Growing in a tough economy

Growing in a tough economy: What the best companies do to get results in difficult times.
I participated yesterday in a very interesting webinar on how companies are doing now in the challenging times we are all living in.
In a study conducted by Robert Nelson, PhD, he found that 48% of all respondents said that their job was too stressful.
25% said it was their number one job stressor.
60% said they feel pressure to work too much or more than they should.
56% said they were somewhat or completely dissatisfied
85% said they felt overworked and underappreciated.
74% said that their productivity had dropped and 64% said that the productivity of their co workers has also dropped.
It is estimated that lost productivity costs the United States around 4.4 billion dollars a day.
So, there are many things that entrepreneurs or executives can’t control, but there are many that they can control. Although world events or economic matters are out of our control to a certain extent, the way we treat our employees, definitely falls under the area of things we can control.
There are many studies around that analyze what factors influence employee productivity or lack of productivity. Most agree that the number one factor that influences productivity in a company is the relationship between the boss and the subordinate.
What do most companies do? They promote the top salesperson to be the sales manager and usually what happens is that they lose a great sales person and get a lousy manager.
They promote the best machine operator and make him or her manager and that person might or might not have the skills, talent or personality to be a manager.
What is worst is that once the person has been promoted, he or she usually is not trained on how to be a manager. Executives, I think, sometimes assume that management is something you learn by yourself, sort of a trial and error situation, and sometimes it works, but boy, is that expensive.
Another important principle is that you get what you reward. And by reward I don’t mean more money. Yes, sometimes more money does motivate, but motivation at work is much more than money.
Employees need to be recognized, acknowledge and appreciated for their achievements, and if they are, they will produce even more.
Recognition is a way to create commitment and committed employees deliver 57% more effort than uncommitted employees.
In today’s uncertain world, leaders must create a clear and compelling direction, clear goals and expectations that are communicated on a timely basis and using the right means of communications.
To have open and clear communications with your employees is rated as a top priority by 95% of all employees.
If you have this type of communication in your company, you are able to involve employees and encourage initiative and 92% of all employees want to be asked for their opinions and their ideas.
They also want to have a greater say on how they do their jobs. They are on the front lines, day in and day out, they are in contact with clients, so they should be able to have some very good ideas on how better to do their jobs. Imagine how they feel when they have a manager come in and tell them how to do stuff that they know wouldn’t work if it is done that way.
On the other hand, if the numbers are not there, if the evidence demonstrates that the employee is not performing, then that issue has to be addressed by management and there are very effective ways to do so.
Two other things that world class companies are doing now:
They are focusing on career growth and employee development. Yes, at a time when you would think that development money should be cut back, these companies are working hard in developing their work force so that when the turnaround comes, they have the troops ready to go to battle.
Last but not least, intelligent companies compensate and reward high performance. If someone is producing and bringing in big bucks, hey, it is only fair that their compensation is tied to their results.
Compensation is a right, recognition is a gift. An important part of productivity is giving the gift of recognition to those that deserve it.