To counsel an employee for a performance issue you need to gather all the facts and follow specific steps to have a positive outcome. As a manager you will need to be tactful, specific and timely when dealing with the issue. Observe The Performance Issue Before you counsel an employee about a performance issue you need to observe their on-the-job behavior. This way when you meet with them you … [Read more...]
Salary Calculator For IT Professionals
Have you ever wondered how your salary ranks among fellow professionals in your area? Robert Half Technology has added a salary calculator for information technology professionals. Knowing the average starting salary and salary range for a specific position is useful information. Enter your zip code, select your area of IT, then select professionals to find salary data for you or employers to … [Read more...]
How To Deal With Low Morale in The Workplace
Problems with morale in the workplace are more obvious now. Employees are worried about the economy and possibly their jobs. Let us assume for this article that economic worries are not the reason for low morale in your workplace. I wrote an article a few months ago called “Tough Times Call For Strong Leadership” that addresses that issue. There are any number of reasons low morale can creep into … [Read more...]
How To Use Progressive Discipline for Employees
As managers we all must deal with employee issues from time to time. You should have an established process for dealing with them. Your goal is to correct the issue and improve the employee. This is not about punishment for an employee. It is about using a system to help the employee return to being an effective member of your team. In this article I will outline the steps used in progressive … [Read more...]
What Makes Employees Happy?
A happy employee is a more productive and content employee. So what makes an employee happy with their job? A good salary, with good benefits and a good work environment only go so far. Employees want job satisfaction, they want to feel like they are a part of something and that their contributions are appreciated. Recognition This is one of the biggest complaints employees have. They feel their … [Read more...]
What to Do With Under Performing Employees
Turn an under performing employee around by couching, motivating the employee, giving them clearly defined expectations and make sure they are fully trained. Every company has some "ducks." Ducks are employees who have a detrimental effect on productivity. Their work is consistently substandard, they rarely meet deadlines, and their skills are out of date. They hate change, resist taking … [Read more...]
IT Contract Work Has Full-Time Potential
If you have been trying to get a full-time IT position and have found few opportunities one option to try is contract work. Right now contract work may be your best option for landing a full-time position. A recent survey of CIOs across the United States revealed that nearly 73 percent think it is beneficial to bring in prospective employees on a contract basis before hiring them in full-time … [Read more...]
Management Tool – Employee Performance Log (PLog) System
There are many times when a manager needs to recall facts and information about an employee. During performance reviews and dealing with disciplinary issues top the list. As a manager one tool I have found to be very useful for this task is keeping an employee performance log (PLog) for each of my reports. An employee performance log is a written record of performance issues, kudos and any … [Read more...]