Employing staff that are a great fit for your business can be a challenge, regardless of what industry you’re in. However building a great team is essential for continued (smooth) growth in a business. Having the right team impacts the bottom line more than people realise. Especially when you’re selling labour.
To assist you in building a winning team, here are five points to proven strategies used by PROTRADE United and our clients.
The first challenge most business owners face is the urgency of finding a new employee. If an employee leaves suddenly or you get a surprising influx of work, there will be a natural urge to hire the best of a bad bunch. Use the good times to build relationship with good tradespeople in your industry. Build your network and get to know them before they are employed.
Consider that all the good trades people are currently employed. So, build a brand and reputation in the industry that will attract quality. Make a name for yourself in the industry as an employer of choice; someone that has great working conditions. Please note that great working conditions doesn’t mean the highest pay rate.
Hiring the right team is only half the battle, now you need to manage their performance. Two simple strategies for managing performance, clear position descriptions and clearly defined policies.
Position descriptions are simply an agreement of your expectations and what they are responsible for. Don’t be concerned about the term ‘policies’, this just means a list of expectations about their behaviour. For example, smoking on site, uniforms, drug and alcohol use.
Set clear expectations from the start and you will have foundation for great performance.
Regardless of what position anyone holds in a business, we are all in the business of customer service. It’s important however to train your team on what good customer service means in your business.
Old school sayings like “measure twice cut once” are lessons that effectively manage behaviour. Create your own mantras or values and speak them over and over again until they sink in.
This may sound strange, but it really works. Think about how you want your team to behave, then make a list of mantras to match.
For more information on employing staff , check out our events page for upcoming workshops.
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