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November 2020 #12256 Page #26
Fight the Management Drift
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any of us started 2020 with resolutions/goals both for ourselves and our businesses, but then our year was turned upside down By Ben Hershey with the Covid worldwide pandemic and other issues such as Solutions Provider & CEO 4Ward Solutions Group lumber prices topping highs we thought we would never see. While many LBM/ component businesses are working at some semblance of 100%, what I hear often from owners and managers is their concern about lost direction. At the same time, we find many of our employees and managers have been at times “shell shocked” by this year’s events and not able to function or carry out the goals we have set. Lean objectives, growth, profitability, etc. have all seemed to drift out of the lane we expected. For the past several weeks, the pastor at our church has been speaking on “Fighting the Drift.” Though Pastor Morgan’s messages have been about fighting the temptation of allowing our faith to drift, I have found several similarities to what I see happening in many companies. Because of the pandemic, economic hiccups, political theater, etc., our attention to our resolutions and goals drifts because we lose focus. And when managers lose focus, our employees do the same. With the end of 2020 rapidly approaching and many of you either completing or starting budgeting and goals for 2021, now is the time to refocus and fight the drift we may have allowed in our companies. Excellent managers encourage the best possible performance and, therefore, achieve the best results by setting goals and leading their teams to success. As you set these goals, here are seven management tips to achieve a higher level of performance and focus. 1. Provide better feedback. If employees don’t know they aren’t meeting your expectations, they can’t improve. You need to provide constructive feedback, which involves more than simply pointing out a mistake or commenting on a strength. Tell employees exactly how they fell short or went above and beyond. For example, instead of “You handled that customer complaint well,” say “You stayed calm, listened without interrupting, and asked the right questions to get to the root of the customer’s problem.” Even if you found that your teams drifted this past year, confront the opportunity and clearly communicate expectations.
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