There is a movement in the business world, in that many large companies have recognized that the frontline employees are the most important asset to the company. But what is being done about it? It sounds good when mentioned in the required quarterly company meeting, however, in many cases, companies are doing very little to support these employees. Instead of having managers that respect unique talents and implement human-based values, these most valued employees are given under-trained, unsupported managers that most often lack leadership skills.

I have actually sat in company meetings and was told that all the employees should manage themselves, that their supervisors should not have to acknowledge or encourage us, that we should be more Self-Managed. They had said that since we were so valued to the company, we had a big responsibility to perform at a higher level by ourselves. Hearing this made my stomach hurt, and I vowed to never go to any of these required company meetings again.

Hearing that only gave me one more reason to not care about my job, and to try to just be grateful that I had one at all. As it turns out, I was not alone. There are a few myths that big companies operate under, one of which includes the very same one that I had just described in my own experience.

Myth # 1: Employees can and should run themselves.
Though it is incredible to see employees doing a great job individually and as a team with little or no supervision, in a short amount of time a team will break down without supervision and attention.

I have watched my entire team of co-workers leave one at time until I was the only individual left. I was not the only one that could manage my workload, however, I was the only one that did it with very little supervision, and was more afraid to be out of work than to continue to feel alienated, undermined, and even laughed at. The misery that this self-managed  expectation created went beyond having a few bad days, it destroyed my ability to function at the high-capacity that was expected of me, and it left me believing that every workplace would be the same, so there was no reason to look for a different job.

There is a difference between being skilled in self-management as an individual vs. being an individual employee that is left to self-manage their workload and position in his/her team. Being self-managed is a wonderful, personal skill; however, it is not a replacement for being supported by an effective leader.

As employees, we want to be encouraged, given direction with a purpose, and be made to feel like we are an important part of the team. Being expected to “Self-Manage” this leadership ourselves only alienates us as employees, especially those talented individuals that do have well developed self-management skills.

Not everyone is skilled in self-management, but those who are and do not receive the leadership they need may find themselves sitting on the sidelines with good work going unacknowledged by his/her supervisor. Given time and a few horror stories about the boss, or just plain being yelled at by the boss in front of the team, the sidelines will become more crowded, with fewer and fewer players in the field, until eventually they leave the game, the team, the company. This is what we call disengagement.

The players of the game are eager to do a good job, they are supported by their manager, and perform better when they are able to take risks and be involved in the bigger picture or team goal. The players are engaged employees, and their managers lead them, encourage them, and even fight for them when necessary.

As employees, we really do want to be in the game so to speak. We want to know what is expected of us, that we can work with our teams to get our jobs done, and done well. We want to be acknowledged, challenged, and supported. We want to be lead.

So can we dispel this myth? Can we change the way we manage employees, and train their managers?

The answer is YES.

There are many different leadership seminars and even one-time workshops available, however, there is a program that trains managers into leaders, and then coaches them individually to implement new skills and make necessary changes. This program designed specifically for these managers, to transform front line managers into compassionate, effective leaders over a year’s time.

Keeping our frontline or customer-facing employees engaged keeps the company running, and keeps people gainfully employed. It is time to change the way we manage and lead these employees, and that begins with changing the way we train their managers.

From the Front Management™ Training Program

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Employees who directly interact with customers are the most important part of your company or business. These front line employees provide the “first impression”. And we all know that you typically don’t get a second chance to make a first impression. What is being communicated by your front line? A front line employee can:

Build a relationship or destroy one

Actively listen or act like they are listening

Genuinely care or care less

Meet a need or deepen a need

Draw a smile or draw a frown

Lift a spirit or kill a spirit

Make a sale or kill a sale

Keep customers coming back or keep them from coming back

If you take care of your front line, they will take care of your customers. If you trust, value, and respect your employees they will respect and value the customer. As an employer you are placing all of your trust on your front line. Have you given them the tools to be successful?

1.       Are they educated about up-to-date policies, procedures, regulations?

2.       Are changes communicated all the way down before chaos sets in?

3.       Are employees empowered to make decisions?

4.       Do employees receive feedback regularly?

5.       Are obstacles to success removed immediately once informed?

6.       Do your employees know you care?

7.       Do you make their day so they can make the customer’s day?

If you are having problems with customer service or retention of customers, start here! Most likely there is something missing within the front line. When was the last time you invested in your front line employees, or assessed the existing level of employee engagement? Ignoring the front line can lead to burn out, mediocrity and poor customer service.

The From the Front Management™ Training Program is the key needed to unlock the potential of your front line managers and increase your level of customer satisfaction and retention. What makes our program different? We provide 6-months of training/coaching on-site at your place of business. We ensure that the techniques are not only learned but implemented. After the initial 6 months, we provide an additional 6 months of assistance. We ensure theories and principles are implemented before ending the program. Check us out at http://fromthefrontmanagement.com/ffm-coaches/ and give us a call! We would love to have a conversation!

The words “employee engagement” are being used (or possibly over-used) in recent discussions in the business community regarding employee attitudes and performance in the workplace. A word or phrase repeated often enough becomes the ” buzz word” of the moment. What happens next is that the word or phrase loses value and we feel justified in ignoring it. In fact, we may even feel that we should ignore it on principal. This phenomenon interests me because if there is something that is being constantly repeated there just may be a problem or concern that needs our attention.

In business we have discussions on topics like productivity, efficiency, workflow, and incentives. Are these now going to be called buzz words that no longer need attention? Of course not, because we all recognize that these elements are an important part of doing business and need to be talked about. Exactly. We need to give our attention to correcting problems along the way and keeping things on track.

So we get to the words” employee engagement” that are being used to describe a very real and current business concern and incredibly it’s labeled as a buzz word enabling us all to just move on by. Nothing needs to be addressed here. I say call it anything you want, decreased employee involvement, or decreased discretionary effort, maybe lack of motivation, employees acting like they don’t care, dissatisfied employees, employees wanting to leave for a new job, feeling like they don’t matter to the company, employees tolerating their circumstances, or whatever you want to think up. Did the underlying concept change? No. We still have a problem.

It is clear that when a situation, term, concern, or problem is talked about repeatedly in different industries and countries, there is an issue that needs attention. There are many that have discussed this subject both positively and negatively. Business forums like Gallop, Forbes, and others have brought attention to employee engagement. Why? Because we are losing millions. Many, but not enough, realize that the front line is the key to change but haven’t yet figured out what to do. And then there are those who still think we don’t need to do anything. After all, if the front line employees are disengaged they need to fix themselves, right?

Something just doesn’t make sense, as in BIG PROBLEM, no ready solution; it’s a buzz word anyway so let’s ignore it.

When an issue is getting so much attention the logical response in my mind is to go after solutions immediately. But if we keep doing the same things we have been doing to address this we all know the outcome we can expect. Perhaps it’s time to get back to basics, to the critical but unquantifiable elements in the relationship between management and employees. Graphs, statistics, metrics and all that stuff are not going to get it done this time. We need to look at the human factor. This is the area that can cause upper management to tremble, but the company that has the courage and foresight to understand that we can’t create exceptional human performance by deleting the humanity from the workforce is a company that will overcome this problem and reap the rewards.

How can this get done? Recognize and acknowledge that the frontline employees are the prime movers. Unless they feel (human factor) energized (engaged) the business can expect to be, at best, mediocre. The frontline manager gets this done, but not any frontline manager. It takes a frontline manager trained in the coaching aspects that empower this manager. Only the empowered frontline manager will get exceptional results. Empowered to do what? Empowered to give attention to the frontline employees in meaningful ways (human) that energize and engage them. It takes a manager that is supported while supporting the employees. And a manager empowered to put emphasis on the relationship between manager and employee. This starts the critical energy exchange that some are referring to as “employee engagement”. Another word for this is “success”.

http://fromthefrontmanagement.com/individual-coaching/

There’s an interesting thing that happens with humans once they know a job or task and they feel they know it well.They start to get bored or take it for granted. Whereas initially there is a challenge to learn the job, eventually it becomes second nature. Maybe humans are wired that way so we keep going after new ways and new sights. Whatever the reason, as the job gets commonplace and boredom sets in, people will find different ways to fill the time. They still do the job, but it no longer requires the intense focus it did during the learning phase, and it takes less time than it once did. So now they look for other things to fill the time.

It is interesting to watch a group of people that are becoming bored or things are just status quo even for a couple of days. The work has probably slowed somewhat so the pace of work has become less. Without intervening, just observe what occurs. Some employees will sit around making comments about how they are so bored, while others will walk around the complex and talk to anyone who will listen. Some will start to clean up the office even to the point of sweeping and dusting. Some will start to rewrite paperwork to make it look neater in their minds, and some will ask for something to do

Most of the time people do not like just sitting around. It doesn’t feel so great to be unproductive and the time goes very slowly. However, handing out non-relative tasks is not a good idea because employees will see and resent this if the work is not productive in some way.

Even when work does not slow down it is the same job in the same way Every day and this becomes boring or perhaps it is too familiar. The more thinking that is taken away from employees the faster boredom grows. It isn’t that the job is not liked or even enjoyed, it is more that there is no challenge.

The ramifications of this are that before a manager knows it people are leaving and saying they got a new job. Or even though people have stayed and are still a part of the team the enthusiasm seems to drop along with drops in energy. Some of this can be seen in a change in body language as compared to when the employee started. The excitement in starting a day seems to get less and less. The walking paces are slower, there’s a kind of hanging around and nothing seems crisp. The workplace has become too comfortable and too well known.

The regret may simply be that the team and the people on that team have never gone after and reached their potential. The regret might be that the team is sluggish. The regret may be that the team never went for becoming more. It could be that the team has settled for getting the job done in a very average and common way. The regret might be that the team could have achieved everything and yet fell short.

Probably though, things have become commonplace. If boredom is seeping in it is because it has not been looked at or people have become too accustomed and a little blinded. Status quo is not the way to achieve greatness.  Risking and trying what has not been done before is the way to go to the next level.

Are there relationships between employees and their frontline manager? Does this relationship matter? The answer of course is, there are relationships and whether they are good or bad relationships they matter a lot. Whether there are good relationships or bad relationships depends on management and the attitude of all involved.

The manager-employee relationship has a critical impact on performance. So why do companies often neglect to emphasize or provide training to help managers build this important connection?  Companies that don’t put emphasis on the importance of this relationship with frontline managers, or provide the necessary training, will eventually pay the price via the loss of good employees or reductions in performance.

Instead of a boss/employee relationship that is indicated by titles that companies use, should  instead be a developing/coaching relationship.  Employees are very aware of who the boss is and do not usually need to be reminded.  Employees want to do well and will do what is asked if the goals are understood. This is an important part of the frontline manager.  This manager needs to make sure goals are clear and concise.

As a manager make sure employees are aware that you have their best interest in mind along with the best interest of the company. This is done in several ways.

1.       One good way to do that is to inspire them by their surroundings. The first thing is you want to make sure you have proper equipment used in the utilization of their work. So you surround their work space with a quality environment that enhances productivity.

2.       Another way to do this is to put posters on the walls that are pleasant in the eye but not overpowering. They should have words of inspiration that show them you care about them and you want them to care about each other. You must always want to promote teamwork.

3.        Seminars are also a good way to do this because in seminars not only do they learn what they already know – they learn how to utilize new examples and fun ways to remember what they already know, which makes it easier for them as they are on the work floor and facing the stresses of any job.

4.        Humor is always something that is welcome and needed in the workplace, be it well focused. Have some fun.  Fun promotes a bond. It’s a good practice to allow laughter .

5.        Managers need to make sure that employees are properly trained and have all the resources they need to do the job well.

Management wants to keep their eyes open to see if and when stress arrives in employees. When it does, it’s very important to nip it in the bud. You do this kindly, professionally and pleasantly. This is the time to actively listen and help the employee correct the issue.

As an employee it  is important for you to make sure you are as accurate as possible in your work. Hold in high esteem the job that you have.  This and everything you do and say is your reputation. As well you need to appreciate your manager and all the responsibilities of this position.  The frontline manager is part of the team.

The point is this is far greater than, though important, reports and tasks.  With a good relationship the activities of the day will get completely and completely more smoothly.  It is how the employees are treated and supported.  It is also how the team functions.  A team with a great coach wants to succeed and give extra effort.  A team that is upset with the boss will slow down or have problems whether with attitude or performance.

Other than the employee/customer relationship this relationship, the frontline manager/employee relationship, is the next most important relationship of any company.

Check out:   http://fromthefrontmanagement.com/individual-coaching/

So let’s say there is a company that has all the engaged employees they could want. Things move along smoothly and the employee smile as they take care of each transaction and view the customers as incredibly important. So no downsides to this, right?

But there could be if this is not maintained. Engaged employees can quickly become disengaged if they feel taken advantage of or that management does not care. If they feel that more is placed on them constantly because they are doing so well which now is becoming hard to get done and no one seems to notice there can be frustration. If the employees feel they do not have support they can and usually will begin to disengage. This is a defensive reaction in response to feeling they are without a foundation.

Even model employees can ‘give up’ if they sense that they’re being asked to do more and more, and with fewer resources, or they feel they are asked to do more than others in the same job. They can begin to exhibit a number of undesirable attitudes and behaviors. Some of these are listed here.
• a decline in helping behavior
• increased anger at supervisors
• a view that expectations are too much;
• additional stress and frustrations
• slowing down in productivity
• Less smiles
• Watching the clock
• More excuses happening
• Bringing up the performance of others as less or getting away with things

Engaged employees can easily become disengaged if not managed properly or if not given attention and support from the manager that maintains the team. Maintenance of a team isn’t talked about a lot but it is critical in having engaged employees. Like a sports team a company has skilled players and cannot take these players for granted.
Companies need to realize that once-engaged employees who are now disengaged can cause more harm to a company than those who were never engaged. The reason is these employees are angry because they want it the way it was. They want it to go back to everyone being pleased and the team succeeding. But mostly the anger comes from the feeling that they care more than management and more than the company as a whole. Employees get upset when they think people are not kept accountable and that includes management.

In the end if there are engaged employees that are turned into disengaged employees it will be worse because of the frustrations, hurt, and anger that also now has to be dealt with.

FFMTP

First we will get the pay out of the way. Though employees should be paid market value because this is simply fair, pay is not a long term motivator but it certainly can be demotivating. The pay scale should be understood by employees along with market values with the ability to ask for a raise should a job change occur. It should be noted that employees are concerned with pay compression as part of this. Though it is normally not allowed to discuss pay in the work place, it does occur and the companies need to be aware of long term and new hires getting close in pay. The employee impression that new hires are paid more, make more quicker, or are close in pay after years of service of longer term employees  often has some truth if compression is not watched.

A lot of management is a perception. This often comes about when employees feel that they cannot make decisions but instead just follow orders from the boss. This has also been talked about how managers micro-manage. The employee feels like they are watched at all times. Though there are times to watch and keep employees accountable, it is also beneficial to have employees make decisions and given freedom to do their jobs.

Availability of managers is talked about when employees feel they can never seem to find a manger when needed or that the manager does not listen or have time. Employees want to be able to speak face to face at least some of the time. The employee can also feel that though a manager is available, or has time, the manager is unapproachable. There is a feeling that the manager is bothered by the interruption. The message here is that the employee is not important.

Employees like to work in an organized and clean facility. Whether you hear this or not the employees will notice if the facility is clean. The customers will too. But the employees will take this as a sign that the company does not care how it looks.

Employees want to be treated fairly. They want to know the manager looks at each employee the same in regards to work. Even when employees make mistakes, and maybe especially, the employees want to know that the correction will be the same for all.

So all of this is saying that employees want to be treated with respect and feel that it is recognized by management that they have importance and value.  Not having time, not listening, not being available can easily give the impression that employees don’t matter.  Once employees have the perception that managers don’t care the employees will start to disengage and not care.   It is their reaction to a situation they don’t like.

Most, if not all businesses are aware that goals are needed to keep things on track. There are meetings, planning, plans written and communication given on what to work towards. Often however this is completely about the company and what the employees need to accomplish. Even with plans companies or employees may get into ruts. The days are the same, the work is getting done, and there doesn’t seem too much out of the ordinary. People seem to relax in these situations and time passes. It seems like a pattern isformed that everyone kind of falls into.

We often recognize when sports teams and athletes get in a rut. No one can figure out why or pinpoint the reason and usually we are content to wait, at least for a while, for the person or team to come out of it. Sometimes a leader will mix things up to light the fire back up. Developing new and innovative ideas is important to keeping things moving.

Though people like to feel comfortable in a workplace, too much comfort has drawbacks. There is little to look forward to as people go to work.

Team members want to matter. Soliciting ideas and trying new things helps to keep the thinking alive and vibrant. A workplace that is too routine makes employees dull. They want to know they are working towards the future.

A manager also wants to know this. So having and mentoring a team towards success helps that manager reach personal goals. Each individualshould be working towards the goals that will make work and life better. It is having the plan that will accomplish this as other members are also helped in achieving their goals. Individual goals and team goals all headed for the success each wants.

Most, if not all businesses are aware that goals are needed to keep things on track. There are meetings, planning, plans written and communication given on what to work towards. Often however this is completely about the company and what the employees need to accomplish. Even with plans companies or employees may get into ruts. The days are the same, the work is getting done, and there doesn’t seem too much out of the ordinary. People seem to relax in these situations and time passes. It seems like a pattern is formed that everyone kind of falls into. We often recognize when sports teams and athletes get in a rut.

No one can figure out why or pinpoint the reason and usually we are content to wait, at least for a while, for the person or team to come out of it. Sometimes a leader will mix things up to light the fire back up. Developing new and innovative ideas is important to keeping things moving. Though people like to feel comfortable in a workplace, too much comfort has drawbacks. There is little to look forward to as people go to work. Team members want to matter. Soliciting ideas and trying new things helps to keep the thinking alive and vibrant.

A workplace that is too routine makes employees dull. They want to know they are working towards the future. A manager also wants to know this. So having and mentoring a team towards success helps that manager reach personal goals. Each individual should be working towards the goals that will make work and life better. It is having the plan that will accomplish this as other members are also helped in achieving their goals. Individual goals and team goals all headed for the success each wants.

Vain    There is a problem when a person cannot see another’s perspective.   Its bad enough is someone thinks he or she looks better than everyone else.  When that person, especially in a boss situation, makes the employees feel like they are inferior to the boss, there will be problems.  Most of the time it will be reverse disregarding.  The boss disregards the employees and the employees do the same.

Chaotic. Not good when a boss is hysterically disorganized. Examples, yes it really happened, calling meetings and forgetting to come.  When attending a meeting, and meandering around some idea of an agenda. A manager that is not interested in the dialogue and it became apparent that the boss wasted everyone’s time with not much if anything getting accomplished.

Exhibitionist. Boss that is loud. He either had no sense of just how loud he was — or he wanted us all to hear every phone call he made. Of course, while he was talking it was impossible for anyone else to get any work done. That many of these calls were personal didn’t help.

Indecisive. A boss that was always certain he was right — until he changed his mind, when he became right again. Every day was a different scenario. The fact that we all had to act on his decisions — and often undo yesterday’s work to fit in with today’s agenda — never seemed to bother him. What drove these changes of mind was never explicit or convincing.

Dishonest.  This is a big one.  A boss that avoids answering questions.  A boss that tells actual lies thinking the employees won’t find out.  A boss that talks about other employees when none of that information should be shared with other employees.  A manager that states things that are not true because the boss does not know the rules and procedures.

So what do you do when around a bad boss?

Wherever you are you have to remember that what you do is about your reputation.  People will notice your reactions and way of being along with the work you do.

1. Deliver the best project and work you can. Make sure you can be proud of what you do.

2. Identify areas for personal development. Extend your contacts, develop some area of expertise.  This has to do about you and has nothing to do with the boss.

3. Don’t attack. It’s tempting, when working for bad bosses, to attack them or to demonstrate in public how useless they are. Don’t wreck your reputation trying to wreck his.

4. Move on.   Working for a bad boss can be and probably is demoralizing, frustrating, and maddening. Get away as soon as you can.

Take care of you.  Do a great job.  People will notice the work you do other than your boss.  Go home being proud.  Keep a check on what you can tolerate and if necessary get a new more rewarding job.  People leave bosses at times.  It’s ok to transfer, find a new job, or to simply decide that a bad boss won’t stop your great work.