Three staff management mistakes to avoid
One of your most important jobs as a practice owner is managing your staff. Here are three classic, but easy to make blunders. Avoid these unless you want to alienate even the most loyal employees.
1- Timid feedback on poor performance
Best selling author and management guru Tom Peters says "The number one motivator of people is
Weak managers make the mistake of avoiding conflict on a daily basis. You owe it to a staff member to tell them when their performance in a given area is not meeting your expectations.
It’s totally unfair to let a mediocre employee think they're doing a good job during the course of the year while you’re getting fed up with their work.
Give course correction feedback on a regular basis, even when it feels a little uncomfortable. It should never be a surprise if you have to let someone go or lower the boom at performance evaluation time.
2 - Fail to praise good performance
Employees dislike bosses who manage by exception. That is, don't be a manager who only speaks up when mistakes are made.
Go out of your way to praise good results and recognize extra efforts on at least a five to one ratio of any criticism you hand out.
3- Fail to stand up for your employees
One of the most difficult situations a practice owner can deal with is a dispute between a staff member and a patient.
Yes, you want to provide outstanding customer service in your practice. But your staff certainly won’t be loyal to you if you make them the scapegoat when a patient gets abusive.
Tell your patient that as the practice owner, you are sorry if they ‘think’ Mary made a mistake.
Tell the patient that as the practice owner, you will responsible for doing whatever it takes to fix their complaint (assuming you want to keep them!).
But let them know Mary does a great job in your office and she doesn’t to be fussed at. Even if an error was made.
The key is, don’t give the employee or the patient the impression that you are taking sides against them.
Regards,
Jerry Hayes, OD
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Disclaimer: The information and opinions contained on this site are for discussion purposes only and are NOT intended to serve as legal, accounting or investment advice. ©2010 Jerry Hayes, OD. Not to be reproduced without written permission of the author.
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