Proper management of human assets is often likened to team sports, where winning is usually accomplished by talented athletes who are guided by professional and knowledgeable coaches. No matter how well they master their individual position, no one athlete can win the game on his own. It is the responsibility of the coach to get the players to work together as a team that will outperform the sum of the individual players' skills. That's what leads to winning.
Every operator I meet believes he or she is doing all the right things when it comes to taking care of their staff. You've heard it all before. You know what it takes to have a happy, effective staff. You've put together your own unique management system to attract and keep great employees. Yet as an industry, turnover remains high, morale is in the basement, and productivity is less than ideal.
Let's see if your promise to your employees equals your delivery to your employees. The following 10-question self-test is a "reality check" to audit your current management approach. If you've missed a few points, be happy. That means you have room for improvement. If you take corrective measures now, I guarantee you will add dollars to your top and bottom lines. Get detailed answers and tips on where to find the necessary ideas, tools, and protocols to improve their score in the Coach's Playbook.
Answer yes or no to the following questions:
- We have an on-premise Personnel Director in our operation.
- We use standardized questions when interviewing prospective employees.
- We audit the employee files for a proper balance of negative and positive memos.
- Our kitchen employees are treated just he same as our dining room staff.
- We use the employee turnover ratio to measure management performance.
- We encourage "small talk" between managers and line employees.
- We calculate the average hourly rate we pay all hourly employees, and work to make it higher.
- Paying overtime indicates either poor management or poor scheduling.
- We generate all our own training materials.
- Firing employees creates bad feelings on the part of employees toward management.
Answer key:
How did you do?
A Perfect 10: You have a management organization that is perfectly positioned for the future.
7 - 9: You're executing well but need to refine your basic philosophy and technical execution.
5 - 6: There's work to do, but you have a reasonable foundation to build on.
4 or less: You had better take a hard look at your organization and prepare to rebuild from the ground up.
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