If you’re an employer or a manager then work place absence is costing you money, inconvenience, and upsetting your customers. And as we all know, not all days taken off work are due to genuine sickness. Many employees “take a sickie” because their morale is low and they just don’t like or can’t do their work.
The challenge for employers and managers is to make people happier at work. And if people are happy at work then they are less likely to take a day off every time they wake up with a stuffy nose. Some bosses think that paying more money, improving job security or working conditions is the answer. It isn’t and it’s also something that can be very hard to achieve.
People who employ or supervise other people need to become more tuned to their employees’ emotional needs and find out what really motivates them. This is also much easier to achieve than paying more money or improving job security, however there is no quick fix. Some years ago I inherited a tele-sales operation with low staff morale and poor sales
results. It took nearly a year to fix. The long-term benefits were of course worth it in terms of fewer days lost due to sickness and an increase in business.
To reduce the number of sickies there are three steps you need to consider. Firstly, pick the right person for the job. There’s a television advertisement running at present
for a recruitment company. It highlights the fact that many people are in the wrong job for their skills and attributes. The daft thing is that it was an employer or manager who put them in the job in the first place. We need to get better at interviewing and selecting people. Take more time over it; pay more attention to the applicant’s human side rather than their qualifications or experience. Get to know them better.
Find out what makes them happy, how well they get on with other people and how much energy and enthusiasm they have. Make sure they know what they’re getting into and be sure
the job suits them.
A manager in the telecom industry was telling me about an engineer who was taking too many sickies. He was being blamed for a poor attitude to his work. His job involved working in tunnels under the city repairing and installing equipment. Eventually it was discovered that the poor guy was claustrophobic and was trying to deal with it on his own. He still works for the same team but in a job that doesn’t involve small spaces. It’s not always easy to move people, which emphasises the importance of getting it right in the first place.
Secondly, you need to believe in your people. If you’ve interviewed well and picked the right person for the job then you need to trust them to do that job. You need to constantly demonstrate to your people that you trust and believe in them by what you say, your tone of voice and your body language.
If you believe that your people are not to be trusted, that they’re unable to make a decision without checking with you. That they’ll turn up late and go homeearly, then that’s exactly what they’ll do. If on the other hand you believe that they’ll do their job well, that they can be trusted to make decisions and they will give you a fair day’s work, then it is more likely this is what you’ll get. As with all theories there is no guarantee that it will
work every time, however the majority of employees are reasonable people and if you treat them as such then they are more likely to behave in a positive manner.
The third and probably the most important thing you can do to motivate your people is to give them feedback and coach them. This is where so many employers and managers fall down in dealing with their people; we are hopeless at giving feedback. Many managers are uncomfortable telling staff how they feel about their work performance.
Most employees want to know how they are performing in their job; they want to know if they are doing it right or how they could do it better. If you really want to motivate your people then you need to give them feedback on what they’re doing well and what needs improvement.
When you notice an employee doing something you do like, tell them about it. When you notice something you don’t like, tell them about it.
Do it as soon as possible. Acknowledging a job well done is not much good six months later. Also, if you don’t immediately call someone’s attention to something you’re not happy about, then they’ll assume its okay. Either that or they’ll think you didn’t notice or you don’t care. Do it in private. Why is it some managers still feel its okay to reprimand someone in front of their colleagues? Even the mildest rebuke can have a negative effect on morale.
When you do speak to the person use “I” messages. Say things like “I liked the way you did that” or “I’m unhappy with the way your reports are always late and I’d like your views on why this is”. Avoid “You” messages such as “You’re doing great”. That can come across as patronising or insincere. “You’re doing that all wrong” may cause conflict, lower morale and may not sort the problem.
Focus on one or two things. Don’t run off a whole list of attributes or misdemeanours. Also be specific about job behaviour, focus on what the person did or didn’t do, don’t make a personal attack. Employees will feel happier if they perceive their employer or manager as a reasonable and fair individual – someone who is quick to praise but also says when they’re not happy about something.
When we start to look at what motivates people at work, it’s important to realise that we all have different needs. It’s easy to fall into the trap of believing that all our staff are motivated by money. However, research conducted over the years into what motivates people at work suggests some other factors.
Money is important however people are more likely to be motivated firstly, by the work itself. Secondly, by being appreciated for what they do and thirdly by a feeling of being in on things.
The message is – if you want motivated staff then make their work interesting, give them feedback and give them the feeling that they’re involved in the business.
We can make the job more interesting by giving people more responsibility, assigning projects and by training and developing them. We need to regularly give people feedback on how they’re doing; focussing on what they’re doing well rather than on what is not so good. To meet their need to feel involved we should regularly communicate both formally and informally. We could also involve staff in meetings they might not normally attend.
These steps will take time and thought however they’ll make a huge difference as to how employees feel about their work. If they feel good and gain satisfaction from their work then they’re less likely to find a reason to “take a sickie”.
Alan Fairweather, ‘The Motivation Doctor,’ is an International Speaker, Author and Business Development Expert. To receive your free newsletter and free e-books, visit: http://www.themotivationdoctor.com
Month: August 2008
Categories
Failure IS an option!
Article contributed by Karen S Sieczka
It is better to have enough ideas for some of them to be wrong, than to be always right by having no ideas at all. –Edward de Bono
As entrepreneurs, we have all failed at one time or another. An idea doesn’t pan out, a deal falls through, we get rejected by an important client, things don’t turn out as expected. We feel disappointed and sometimes we even feel hurt. Often, we want to throw in the towel. When this happens, we need to remember failure is an important part of the process of building success.
Failures can become turnarounds. Lee Iacocca brought the failing Chrysler company back from the brink of extinction in the 1980’s. Harry Truman failed miserably in many business ventures before becoming president of the United States. If these two had given up when things were tough, their names would be lost to history.
You probably know who James Dyson is. He is the guy who invented the extremely successful and popular bagless vacuum. It took him over 5,000 tries to get his design right but he used each failure to make improvements and move closer to his desired end result. We wouldn’t even recognize his name if he had thrown in the towel after the 10th failure or even the 4,999th failure!
Everyone knows who Colonel Sanders is. He concocted the secret herb and spice recipe that made the most famous fried chicken on the planet. He was rejected over 1,000 times before someone thought his recipe was finger licking good.
Look at the Wright brothers. How many times did they have to regroup before their airplane left the ground? Look at Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin. They didn’t wait for the perfect search algorithm. They started the company and then refined the process as they went along.
Thomas Edison was known for the incandescent light bulb and first recording of music on a wax cylinder. He and his colleagues tried thousands of experiments, some miserable failures, some partial failures, some successes, but each attempt, each process brought something to the table, and sparked an idea or brought them closer to a solution for another puzzle.
Read biographies of famous people. Even among the most successful, most have felt the sting of miserable failures at one time or another. How did they react and move toward success? Focus on how they learned from the mistakes and moved onward and upward. How can you apply these lessons to your own life, career, and circumstances? Ponder this: do you accept defeat when something goes wrong or do you regroup and try again? How persistent are you?
You have to accept failures are part of the success experience. Mistakes often become the next great innovation. Vulcanized rubber was a mistake. Microwave oven technology was created by accident. Penicillin was the result of a failed experiment.
To be successful, you must reconcile with the possibility of failure. Being successful involves taking risks, and the possibility of failure, ridicule, disapproval, and disappointment. Be courageous. Everyone makes some mistakes. You may never figure out all the outcomes before you plunge into a project. So what? Do it anyway! If it fails, learn from it and try again!
Karen S. Sieczka is a training consultant and founder of Growing Great Ideas.com. Her latest training program is Growing Great Ideas: Unleashing Creativity at Work. The program generates ideas, enthusiasm, and teamwork and can be customized to address particular organizational issues or challenges. This article was excerpted from the Growing Great Ideas: Unleashing Creativity at Work book, now available at LULU.com for download or print version.
Categories
How Much Does a Franchise Cost?
Article contributed by Don Daszkowski
How much does a franchise cost? Of course the cost of obtaining and starting a franchise depends on several variables. For instance, the type of industry, size and location are some of the differentiating factors. However, there are some basics that you could keep in mind if you are contemplating becoming a franchisee.
First of all, you will usually have to pay a franchise fee, which averages somewhere between $20,000 and $30,000. However, the fee could be less than $10,000 for businesses such as mobile and home-based businesses, or in some cases could possibly cost $100,000 or more. A few examples of these more expensive franchises include building maintenance businesses and some types of athletic training facilities.
Since you are gaining the advantage of taking part in an already recognizable business name, and usually ongoing support from the franchisor as well, franchisors typically stipulate that a potential franchisee meet other financial requirements. A predetermined amount of readily available funds that are not borrowed is usually a necessity as well as a certain net worth. In order to pay for ongoing expenses that are not covered by revenue you will also need a guaranteed amount of working capital. Depending on the type of business, it is important that the working capital cover a particular length of time, ranging from a few months to possibly two to three years until the business is in full swing. The franchisor typically provides an estimate of the amount needed.
Besides the franchise fee, other upfront costs could include professional fees such as legal and accounting services, insurance, and operating licenses. Employee training, inventory, and equipment are usually part of the startup as well. Also plan on, rent and possible leasehold improvements, and other costs involved in setting up a retail location including the purchase of fixtures, signs, and landscaping. You may also incur grand opening and initial promotional expense to get the business going.
Keep in mind that many times a higher initial investment does not necessarily mean a higher return. Often times franchises can be started with a total initial investment of less than $200,000 and sometimes even less than $50,000. Some home-based business such as handyman franchises and marketing franchises provide a decent return with little upfront cash.
Ongoing, you will need to be prepared to continuously pay royalties to your franchisor, possibly 4 to 6 percent of your revenue. Also, insurance (liability and health), inventory, and equipment maintenance would be continuous expenses. Of course, there will be employee salary and benefits. Additionally, you may be required to pay into a national advertising fund.
Before making a decision on a franchise, it is important to obtain from the franchisor a copy of the Uniform Franchise Offering Circular (UFOC), also known as the disclosure document. The upfront fees are outlined in this circular. The document should describe the initial fee which may be non-refundable as well as the other startup costs. If there are any items that you believe might be a startup costs that are not mentioned in the disclosure, be sure to ask about them.
All in all, you want to be sure your financial situation will cover expenses for you and your family during the time it takes to get the business up and running. This may take several months or a bit longer than that. Keep mind your operating expenses as well as personal expenses for the first year or two in business. In order to have the best chance of success with a franchise, it is recommended you contact a franchise consultant to discuss your goals and finances.
About the Author
BusinessMart.com has become the fastest growing business for sale search engine, helping buyers and sellers of small businesses and franchises. BusinessMart.com has many resources to help you on your journey to start your own business, sell your existing business or open a franchise. BusinessMart.com has thousands of businesses for sale in the US and Canada.
I bet just the very title of this article is enough to make you run for cover! Along with paper piles, budget and Cashflow is another area that can drive solo business owners over the edge! In your corporate days you would have had a bookkeeping/accounting department that took care of all of this for you – they paid the invoices, they tracked the receivables, they tracked the income, and they told you the bottom line!
Now that you’re running your own business you are also the Chief Financial Officer, and it can be very overwhelming. However, it needn’t be… let me share with you three simple steps that you can put in place to manage your budget and Cashflow.
What is a Cashflow projection?
One important area of your Financial Management System is that of a Cashflow projection. Put simply, a Cashflow projection shows whether your anticipated income will be able to cover your expected (projected) expenses and this report is very beneficial to you in your business.
It is an annual report and, if set up correctly, will show you how cash will flow through your business throughout the current financial year. I’ve been using a Cashflow report in my business for many years and find it invaluable. Just recently the chance to participate in a high-profile teleclass series came up, and because I have my systems in place, I knew straightaway that it was something I could take part in!
Step 1 – Create Your Cashflow Report
This is very easy to do using a spreadsheet. Create a column that lists all of your expenses, i.e. office supplies, legal & professional fees, membership, advertising etc. and a column for each month of the year. You will need to create formulae that will tell you your total income, total expenses, and subtracts the expenses from the income, and also carries forward any amounts from month-to-month. This is so you can see how your finances are ‘flowing’ throughout the year.
Step 2 – Input Your Data
Taking your financial data from your bookkeeping system input your actual income and expenses, and list any projected expenses in the appropriate row/column. Your Cashflow report will now show you at-a-glance any time periods for which you will need to be especially aware of. For example you may have a lot of expenses in one particular month so you’ll know that the previous month you’ll need to make sure that you have the funds kept back in your bank account to take care of those upcoming expenses.
It will also show you if you can afford to make an investment in your business, whether that’s signing up for a new service or membership club, taking out an advertisement, or buying new equipment.
Your Cashflow projection can also be used as a budget planner. You can plan out when annual memberships are due and put those in ahead of time. You can also add in an amount for when your taxes are due. This will provide you with a really good feel of how cash is flowing through your business, month after month, throughout the year, and you can also tell how much you can take off for owners draw, but still leave enough to cover the anticipated expenses.
Step 3 – Schedule In The Time
Now that you have your Cashflow report in place, it’s important that you update it regularly so that you can stay aware of how cash is flowing through your business, and take any actions necessary so that you have enough to cover all of your anticipated expenses.
I recommend scheduling in at least 30 minutes once a month to update this critical financial management report.
A Final Thought…
Having an annual Cashflow projection will provide you with all of the information you need so that you can keep on top of your business financially and know where you are.
If you have a bookkeeper taking care of all your financial records for you, ask them to prepare your monthly Cashflow report for you.
Do you remember being told to use the “sandwich” technique when you needed to reprimand someone? Let me give you an example:
“Fred, I’m really pleased with how you’ve been progressing since you joined us and you’re doing a great job. However you’re not getting your reports in on time and we’re missing
deadlines. I’d like you to tighten up a bit on this. Anyway,thanks for all you’ve done so far and keep up the good work.”
Have you ever said something along these lines when managing your team? You probably needed Fred to sort out his reporting but you didn’t want to upset or demoralize him.
The only problem is that Fred may not get the message and the importance of it may be seriously diluted.
He may hear it as, “Fred, you’re doing a brilliant job, you just need to sort out the reporting bit but it’s not really that important.”
What happens then is, Fred continues to fail with his reports.
The “sandwich” technique doesn’t work, it lets you off the hook and it’s mealy mouthed. Be direct when managing your people and they’ll respect you more for it. You are also much more likely to get a change in behavior.
If you’re unhappy with some aspect of an employee’s performance then you need to tell them so. The skill is in doing it in a way that’s effective and doesn’t lower the morale of the individual.
Firstly, it’s not acceptable to speak to your people just when you’re unhappy about something. Tell them the good news as well. As Kenneth Blanchard and Spencer Johnson say in their book The One Minute Manager – “Catch people doing something right” and tell them about it.
Some managers and employers still have this strange notion that if people are doing things right then that’s what they’re paid for and they don’t need to be complimented.
Ask almost any employee in Industries throughout the world and they’ll tell you that they don’t feel appreciated by their manager.
When you notice someone doing something you do like, tell them about it. When you notice them doing something you don’t like, tell them about it. Whether it’s good news or bad, the same rules apply.
Do it as soon as possible. Acknowledgment of a job well done is not much good six months later. Also, if you don’t immediately call someone’s attention to something you are not happy about, then they’ll assume it’s okay. Either that or they’ll think you didn’t notice or you don’t care.
Do it in private. Why is it that some managers still feel it’s okay to reprimand someone in front of their colleagues? Even the mildest rebuke can have a negative effect on morale.
When you speak to the person use “I” messages. Say things like “I liked the way you did that” or “I think there is another way to do that.” Avoid “You” messages such as “You’re doing great.” That can come across as patronizing or insincere. “You’re doing that all wrong” may cause conflict, lower morale and may not sort the problem.
When your giving feedback, focus on one or two things. You’ll only confuse the person if you run off a whole list of attributes or misdemeanors. Be specific about job behavior, focus on what the person did or didn’t do, don’t make a personal attack.
Allow time for the message to sink in and allow the person to respond. You can then seek agreement as to what will happen in the future. If the person does not agree to take
corrective action then you need to move to another level. When they do agree to take corrective action then make sure that you monitor it and give encouraging feedback.
Being direct with your people is better for you, better for them and better for you business, so save your “sandwiches” for lunchtime.
Alan Fairweather, ‘The Motivation Doctor,’ is an International Speaker, Author and Business Development Expert. To receive your free newsletter and free e-books, visit: http://www.themotivationdoctor.com