Personnel issues, if left unaddressed, can create chaos and derail business operations. Remember, when working with others, there are no absolutes. You need to organize principles and solutions to meet needs.
Here are four ways to organize solutions.
- Delegate responsibility – In his ground-breaking book, The Effective Executive, Peter Drucker points out the mark of a successful leader is his ability to “use all the available strengths: the strength of associates, the strength of supervisors, and one’s strength.” Delegating responsibility is an opportunity to develop team members by challenging them to grow their skills.
- Maintain a proper balance – To achieve workplace balance, it’s important to cultivate self-awareness and understand your needs and limits. Balance involves moving past doing the things we know we can do and moving toward new levels. When I consider balance, the acronym SMART comes to mind: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. This framework helps me create clear and effective goals.
- Make planning a team effort – In Sharpening the Focus of the Church, Gene Getz urges us to “take an approach to problem-solving and decision-making that takes into consideration the attitudes and feelings of all those who are directly involved.” Before enacting a plan, communicate your idea to the people responsible for its implementation. You may find the need to make revisions. You want to be sure all those involved with a plan’s implementation are motivated. Make it a team effort.
- Solve problems creatively – Don’t allow yourself to get locked into administrative methods and routines. Circumstances vary with each problem and solution. Be creative, expect alternative options, and solicit suggestions.
Still in the people business
No matter how digitized our lives are becoming with technology, we are still in the people business. Keep the implementation of your personnel strategies as simple as possible. Delegate responsibilities fairly, maintain workforce balance, make planning a team effort, and by all means, be creative!
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