Odimbite Odimbite: Staff Management - It Really isn't Brain Surgery II
With relish I come to the concluding part of the series on work management styles. Wow, it’s been a journey. It is coming now because I feel it will help staff and businesses do extremely well this year.
Business leaders can wow their staff. Leaders can literally have their staff hands, feet, heart and soul for life. They don't have to demand staff loyalty, friendship or respect. They will get all these and more if business leaders can change their work style. Staff can become evangelists of the business leader and the business long after they quit their job because something struck a chord in their lives and their career pathway they can't shake off nor ever forget.
Why will staff stick with a particular manager? When the manager moves, the staff wholeheartedly moves with the manager or the manager finds a way to take the staff along? Where it's practically impossible to move the staff, the staff can't help but evangelize, eulogize, confidently speak of the manager and can't forget the manager! Looking closely, that manager had a special, favourable, personal and progressive interest in that staff. That manager managed by individual growth.
Management by Individual Growth (MBIG)
This work style sees each staff as a valuable individual, a person with a bundle of uniqueness, skills, competencies, aspirations and has the ability to perform. Each staff is given respect, treated specially and encouraged to be his best. The manager can see the raw potential in each staff and works closely with the staff to mine the potential. The staff is personally pointed to the future of what he can become and what it will take to get there. The manager sees the crude oil, the gold, the treasure in each staff and makes significant investment of time, financial resources, knowledge set, feedback, and support both formally and informally to get out the treasure.
The manager captures the staff attention, arrests his interests, powers up the staff vision, and bolsters his confidence to go get it even when the staff doesn't see the future clearly nor can he see the benefit for himself or for the organization. The staff decides to get there because he sees a genuine concern, individualized attention and customized solutions he gets or will get. He implicitly trusts the judgment of the manager.
MBIG takes a lot. The manager offers the staff trainings, project assignments, lateral movements, mentoring, coaching, upward movements, cross functional team working exposures locally or internationally, knowledge sharing packages like giving the staff books to read and discuss or recommend books to read, videos to watch or audios to listen to. All these exercises impart skill, competence, learning, attitude improvement, experience or motivation that grows the staff all round towards bringing out the potential for the benefit of the business.
MBIG works well when the managers are open-minded and the manager and staff walk the talk. They both set or agree measurable milestones or timelines. The manager provides the platform and opportunities and the staff leverages them and performs excellently. The manager doesn't back down or abandon the staff in the journey until the dream is achieved. Organizations are in demand for self-starters and high flyers. This category of staff needs nurturing and motivated by MBIG. Businesses lose this category of staff where it’s all talk but no action. They must be seen as such and rewarded as such. Staff must know and feel they are wanted. Each one wants to be a part of something significant, successful, novel and rewarding. They want to be true stakeholders in its truest meaning. They want to also hold the stakes propelling the organizational objectives. If staff is treated as dogs or nobodies, they will perform as such. When staff is seen and told how valuable they are and what they can do, they will line up.
Using MBIG to Run
Using this MBIG can dramatically create an outstanding organization in all performance areas. The manager has to sit back in the first place and assess each staff individually. Understand each staff member's strengths, weaknesses, potentials, what they can do, where each is best suited to perform in the nearest future and what it will take the manager to take them from where they are to where they can be. Next stage is to clarify this with each staff and gain their understanding and commitment to take the journey. Then commence action on the easier steps immediately, obtain and give regular feedback to each staff. With time, both the manager and staff gains momentum, builds trust with each other, strong bond of friendship develops, performance increases, motivations soars as they see encouraging outcomes and loyalty peaks. The staff develops a sense of value, personal doubts and barriers begin to crumble, self confidence increases, teamwork is built, passion grows and ownership takes a firmer root. As he sees the future and knows he can reach it, he is loyal and will be unwilling to leave even if experienced headhunters come to poach him. Retention is heightened, staff is ‘wowed’ and literally his hands, feet, soul and spirit is fully engaged. Staff is now bought. He lives in the company and works inside the company and talks the company.
This is possible. I have tasted it and it's a wonderful image, culture, legacy and value a manager or company can truly create- thriving in your staff!
Odimbite Odimbite is Co-Founder, Metrodelight Foods Limited, Nigeria.
