Help for New Managers

Leadership vs. Politicians

Politicians are often not the best role models. Here are ten (10) management lessons I learned from watching politians on TV and social media.

• Tunnel vision – do not surround yourself with people who only think like you. Add diversity to broaden your scope. 

• Likeability – you cannot always be the nicest person in the room. 

• Decisions – do not let your ego get in the way of a good decision. 

• Trust – if your team does not trust you, then you are just a bully. 

• Followers – 20-30% of the people will follow anyone. 

• Communications – talk is cheap – action pays the bills. 

• Respect – it is earned over many years but can be lost in seconds. 

• Leadership – lying and creating fear is not leadership. It is chaos. 

• Courage – make the tough decisions even if it means losing some of your status. 

• Integrity – stand up for what you believe. Be the role model you want your children to respect. 

The world would be a better place if politicians, and company managers, remembered these leadership principles.  

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Questions for Managers 

 Quick hiring decisions often have huge consequences on management time, money, employee engagement, absenteeism, safety, turnover and more. 

Five questions a manager should answer BEFORE making any hiring decision. 

• Will this candidate add talent to the team? 

• Will the candidate take ownership of their job responsibilities? 

• Will this candidate get along with the other team members? 

• Given my management style, can I manage this candidate? 

• If hired, how will I help this candidate learn, grow, and succeed – quickly? 

Extra Points 

By writing your answers down and refer to them as needed.  For example: Review your notes six months after the person begins working with you.  Is the person succeeding?  What did you learn? How can you improve your hiring skills?

Benefits 

• The new hire will have a better chance of fitting into your team’s culture. 
• More time leading the team and less time trying to fix a poor hiring decision. 
• Increased employee engagement and retention. 

       Focus…..Ownership…..Constantly Improving 

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Cost of a Bad Hire 

The cost of a bad hire can be significant, both in terms of financial losses and the damage to a company’s reputation. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the average cost of a bad hire is up to 30% of the employee’s first-year earnings. This means that for an employee who earns $50,000 per year, the cost of a bad hire could be as high as $15,000. 

The cost of a bad hire can be broken down into several categories, including: 

• Management time
• Direct costs: These costs include the salary and benefits paid to the employee, as well as the cost of recruiting and hiring a replacement. 
• Indirect costs: These costs include the loss of productivity, the damage to morale, and the cost of legal fees. 
• Opportunity costs: These costs include the loss of potential sales or revenue that could have been generated by a qualified employee. 

The cost of a bad hire can be even higher in certain areas, such as sales or customer service. In those areas, a bad hire can have a direct impact on the bottom line. For example, a poor salesperson could lose sales, or a bad customer service representative could damage your customer relationships. 

There are a number of things that employers can do to reduce the risk of hiring a bad hire. These include: 

• Use a structured hiring process: This process should include a thorough screening of resumes, interviews, and reference checks. 
• Use pre-hire assessments: These assessments can help to identify candidates who have the skills and abilities necessary for the job. 
• Get input from multiple people: This will help to ensure that all aspects of a candidate’s qualifications are considered. 
• Make sure the candidate is a good fit for the company culture: This will help to ensure that the candidate will be successful in the long term. 
• Be clear about the job requirements: Make sure that the job description is accurate and that the candidate understands what the job entails. 
• Ask the right questions: During the interview, ask questions that will help you to assess the candidate’s skills, knowledge, and abilities. Listen and ask follow up questions. 
• Pay attention to the candidate’s body language: Body language can often give you clues about the candidate’s true personality and fit for the job. 

By taking these steps, managers can reduce the risk of hiring a bad hire and save themselves a significant amount of time and the company money.

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Hiring – 7 Deadly Sins 

In many companies, HR professionals are the unsung heroes of the post-pandemic period.   

Recruiting is just one of their responsibilities, but it may be the most important.  Why?   Because it has an immediate effect on the company culture, employee engagement, safety, turnover, etc. The cost of a bad hire (management time and money) can be significant.