By Pierre Desmarchais
I was recently talking to a shop owner —or rather, he was complaining about the lack of involvement of his employees. I’m definitely not the only one to hear about his frustration, regardless of the industry.
Who is to blame?
Perhaps we are the authors of our own unhappiness by not stepping in, for fear of displeasing. It reminds me of a phrase a colleague once said to me: “The smallest action is better than the best of intentions.” A very relevant reflection.
Doesn’t the fact that we don’t or rarely express our demands and our feelings possibly let employees, or even the team, think that we are satisfied with the way things are going?
What do you have to offer and what do you ask in return?
To prevent this from happening again, identify what you’re really looking for in the next talent you want, instead of taking what comes along because ” skilled people are scarce.” Moreover, aren’t they all … at the time of the interview?
Make your list of requirements: cell phone and texting policy, punctuality, vacation periods, language level, relationship with tool providers, etc. In short, those little things that bother you on a daily basis are examples of this. On a professional level, also think about their personal image, their cleanliness in all its forms, the use of balance sheets, how they interact with customers, not to mention their commitment to delivering a vehicle in good condition from the first visit.
Remember: you hire someone for their skills, but you fire them because of their attitude.
Focus on attitude when hiring, skills are acquired. Good luck if you plan on trying to change an adult’s attitude.
Maintaining levels with the team
Maintaining your level is carried out by short, frequent and regular meetings.
- Eliminate the word problem from your vocabulary, replace it with challenge.
- Don’t look for a culprit, look for solutions. The whole team is responsible for letting themselves slip into this situation.
- A meeting is an exchange. If only one person speaks, it’s not a meeting, it’s a monologue!
- Ask your team for solutions, you may be pleasantly surprised by the quality of the feedback.
- If you see that the meeting is getting out of hand and threatens to degenerate into finger-pointing, wrap it up, then meet with the recalcitrant participants individually to set the rules of the game.
- Don’t forget to celebrate victories and review the other challenges at the next team meeting.
Anything lying around ends up getting dirty!
