There’s no doubt that some days will be better than others. Employees are humans so it’s natural that they have off days. But the key for managers and HR professionals is getting consistency from your employees. This will allow you to keep progressing even on those days when not everything goes as planned. For HR professionals and managers who are looking to get solid, consistent work, it all comes down to planning and preparation.
In order to get consistent performance from employees, the process needs to start with new hires and training. Naturally, HR professionals and managers are very busy and this is never more true than when a position needs to be filled. Unfortunately what ends up happening all too often is that the new hire is given minimal information to start the job. While some new employees can definitely hit the ground running, putting time and effort into a training system will actually result in consistent performance for new and current employees alike. Because each employee has unique skills and strengths, they will approach their jobs differently. But you can’t have your employees giving different answers and treatments to customers. Make sure your new employees know your process so they can start off on the right foot and transition into the company as smoothly as possible. Managers and HR professionals should also check in regularly with the whole team to make sure everyone is on the same page.
Though it may not make sense at first, another idea that HR professionals and managers can use to boost consistency among employees is actually to give them more authority to make decisions on their own. But how could this lead to consistent performance? Many businesses of all varieties often attempt to give employees minimal authority and anything that falls outside of those rules needs to come through a manager. This can often lead to unhappy customers if they have to wait for answers or get passed around from person to person. If you actually give employees a set of rules to apply in certain situations, say, when a customer is trying to return something, your customers will actually be getting consistent performance because each employee knows what needs to be done and said. This is also a great way for managers and HR professionals to empower employees and give your company a consistent, strong face.
If you’re seeking consistent performance from employees, then you need to give consistent praise. It’s natural for HR professionals and managers to click with some employees more than others on a personal level, but praise and projects need to be distributed based on performance. If one employee gets praise for merely showing up while another employee is totally overlooked despite their stellar work, you can’t exactly inspire continued performance. The goal is to get everyone to do a great job, but this will only happen if managers and HR professionals are consistent themselves.
Getting consistency from your employees will take work but it’s more than possible and worth the effort. Consistency from start to finish on all levels will do the trick.
