Tips for team management
Little things can make a big difference.
Over the last two weeks, I’ve shared my thoughts on how to make the right hires at the right time to grow your business and how to onboard a new hire. This week, we move on to ongoing management of your team.
As with your onboarding process, your approach to ongoing team management becomes a part of your brand identity and what you’re known for. It provides the opportunity to create your way of working with and getting the most from those individuals on your team, whether there’s one or 10.
Here are some best practices you can use to help you think about how you want to work with your team in the day-to-day and get to your desired outcome… happy team, happy you, and a growing business.
Adopting an ownership model.
I’ve written previously about creating an ownership model in your business. The basic idea is this… you treat every team member as the owner of their area of the business, and you tell them exactly that. “You own the business you’re in.”
As the owner, they’re responsible for service delivery and results for their domain, for their area of expertise. As a business owner, they’re expected to take initiative, try to solve problems, bring new ideas, and push themselves to deliver at a higher level. Just make sure to make these expectations clear, so they are aware of and can deliver on them. This applies no matter the role, and it’s powerful stuff.
Set expectations.
When you bring someone into your business, one of your top priorities is providing the guidance, support, and feedback to make them a great hire.
Start by setting expectations for everything (see Ownership Model above).
And then over-communicate. It’s so easy to think you’ve been clear regarding your overall expectations and specific deliverables, only to find you forgot to share a critical due date or where a deliverable falls in their current list of priorities. It’s helpful to take a minute and put yourself in their shoes. Think about what you’d need to know in order to successfully deliver on the task.
To make this work, it’s helpful to create an environment where questions are encouraged, aka there are no stupid questions. That said, a question that can easily be Googled or ChatGPT’d should not be asked or at least some basic research should be done first (again see Ownership Model above).
Have regular team meetings and 1:1 check-ins.
You want to foster team engagement and productivity by creating opportunities for meaningful discussion and providing ongoing support.
This means having a standing (ideally) weekly meeting with the team and doing 1:1 check-ins (ideally) once a month. If you have one team member, then the weekly meeting can do double duty. Just make sure that one of those meetings also includes a deeper conversation about how things are going from both of your perspectives. And it provides time and space for you to share your feedback and answer any questions the team member has.
If you are having a standing weekly meeting with multiple team members, think about what you want to accomplish:
Pick a day and time each week that you’ll meet
Make attendance mandatory (exceptions include: the individual is on holiday or sick)
Have an agenda that addresses the key aspects of your business you want to cover each week
If possible, collect topics from team members in advance so you have a sense of what’s on their mind ahead of the meeting
Encourage participation from everyone
Once you’re up-and-running with these, you’ll get a sense of which aspects of the meeting would benefit from some refinement. Make those changes and see how it goes. Keep adjusting until the meetings are running like you want them to.
Show you care.
Having a weekly team meeting and monthly 1:1 checkins are a solid start.
Here are some other ideas to add to the mix, if you haven’t already:
Note birthdays and do something to recognize the day and celebrate the person
It does not need to be big/expensive… as they say, it’s the thought that counts
Encourage team members to fully use their PTO (if on payroll) or let your contractors know you expect them to book time off
In either case, work with them on a coverage plan so it’s truly time away from the business
If possible, close your business between Christmas and New Year’s Day
Offer to pay for additional training opportunities (e.g., workshops, tutorials) in the person’s area of expertise
Have an annual business planning meeting that involves all of your team members
No doubt there are more small things you can think of. Add them to your list.
And don’t forget to…
Conduct performance reviews.
Yes, I know. This is the last thing you want to be doing. But you have to… because they work.
They show the individual you care (see above) and they provide the opportunity to:
Understand how things are going in their role from where they sit
For you to acknowledge their wins/accomplishments
For you to provide thoughtful feedback in those areas you’ve identified for improvement.
And if it makes sense, you can share what a new, elevated role might look like as your business grows.
The first formal review should take place when they’ve completed 90 days with your company. You want to ensure they’re fully integrated into your business and performing effectively. Don’t skip this.
Then conduct them annually on the anniversary of their start date. In both cases, put the meetings on your respective calendars well in advance and do your best not to reschedule. This demonstrates that the meeting is important to you and respects the likelihood that they’re nervous about it.
ONE VERY BIG NOTE: When it comes to any performance review, there should be no surprises. What do I mean by this? There should be no major shockers when you discuss the areas where they’ve fallen short. Why? Because you’ve been providing on-the-spot feedback and discussing them in your monthly 1:1’s. When you get to the formal review, you’re covering the key areas for improvement, providing examples from throughout the year, AND you’re collaborating with them on a plan for improvement.
What if things aren’t working out.
Hiring mistakes happen. You think you did the most thorough job possible vetting the person, but when they start working with you, they don’t deliver as you expected or any range of attitude, attendance, or personal problems ensue.
You may ignore them at first as position-ending. And start working with the person to address the performance issue — whether it’s the quality or timeliness of their work product — thinking the solid feedback will improve the situation. Or you speak with the individual regarding their availability or communication with you and other team members in hopes of the same. And perhaps they improve for a time, but then they revert back to the habits and behaviors that first had you speak with them. And you try again…
As a business owner, you need to give the team member the opportunity and help to succeed, whether they’re on payroll or are a contractor. It costs time and money to replace someone who isn’t working out. But…
At some point, hopefully not too long into the process, you realize you need to terminate the relationship. I say, “too long,” because waiting is costly as well.
And then you need bring a new approach to hiring.
If you haven’t already, you need to learn to…
Hire slow, fire fast. ~ Kevin O’Leary
In “Hire Slow, Fire Fast” by Emily Washcovik, Entrepreneur.com, she shares the staffing story of The Candle Pour's Misty & Dennis Akers. As owners of a small business intent on creating a phenomenal customer experience, they share some gems, including:
"Hiring is the most important thing in a business," said Misty Akers, co-founder of Tampa, Florida-based shop The Candle Pour. "If you don't have the right people, the entire experience is missed."
"When we first opened, it was trial by fire," Dennis said. Initially, they were just looking for people with customer service experience. As the Akers learned more about their customers' wants and needs, that shifted. "We're not just going for somebody in a retail shop," Misty said. "We want somebody that is building a great relationship with the customer."
Not only did the Akers reevaluate the type of hires that would make their business model successful, they also established the simple motto of "hire slow, fire fast." When an open position unexpectedly comes about, many business owners default to finding a replacement as quickly as possible. And while that may seem tempting, it can be troublesome in the long term. "You start interviewing, hoping to fill holes so you can take a break," Misty said. "But I've learned that it only gets worse and it takes longer to find the right person."
One thing I know for sure… there’s always a red flag that comes up in the interview process of someone who doesn’t work out. And if not red, then pink. Or there’s that indescribable feeling that something is just “off.” And for whatever reason (and there are any number of reasons), you choose to ignore it.
Looking back when things “go south,” it will be obvious to you what it was. Remember that when you go to make your next hire. And no matter how pressed you are to fill the position, don’t ignore these signs.
Hire slow so you don’t have to fire fast.
I hope this provides an idea or two for you to adopt in your team management plan, and it gets you thinking…
Because bringing on a team requires you to shift your role in the business. You move out of “doing all the things” and int your high-value, big-impact activities, those things only you can do to achieve the growth you desire. You need to shift to being the CEO of your business. More on this topic next week.
Until next time.
Katherine
#ICYMI
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