The Way Great Leaders Set Employees Up for Success
Posted December 4th, 2017
As a leader, it isn’t just your responsibility to make sure detailed plans and comprehensive policies are in place, but that your employees are set up for success. Often, the concept can feel a bit ambiguous, but it is completely attainable if you make the right moves and set the proper priorities. To help you get started, here are some tips to have you on the path the leadership greatness and team success.
Set Clear Short-Term Goals
In the beginning, most large-scale projects can feel overwhelming, as it can be difficult to visualize each step along the way. By setting definitive short-term objectives, you can give your employees valuable guidance and help them focus on each stage of the project. This makes it easier for your workers to see how their progressing, which can be a powerful source of inspiration, while simultaneously keeping everyone on target.
The same approach can be used for new hires as well. By breaking down their position into a series of short-term goals or milestones, they have a clear way to begin as they acclimate to the role. Choose various deliverables or desired outcomes to serve as objectives, as they typically feel more concrete and tangible. This helps the employee assess their progress at each interval, simplifying the necessary steps between the starting point and long-term success.
Invite an Open Dialog
When you’re structuring a new project or position, you’ll likely spend the majority of the time providing direct instructions versus taking part in a negotiation. But, but being open to a dialog about the timeline or approach, you encourage your employees to take an active role. This can help empower your staff as the interaction promotes providing input and using various skills, like critical-thinking and problem-solving, all of which can be beneficial.
Provide Regular Feedback
Many companies only focus on feedback during formal performance reviews but waiting to share this valuable information can actually be detrimental to your employees’ success. Instead of holding it all back, provide feedback on a regular basis, either based on a calendar-oriented schedule or when certain milestones are reached. You can also offer immediate insight on anything that went particularly well or poorly, as this will give you an opportunity to shape their future actions more quickly.
When you have the discussion, focus on outcomes instead of tasks. This can include a review of the most recent results at a particular milestone as well as plans on how they will move forward to the next.
Feedback conversations don’t have to be lengthy to be effective, so don’t be afraid to keep things targeted and concise as long as you can provide the worker with a sufficient amount of value. By having these conversations regularly, you promote accountability and ensure everyone is moving in the right direction all at once.
If you are interested in learning more or are looking to fill a vacant position, the professionals at Bayside Solutions have the expertise you need to succeed. Contact us to see how our services can help your business today.
