“Everyone has talent.
What's rare is the courage to follow it to the dark places where it leads.” ― Erica Jong
Ensuring that you have
the right employees to do the job needed in order to keep your production
moving in the right direction and to take it to new heights is critical to the
success of your organization. Together
we will explore some key points on how to build talent within your organization.
1. Attract and Select High-Caliber Talent
·
Start with
the most critical positions in your group.
·
Is your
organization attractive to high caliber people?
·
The
interview process is very key – It is a two way street.
o The potential associate is checking you out
just as much as you are checking them out.
·
Represent
your area with honor and integrity
·
Get
feedback from any employees that recently joined your group to get their
account on how the recruiting, interview, and entry processes went.
·
Work with
HR to make sure you are on the same page regarding what type of associates you
are looking for.
2. Promote your organization!
Competition for high
caliber candidates can be fierce as everyone wants the best for their teams.
Within your organization there may be times where it may seem that other areas
get the pick of the litter but there is something out there for everyone –
Promote your area well!
·
Talk with
people to get a feel of what people think about your area.
·
If there
is negative feedback in regards to your area begin to work to flip that
perception.
·
Ask for
tips from trusted resources outside of your organization for possible ways of
improving.
·
Promote
the strengths and perks associated with working for your group.
·
Promote an
open door policy.
·
Use your
current pool of associates as an example of what your team is all about – Make
sure to choose wisely here.
·
Honor your
commitments and stay true to your word. This will ensure that you build a
strong and positive reputation for your group.
3. The Interview Process – Let’s Reel Them
In!
A common error during
the interview process is the interviewer will spend most of the time describing
the organization rather than getting to know the candidate. This causes the interviewer to go off of “gut
feeling” rather than being truly informed of the type of person that is sitting
in front of them. It is so important to get a proper feel for the person so you
can make the best decision possible.
Tips of the Trade:
·
Know what
is required in order for the job to be properly filled.
·
Be
prepared – use an interview guide
·
Emphasize
questions that probe a candidate’s past behavior. The best way to judge what future performance
may look like is to study past performance under similar situations. Possible
questions to ask in this case:
o What was your most challenging customer
service situation, and how did you handle it?
o What was the most successful accomplishment
your management team has had, and what was your role in that?
·
Avoid
hypothetical or textbook questions that the candidate can easily give a text
book answer too – We are looking for genuine responses here.
·
Create a comfortable
environment for the candidate – Don’t be a robot.
·
Take Notes
during the interview.
·
Use
multiple reviewers – trusted opinions and resources.
Evaluate your own performance at the end.
4. Set New Employees Up For Success
First impressions are
critical. This is the time to set expectations and show that you are the type
of manager that treats people with honor, which will demonstrate what type of
organization you represent as well.
Clear communication
and Clear Expectations
·
Be
prepared!
·
Train your
team to always put their best foot forward.
·
Conduct a
30,60,90 day review
·
Be clear
about the schedule, the culture, work assignments, etc.
·
Set up a mentor
or buddy – Someone reliable that consistently represents your area and company
well.
·
Provide a thorough
and well organized training regimen.
·
Set goals
and expectations and hold associates accountable.
·
Be an
example of what you would like out of the associate. If you are not doing the right
thing how can you expect anyone else to do so?
·
5. Motivation Always Works
A basic understanding of motivation and how it relates to the work place
is a key to properly motivating associates to consistently perform at a high
level.
·
Talk to
your employees and learn what motivates them and what their needs are.
·
Knowing
what career path associates are interested in taking is helpful as you can
attempt to give them tasks that will help them along that path.
·
Try to
make the work enjoyable as much as you can.
·
Increase
both people’s perceptions and the reality that their actions make a difference.
·
Convey
trust – Don’t micromanage, even new associates.
·
When work
needs to be improved, don’t fix it yourself.
o Believe it or not it is discouraging to an
associate for you to have to fix a mistake that they caused over and over again
(Well except for the lazy ones). Give them the tools to succeed and let them
own it.
·
Determine
what is deemed as rewarding to people and act on it.
6. Succession Planning & Development
Having successors for key positions is absolutely necessary as it
strengthens your organization by providing depth. A well of talent that you can
pull from whenever needed.
·
Know what
you have and know how to use it.
·
Set up
processes for assessing talent so that you know your bench strength and
possible successors.
·
Assess
both performance and potential
·
Evaluate
potential successors against your performance model.
·
Highlight potential
successors and put them on a development plan that will give them opportunities
to practice new skills, and is held accountable for development.
·
Identify
required capabilities and work to fill in any gaps.
·
Review and
follow up to ensure that any set bench marks are reached and provide support
and coaching.
There you have it, six ways you can build talent in your workplace.
This process will not be easy, but if you are a strong people leader with
a genuine love for people most of these tips will flow fluidly from the
natural talents already stored within you.
Good luck!
