Motoomull: Doing a good job

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

EMPLOYEES are led into doing a good job; they can’t be forced into it. One possible cause of doing a good job is good supervision.

Some individuals have been chosen for their supervisory positions because they know a lot about the type of work done by those they are supervising. Also, they may know how to motivate people. If you think your supervisor’s style of managing is responsible for your job satisfaction, you can consider yourself lucky!

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Although many employees are self-motivating and they work well even under poor supervision, they, however, can respond to and benefit from a supervisor who understands what motivates people to do their best work. Because not every employee is the same, a good supervisor will develop insight into which employees respond best to praise, which to monetary incentives and which to opportunities to learn new things or to prepare for promotion.

Progressive supervisors are learning that if they give employees credit where credit is due, their staff is motivated to perform better. Since the employees are doing the actual work, they are often in the best position to come up with better and quicker ways to do the job: use facts to back up your suggestions, and identify any cost reduction that can be achieved by doing it the new way. Be open, however, to legitimate reasons why your idea won’t work.

Employees who find themselves ready for the next step up would be wise to obtain and pay for their training themselves. Thus, they gain an edge over others who have not acquired the necessary skills.

Money spent on training is a good investment by the employee. Especially since nowadays, companies have had to tighten their training budgets.
Some companies implement job rotation for employees in an attempt to make employees’ job more interesting. Job rotation is possible if there are several employees in a company who work at substantially the same class or level of work and in the same pay range. Employers and employees alike benefit from job rotation because staff members can fill more than one job and the work of absent employees can be done by someone else. If your company is doing this, management is trying to keep your work interesting.

Companies that practice good management systems know that both accurate, up-to-date descriptions and performance appraisals are essential for high productivity and motivation of staff. When the staff knows what’s expected of them, they perform better. A good time to ask for a job-description update is when you have your yearly performance appraisal.
Even the best employees sometimes need guidance and even correction from their supervisor and vice versa. This delicate art consists of being able to accept suggestions that will help you improve your performance.

Whether these suggestions come to you in the harsh form of criticism or in the milder form of correction or instruction, you need to learn how to handle them in a positive way: You control your thoughts and behavior. Keep in mind that there may be some truth in the criticism. You’ll miss it if you concentrate only on how you can defend yourself. Don’t respond angrily. Instead, listen carefully to the comments. Ask for specifics if the criticism is vague.

For example, if your supervisor says, “I don’t like your attitude,” ask “What is it about my attitude that concerns you?” Your supervisor might respond with, “Well, you were rude to Mrs. Smith when you served her a few minutes ago. You kept her waiting far too long before you looked after her.”

You may not like what you hear, but at least now you have something specific to deal with. Don’t let the criticism overwhelm you and affect the rest of your day. Instead, simply decide that you won’t make the same mistake again. Above all, continue to give your good performance and love your work. You’ll reap and enjoy more earnings as well.

(Send comments to dr.nirmla_motoomull@yahoo.com)