5 Sure Fire Ideas to Help Good Employees Become Great Employees

The complexity level of an organization increases as you add employees. A research-proven growth model called The 7 Stages of Growth identifies each stage of business growth, helping a CEO understand how to predict growth. According to this growth model, the level of complexity increases due to just one factor --the addition of people. As you add people to your company, you move into different stages of growth and understanding those challenges helps a CEO stay ahead of their growth curve.

If you have ever managed employees, you understand this complexity. The ability to manage people well is a skill that requires constant attention and diligence. More importantly, it requires training and a genuine desire to help people grow.

As the president of a marketing communications company for 14 years which eventually grew to over 100 employees, those challenges were a part of my world every day.

Today I work with CEOs and their management teams and help them navigate their way through the challenges running a successful business requires. I speak to business audiences all over the country and when I ask what their biggest challenges are the overwhelming response is managing people.

I witness good employees struggling to succeed. I witness good managers struggling to understand their employees. I witness the heartache when a good employee has no other option but to leave and I witness the stress when a good manager throws up their hands in frustration over an employee who won't listen.

I also witness bad employees staying too long and bad managers creating a negative work environment that can erode any success a business has obtained.

So if you manage employees, listen up. Employees are human beings who have some basic needs. When those needs go unattended, the good ones leave and the bad ones stay. Both situations can take a good company down.

Here are five ideas to help you take a good employee and help them become great employees. After all, that's what you want and that's what your employees want.

1. The interview went great. Both you and your newest hire are excited about working together. For the next three months, meet with this new employee every other day and ask these questions: what do you need that you don't have; what don't you know that you need to know; what can I do to help. Stick with it. This conversation will only take 30 minutes max of your time every other day. As a new employee comes on board they are more vulnerable and they need to know you are there to help them.

2. Look for opportunities to work in small group settings with each of your direct reports. If you have technical people and non-technical people, invite two or three from both sides to talk to you about what they do. Provide a setting where each can talk about their strengths and explain their responsibilities. This will go a long way when these two groups come together in a project setting.

3. Meet for 30 minutes every week with each direct report. The purpose is to create a dialogue. This conversation should be about the employee, not a report from them about a project. Ask these three questions: what did you do last week that you were proud of; what would you like to learn next week; what can I do to help you? This forces a discussion deeper than just having your direct reports give you work updates and breaks down the barriers that exist in a manager/employee relationship.

4. Let your employees know what you are thinking. They want to help you succeed. The more you share with them, the more engaged they will be. As their manager, they will be hesitant to let you know they are unsure about something. That will breed mistakes. If you open up to them and let them see you are human, they will be more inclined to open up and let you know when they aren't confident. They will be more willing to ask questions. This will help you avoid mistakes.

5. Find time to tell each of your direct reports what they are doing well every week. You want people to engage? You want your employees to pull the hard duty when necessary and do it with a good attitude? Then take the time to give them positive feedback every week. Not every month. Every week. This will require you as the manager to know what your employees are doing every week. Go back and read #3. If you find the time to give positive feedback, you will feed the ego-side of each of your direct reports. And if you think that's not important and you're a manager, ask yourself this: how would YOU feel if YOUR manager gave you positive feedback every week?

The reality of any business comes down to this. Your people are your business. There is nothing we do as managers that is more challenging than awakening the intelligence that exists in each and every one of our employees. It's there. The question is are you willing to take the time and uncover it?

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