“Lessons from Schools”

We just can’t seem to get good people is a mantra often heard when working with a client. The people we get are just not the caliber we need to succeed or the employees have such an attitude that success eludes us. While I will agree that people have varying levels of skill, I do not buy that the bar cannot be raised on these same individuals. Case in point, the University Preparatory Charter School in Rochester. In a recent article in the D and C, The school reports that “48 of the 51 candidates graduated in June and every one of the graduates received at least one college admission offer.” This equates to 94% of these students graduating as compared to the city schools which cite a 51% graduation rate which is the highest in five years! What is the difference…. Are only stellar hand-picked students accepted at the University Preparatory Charter School? No, the truth is the “percentage of those passing the eighth grade Common Cores exams in English and math was only in the teens,” when they arrived at the Charter School. What happened in the ensuing years to help these students succeed? My guess it was the school environment as well as the relationships built between student, faculty and parents.

This is not much different than our workplaces. Is the culture in which your people work geared for success or is it a negative experience. Do they receive positive reinforcement or put downs? When coaching people sometimes individuals will share an experience with someone in their life and often it was a teacher. Sometimes they discuss the support they felt from the teacher who helped them succeed, but more often it is a negative image that the employee received from a teacher they carry today sometimes 30-40 years later. The message they received was they will never amount to anything and they still carry that message in their heads. What messages do your people receive? And, what is the relationship between leadership, managers and employees? Are they all focused on success?

In order to raise the bar on your employees your supervisors need to understand their role in helping their people succeed. Too often a good employee is promoted to supervisor with no training or mentoring to help them be successful. The result is often a reactive relationship with their people in which they reinforce the problems and never give positive feedback. Too often I hear, the only feedback I receive is when something is wrong. There needs to be a balance.

In order to help employees succeed they need to understand their role in the organization. The first step in unlocking your company’s true potential is ensuring your employees understand how their specific position contributes to achieving your company’s business objectives. This starts by understanding employee’s individual goals and helping link them directly to the company’s objectives, so they do not spend time on the wrong activities.

Secondly, there needs to be two-way communication to create clear expectations. Don’t assume your people understand their role, have a conversation to make sure the intended outcome is the message received. In addition, a process for ongoing feedback both positive and constructive coupled with the training and tools to do the job helps keep the employee engaged.

Finally, celebration and recognition is an excellent way to keep your people morale high. So instead of focusing on your less than perfect employees, focus on leadership and supervision to create an environment in which your people succeed.