their progress and results.

Training• Identify specific training needs for your team and tap both

internal and external resources to aid them.

• Create benchmarks with other areas of the company and outside of the company to see what types of developmental experiences team members get.

• Rotate people throughout key positions to develop their general management capabilities. When making the assignments, consider the following:

– Does this person often perform the same tasks repeatedly or often take on new responsibilities?

– Have I given this person opportunities to try new things and develop or enhance his/her skills?

– Does this person indicate a desire for more challenging assignments?

– Does this person have the potential to handle more challenging work? If so, what skills, resources or experiences would help him/her tap this potential?

Mentoring

• Create planned and spontaneous mentoring programs within your company.

• Reflect on people who have mentored you. – What did they do that was effective? – What behavior could you model after them?– What changes would you make?– Seek out someone in the organization to share your skills with.

• Plan your mentoring to include a wide base of team members.

• Benchmark other companies to find out what they are doing for mentoring

• Encourage team members to have multiple mentors. No perfect mentor exists. Look for different mentors to develop different skill sets.

• Pass on good books or articles to your mentee that you’ve read and ask them to pass it on to another team member after they have read it.

Mentoring

• Involve your mentee as a consultant to you on one of your key priorities or goals.

• Walk through the mentee’s performance reviews with them after the midyear and annual.

• Diversify mentorship. Have your entire team be responsible for a mentee’s development.

• Plan to spend 1 to 3 hours per month mentoring, for at least 12 months with a mentee.

Giving Feedback

• Identify mechanisms that will help you ensure that you give feedback more regularly.– Ex. Challenge yourself to praise each member of your staff at least once a

week. Keep track of your successes with notes to each person’s status file. (An added benefit of this technique is an easier time writing performance reviews).

• Create an environment where people aren’t in constant fear of criticism.– Criticize only when it really counts– Monitor what you are criticizing for a week– Look for the trivial stuff and work to eliminate these

• Stop yourself from jumping to conclusions. – Gather all the facts before you criticize.– Mistakes may be due to factors outside the team member’s control.

Giving Feedback

• Analyze your reasons for giving negative feedback.– Ask yourself “Is my way significantly better or just different?”– If it’s just different, bite your tongue. – Keep an open mind to alternative approaches.

• Consider the sensitivity level of team members before giving constructive feedback.

– List your staff members and rate their sensitivity– Tailor your feedback for each based on the rating.

• Make sure your temper is under control before you give feedback.– Monitory the time you explode inappropriately and the times

you deliver constructive feedback in a controlled and rational way.

• Seek out a private place to deliver negative feedback.

• Allow team members to present their side of the problem; be careful not to lecture.

Giving Feedback

• Have the team member paraphrase the feedback you gave to show their level of understanding.

• When you’ve given constructive criticism to someone, be sure to get back to the person. Check to see how they’re doing.

Recognition

• Analyze your direct reports and what they value.– What do they bring to the team?– How are they motivated?– Use this when dealing with your team members in

conflict or team building activities.

• Write personal notes of thank-yous for special efforts and accomplishments. NOT EMAIL!

• Acknowledge and personally tell one good thing about at least one team member daily. Track this on a calendar.

• Take one team member to lunch or breakfast monthly.

• Reward team accomplishments by letting the whole team know about the accomplishment.

Recognition

• Non-monetary ways to compensate team members. (often more powerful than $)

– Showing respect– Empowering them– Saying “thank you”– Create your own list and then audit your behavior

against that list.

• Ask your team members to make a list of all of the work they are proud of and then talk about it.

• Ask for people’s opinions one-on-one on key issues.

• Know what aspects of the job excite each team member; provide them with opportunities to pursue those activities.

Motivating Others• Write a personal Vision statement. Share it with your peers, team and

family.

• Recognize that team members have diverse motivational patterns.– These variations should be taken into account whenever possible.– List what motivates them, what turns them off, what outside

factors influence the way they lead or behave.– Use this information to motivate these team members.

• When delegating, communicate the reason for assigning the task to the team member.

– Explain how the task fits into the overall project or how it relates to the achievement of a larger goal.

– Help team members to understand how their actions affect the overall performance of the company.

• When possible, delegate tasks that allow team members to utilize their strengths rather than their weaknesses.

– They will usually be more motivated to work at tasks for which they feel competent.

Motivating Others

• Commend team members when they do a good job. Tell them how the work they do contributes to the company’s overall goals.

• Compliment up. – If someone does a good job, make sure that your boss knows about

it. If they report to someone else, make sure that person knows.

• Recognize that achievement, self-satisfaction, responsibility and prestige are important motivators. Develop a motivating work climate.

– Show your willingness to help when needed.– Encourage team members to ask other team members for advice

and help. – Encourage team participation and cooperation.– Solicit team members’ ideas on problems. Carefully evaluate their

input. Inform team members of your final decisions on problems and why you made these decisions.

– Take time to listen to the satisfactions and concerns of your team members on a one-on-one basis.

What about me?

• Evaluate yourself

• Immerse yourself in continuing education

• Read non-fiction books on management and leadership. We have created a list of suggested reading.

• Ask for feedback from your supervisor.

• Ask for feedback from your team. Stop, Start Continue– What should I stop?– What should I start?– What should I continue?