5 Secrets to Maximising the Performance of Your People – Part 2 of 3
This article is the second in a three part series that explores the secrets to maximising the performance of your people. Part one discussed the importance of “Defining Great” for your people and your business as the blue print for all your people initiatives.
We follow now with Secrets #2 and 3
Secret #2: Measure “Great”
Now that you have defined great you can start to hold your people accountable for being great at their jobs. This is where your performance review and feedback mechanisms are critical. A few key considerations to make this work well (and not a “tick box” exercise) are:
- Combine performance & development discussions that engage your staff with an exciting future
- Two formal discussions a year are much more effective than one. Quarterly discussions are even better.
- Ensure your Managers are trained to have difficult conversations when needed and how to motivate and inspire performance.
Secret #3: Reward “Great”
Whether you have a bonus scheme or not, the way you financially reward your people must be aligned to your definition of “Great” if you want a return on investment from your people costs. Some important design tips that will make a measurable difference are:
- Your people need to know what they need to do to obtain a bonus and receive a base salary increase. If your employees are relying on “hope” they will not be focused on being “Great”.
- Perceived fairness of rewards is critical to maximising engagement and performance. If your people feel that they are rewarded unfairly relative to the market or others in your business doing a similar role, they will not be performing at their best.
