Employee Development
4 Tips for Getting It Right:
Start with yourself
Telling others to improve is a no-sweat, but actually doing it is easier said than done. Marshall Goldsmith told it best when he said, “To develop others, start with yourself.” To make others listen to your advice, you first need to practice what you preach. After all, you don’t want to end up as a hypocrite in the workplace.
Being the head of the group, you need to lead by example. Show your employees that you highly value development by being the quintessential of it. In that way, they will see you as a genuine mentor, knowing that you’re always concerned about what’s best for them and the business.
Once they see the perks from your development, they will be more motivated to follow your footsteps. Moreover, you can use the skills you’ve acquired to better manage your employees.
Respectfully discuss it with them
Your employees need to understand that discussing development with them is not your devious way to expose their weaknesses. This is why you need to lay the groundwork of trust and mutual respect. Let them know at the sit-down that you genuinely care for them as an individual and that their growth is your top concern.
However, some may feel that development is optional. For others, they might not take it seriously. This is where accountability should take place. Help them to see that you’re invested in their success and that their talents, when enhanced, can lift the company to greater heights. This will inspire them to take ownership of the process and recognize the value of their growth.
Insert development opportunities in weekly meetings
Employee development has been so overlooked that it only becomes the crux of the matter during annual reviews. Don’t let another year slip away without accomplishing anything for your team! Make it a point to engage development regularly. You can do this by improving your weekly meetings.
Analyze your weekly agenda. Look for ways on how you can insert development. For instance, after each meeting, ask questions to draw out improvement. You can use questions like, “What skills would you most like to improve on?” or “What can I do to help you improve?” Incorporating development in weekly meetings creates a habit of striving to be a better version of themselves every day.
Learn to delegate tasks
Managers are often notorious for juggling a lot of things at once. But as the business gets busy, you have to accept the fact that you’re not a superhero. You can’t do it all. But what you can do is to lighten your load by finding a helping hand, or even better, a set of hands. Delegating tasks and responsibilities not only saves you more time but also helps your employees to develop their skills. No doubt, it’s definitely a win-win.
Of course, delegating responsibilities can be a challenge at first. Most of the time, managers feel skeptical to hand over tasks to other employees. A big reason why is that they’re worried that things won’t be handled the same way. Much worse, they may feel that they just might end up sabotaging the work.
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