*Maximizing Employee Potential
Sometimes, it seemed to me, that handling employees was one of the hardest parts of running my business. Trying to help employees learn all they needed to know was a time consuming and occasionally, a frustrating task.
I recently read a book entitled ” “. The authors posed an interesting perspective (one I never considered) on how to get the most from your employees. Instead of trying to “fix” employees and attempting to teach them a slew of new skills, we can capitalize of their strengths. In other words, we can let our employees excel in those areas where they’ve already demonstrated skills and a high level of interest.
Take a careful look at your employees, and how they spend their time each day. For example, you may have one employee who loves to talk. In fact, you wish she’d talk a little less and work a little more! Why not use that person in your customer service department. Put her to work answering the phone and helping walk-in customers if you have a store-front. Let her use her personality strengths and skills to sell your products!
You may have noticed that one of your employees keeps a notebook and is constantly writing notes and reminders for herself about her personal projects. This person may be good at attending to details. Why not try her out at helping with the details of managing your inventory. Or let the employee who can add up figures in her mind help you at the cash register or with other bookkeeping activities.
Talk to your employees about their interests. Watch them at work and get a sense of the tasks they perform easily and those that they avoid. Try to capitalize on their strengths and interests and they’ll do a better job for you.
2 comments August 21st, 2007
