Check results against goals
As important as people are to Johnson, it’s the business results that matter at the end of the day. So he wants results-oriented employees who can actually meet their goals.
When you’ve been communicating all along what the goal is and slackened the reins to let them achieve it, all you have to do is measure employees against the metrics you’ve been preaching about.
“You really gauge [their success] by performance according back to goals,” Johnson says. “We tend to keep a tight eye on results and talk about results and talk about goals and whether we met them or not. It’s a lot of constant feedback.”
Johnson’s results-focused approach doesn’t mean he ignores other factors. That’s why he stays in constant contact with employees along the way to see how they’re tracking. Aside from being coaching opportunities, those meetings are also Johnson’s way of gauging what effort employees are exerting. Through that interaction, you’ll learn what employees are passionate about — or whether their job is just 40 hours and a paycheck.
Usually, if they’re not trying at all, they won’t reach the results that you are after. But what about the ones that are trying and just not getting the results?
“That really gets down to coaching, teaching and mentoring, and having bosses that are willing to spend time and explain, ‘Hey, here’s what maybe I would do differently. Have you tried this? Have you tried that?’” Johnson says.
He can’t do all of that coaching alone, so he also makes sure his managers are taking the time to guide their employees. Specifically, he asks his direct reports how much time they spend talking with their employees.
If employees continue to miss their marks despite coaching, Johnson looks even further for help, considering external education or training.
You can’t kick out employees the first time they fail, but you can’t keep them around if they keep failing, either.
“I don’t know that there’s a secret sauce or magic formula to know when you’ve reached that point,” Johnson says.
But he has come up with a couple of questions that help him make that decision when an employee is towing the line. Those questions, which usually get posed to the employee’s manager, are: Would you hire that person again? Would you be relieved if he or she left?
“If you don’t want somebody to be there and you wouldn’t hire them again, you kind of answer your own question,” Johnson says. “Or [if you say,] ‘I would hire them again, and I will be scared if they left,’ then you’re not ready to move on. You need to work harder at teaching them what they need to know.”
The extra time you invest in improving employees actually has a much bigger impact than that individual. You’re actually benefiting your company.
“To continually make your company better, you have to continually educate and train people,” Johnson says. “That’s why we’re successful, and it’s why we’re going to be successful tomorrow. It is having good people and continuing to work with them and listen to them.”
How to reach: Fidelitone Logistics, (866) 252-9426 or www.fidelitone.com
