Creating a positive environment
and empowering your staff is not as easy as you may think. Sometimes it is
difficult to know what it takes to inspire trust and encourage productivity.
Empowering your employees can difficult to put into practice at first, but it
is crucial to the success of your business.
It involves letting your
employees in on your company’s vision, clearly defining your expectations,
taking time to give feedback and much more. Here are 12 tips to help you
empower your staff.
1. Develop a sense of trust
Your employees will only feel
empowered if they know you trust them. Trust them that they are capable enough
to do their work without you looking over their shoulders and that they will
only call on you as a last resort.
When you micro-manage employees,
they can feel stifled and are less likely to produce good work. Employees want
a sense of autonomy and a feeling that they are in control of their own lives.
2. Give employees information and
resources
If you provide your employees
with the information they need to get the job done, you are setting them up for
success. Seminars, how-to-guides and thorough instructions eliminate any
confusion and employees will feel accomplished when they can complete the work
on their own.
Sharing information ensures that
everyone on a team understands essential tasks and critical issues.
3. Communicate a clear vision
A study by George Mason University showed that a feeling of
being “in on things” is at the top of the list for many employees. People who
don’t have a clear vision aren’t motivated to perform. Get everyone in your
company on the same page and spell out roles clearly so that everyone knows
their responsibilities.
When they don’t have clearly
defined roles, they have no way of measuring their progress. Your employees
need clear communication on a regular basis to keep their vision and know why
their roles matter.
4. Take time to give constructive
feedback
Employees thrive on constructive feedback. They will only know how to improve if you point out
where they can do better. A simple ‘good work!’ can make someone feel good in
the moment, but well thought out ways in which they can improve gives employees
more to think about.
The way in which you give
feedback is critical – you need to inspire them instead of making them feel
incompetent.
5. Be open to employee feedback
Your employees don’t want to be
thought of as a number and they want to know that you’re interested in what
they have to say. Employees should feel they have a valuable contribution to
make to the business.
It could be related to sharing
ideas, suggestions, or reviews, to help out another colleague battling to cope
with studies and work. Active listening also helps to eliminate
misunderstandings and gives employees the opportunity to share concerns.
6. Allow for failure
Having a voice in the
decision-making process when it comes to their areas of expertise is one of the
best ways to empower employees. They may make the wrong decisions but you need
to encourage them not to fear making mistakes.
If they are allowed to make
mistakes and given guidance on why they happened and how to prevent making them
again, it is critical to their growth.
7. Encourage self-improvement
Cultivate the mindset that
learning is an ongoing process. Encourage your employees to learn new skills,
even if it means supporting continued education or classes outside of the
workplace. If you can’t offer financial support, you can at least offer some
flexibility with their schedule.
8. Be flexible
Eliminate cumbersome, unnecessary
rules, procedures, or policies that prevent people from doing their work to the
best of their ability. Allow people some flexibility in setting their own
schedules if this does not interfere with accomplishing goals.
For example, allowing a parent to
come in a little late after dropping children off at school is not
counterproductive. He or she may be able to avoid rush hour traffic and end up
being more productive in the long run.
9. Give credit where it’s due
When an employee goes above and
beyond what is expected, give credit for this. Make sure employees know that
you appreciate their efforts.
Whether it’s a report that was
put together very well or a difficult customer who was dealt with in an
exceptional manner, let employees know that you have noticed. This gives them
more job satisfaction and ensures they will continue to do high-quality
work.
10. Delegate to demonstrate your
trust
Handing down work to your
employees is often necessary, but if you only give them tasks you feel are a
waste of your time, it can do more harm than good. Look at delegating work as
an opportunity for empowerment instead.
Ask an employee to share in a
high-profile project or run a meeting. Choose to let go of some of your responsibility
and define the end result you’re after rather than the way you expect it to be
accomplished.
11. Lower employee stress
Employees will be stressed when
they are in a negative office environment where favoritism, unfairness and
gossip are rampant.
The SCARF model created
by David Rock, a neuroscientist, gives five drivers that subconsciously
influence people – status, certainty, autonomy, relatedness and fairness. Respecting
these five drivers will help to reduce employee stress in the workplace.
12. Make sure employees take time
off
Make sure employees don’t reach
the point where they’re burned out. Actively support vacation time and foster
an environment where it is perfectly fine to take a vacation when it is needed.
Rejuvenated and well-rested employees are much more productive. Encouraging a
healthy work/life balance will garner loyalty and enhance productivity
overall.
Conclusion
Today’s workplace is challenging
and helping your employers to be the best they can be involves building trust,
creating a clear vision, listening to them, supporting them in their career
goals and much more. Loyalty goes both ways and if you hold up your end, you
can show that your workforce truly matters to you.
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