Give Power to Team Members Having employees who feel empowered is what every leader should strive for. In order to achieve this you should do the following:
- Promote open communication. Provide employees different methods, both anonymous and not that they can use to convey their ideas or grievances without the fear of retaliation.
- Provide lots of info and context. If your employees don’t feel like they are in the dark and have adequate information on the trajectory of the company, they will not only feel more empowered to pitch in their thoughts, but they will have relevant ideas and information based on the current status of the company.
- Be supportive. Allow employees to do and try things their way, even if they fail. Failure, as we know, is a key to success and allowing employees some room to make mistakes might actually make them stronger in the process. As long as those failures aren’t detrimental to the company, give them some room.
- Make employees accountable. Everyone in a company must be made aware of not only when they achieve their goals but also when they haven’t. Be clear where and when good and bad things are happening giving employees the chance to rectify any problem areas.
- Clear Goals. Employees should be 100% aware of what their job requires of them. In this way, while they focus on their job they know when they have the extra time to try out some different strategies.
- Support them. Support their independence, their attempts, and failures, they will understand with your support that they can continue to strive to do better and be more innovative.
- Reward Reward. Like it or not, today’s workforce is likely made up of people who won participation trophy’s. Positive reinforcement is key to keeping employees in tip-top performing shape. That is not to say that employees who deserve it shouldn’t get the whip so to speak, but you need to be able to dish out as much positive as negative.
- Appreciate them. Employees stay with you for more than just a paycheck, they also want appreciation, attention and admiration, the same thing every other human on earth wants. Be sure to appreciate your employees.
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