Recruitment and managing employee performance are such important roles in business but due to business pressure many small businesses are not able to have a qualified specialist on staff. This task is generally performed by the proprietor, the business manager or the administration coordinator who must dedicate time to recruiting in addition to their regular tasks. The consequences of this laissez-faire type of recruiting can be extremely costly.
As human beings we are pre-programmed with a preference to take the line of least resistance, the easy option. In the case of employee recruitment, it has never been more costly to do this. Dedicating time to recruiting the right person can save you thousands of dollars.
The shortage of available staff has made it difficult to recruit high quality staff. Whilst it is likely that more people will soon become available in the labour market it is important to point out that the talented ones will still be few and far between as employers look to secure them for the challenges ahead.
It is important to commit to having the right people in your business, not only in your business but more importantly in the right position in your business. When recruiting, change your focus to recruit the person who has a specific talent that is relevant to the position you want to fill and has a demonstrated track record of success.
Talent is one of three components that influence an individual’s performance. The other two factors are skills and knowledge. While skills and knowledge are important, talent is generally the X-factor that makes one employee excel in comparison to another employee who has a similar skill and knowledge base.
Talent relates to those abstract skills such as attitude, self motivation, how they cope with stress, how they manage and process information and my personal favourite, how they solve problems. Talent is as unique to a position as it is to an individual. It is important to realise when preparing to recruit for a position that you have a good understanding of what talents will succeed not only in the particular position but also within the environment in which that talent will be used. Equally important is that the candidate can demonstrate a passionate self belief in their skills and a proven track record of producing desired results.
When it come to recruiting and managing talented performers take the following tips on board, take the time to talk to them, invest in them, learn from them and grow with them. This will be a win –win for everyone, for the business, the performer and your team.
Bling Bling is able to help small business with all their recruitment and performance management needs.
In closing Richard Branson says, “find good people and set them free”.
2 Comments
My bosses are knowledgeable guys who really know their business but their people skills are terrible. The entire management group are control freaks and don’t let people “be free”, they dictate how they want every job done. After a while you feel like you just don’t have any influence over your job. The end result is that we have about half our staff leave every year. This is really disruptive to everyone who is left behind. Even more so when staff are made redundant as they were last month, the first time people were made redundant.
Hi Brett,
The situation you speak of can be quite difficult. But I believe too that people shouldn’t feel that they can’t approach their managers to discuss issues such as this.
Communication is an integral part of any type of partnership, including business. Even as a ‘normal’ employee, staff should see themselves as part of this business partnership. And if one person leads, this might help foster better relatioships with others, including your managers.
If you haven’t tried already, try disscusing your issues with your management, but in a way that they will appreciate and not be threatened by. Tactfully bring up the smothering effect their style has and the impact on staff.
Micro managers can be difficult and of course what I’ve suggested doesn’t always work, but is certainly worth trying…