SAVE | EMAIL | PRINT | MOST POPULAR |  RSS | | REPRINT
|
On the Front Lines
June 24, 2009
By Cynthia Kincaid
Given the economic tsunami currently gripping the country, front-line managers will be the cornerstone of future organizational success. Managing both themselves and their employees in this environment, however, can be difficult to say the least. But there are concrete actions that, if taken now, can help everyone weather this financial crisis.
"Companies often underestimate the value of front-line managers, especially in an economic downturn," says Jocelyn Davis, executive vice president of The Forum Corporation, a global consulting company that works with organizations on strategy execution. "If you can get your managers to do just a few simple things, it will have a huge impact on performance in these difficult times."
A manager's behavior, she says, accounts for about 70 percent of the difference in climate from one organization to another, so training managers to act and work effectively in the current organizational environment can have a more powerful and far-reaching impact than anything else right now.
At 2009 Training Top 125 winner Farmers Insurance, the University of Farmers, Exchanges, for example, established a three-level management leadership development program that identifies and involves top potential talent in programs that prepare them for the next step in their career. The first phase of that program, Claims Leadership Development, prepares front-line claims representatives for promotion to supervisor, and includes:
• A behavioral-based interview.
• Four- to five-week field experience, guided by manager and supervisor, and supported by field trainers and human resources specialists.
• Sponsorship by line-of-business vice president and a second senior manager.
• Participation in a two-week University of Farmers, Exchanges symposium covering supervisory responsibilities, leadership of high-performance teams, developing and retaining talent, coaching and performance management, and leading through change.
Elements of Success
According to Davis, there are six elements a manager needs to measure and pay attention to within the organization to achieve managerial success:
1. Clarity is the degree to which people understand the organization, its goals, and the requirements of their own job. "Managers need to explain tasks thoroughly when they are assigned to people and show how those things fit the organization's goals," says Davis.
2. A standard is the extent to which people feel high ideals and improved performance are expected of them. "In an economic downturn, managers might be tempted to back off of people," Davis says, "but insisting on establishing and maintaining high performance standards, and helping people meet those standards, can be motivating, especially in difficult times."
3. Commitment is the degree to which people are dedicated to achieving their goals and contributing to the success of the organization. Managers must involve their people in setting their own goals, advises Davis.
4. Responsibility is the degree to which people feel personally responsible for their work and accountable for solving problems. "Encourage people to initiate tasks and exercise their own judgment on things they think are important," Davis says. "Trust people to do the right thing."
5. Recognition is the degree to which people feel they are rewarded and recognized for doing good work. Says Davis, "It's especially important in times like these to be extremely generous in public with non-monetary recognition."
6. Teamwork is more important than ever in helping people feel like they belong to an organization that is characterized by cohesion and trust. "There is a tendency in this kind of environment for people to get stuck in their silos and focus on their group. The danger is in developing an 'us against them' mentality," says Davis. "Managers must encourage people to collaborate across the organization."
Commitment and Communication
Many of these approaches will foster a commitment that can support the organization in employee contribution—and retention—now and in the future. "[Organizations] may not have a big risk of people leaving physically right now, but they have a huge risk of them leaving psychologically," says Dr. Brian Davis (no relation to Jocelyn Davis), executive vice president of Personnel Decisions International. Front-line managers, he says, have a unique opportunity to help employees feel they are a valued part of the organization, each with a unique contribution to offer. "They need to have some specific things they can monitor, so at the end of the day, they have some feedback about whether or not what they did made a difference," he says.
Dr. Davis also stresses the need for organizations to communicate to their front-line managers and for their managers to communicate just as clearly to their direct reports. "That's because in the face of uncertainty, people just make up their own truths, which is usually worse than the actual truth."
Jocelyn Davis couldn't agree more. "It's important to be brutally honest with people about the situation and tell them you don't necessarily know when it's going to get better, but that you are confident it will get better, and you will make it through together," she says.
Managing the Power
The current economic climate has sparked a rise in frustration and anger, as budgets are cut, workloads pile up, and people are laid off. Front-line managers, says Jocelyn Davis, need to recognize the power and control they wield over managing the temperature, both their own, and that of their organizational climate.
Adds Dr. Davis, front-line managers "have to engage their people. They've been going through salary reductions and reductions in force, and everyone is waiting for the next shoe to drop. Front-line managers must help employees understand how they are connected to the whole, what's expected of them, and how they can impact the company's future direction."
Quick Tips
• Recognize that you have enormous power to make a lasting impact on your organization.
• Thoroughly communicate with your superiors, peers, and direct reports.
• Establish and maintain high performance standards for yourself and your employees.
• Encourage people to take their own initiative in exercising good judgment.
• Spread praise around—you can't be too generous with it.
• Encourage and support collaboration across the organization.
• Maintain a positive and confident attitude.
• Take care of yourself—mentally, emotionally, and physically.
|
SAVE | EMAIL | PRINT | MOST POPULAR | RSS |
|
|
| Back to Marketing Index |
|
|
