Closing advice
Investing in management training, regular communication with your team and being clear about what you expect from staff were among the panel’s closing tips.
Thanks to everyone who joined us for our live chat on how to be a good boss. Scroll down to read some of the highlights (in the blog) or the full chat (in the comments section).
Top tips for being a better boss:
1. Give clarity on what you expect from employees and what you/the organisation will give in return - from pay to objectives to career development ... everything.
2. See your role as boss as primarily a question of giving your workers the support they need to succeed.
3. Listen to their views.
Thanks Emma.
My top tip would have to be empower and motivate your team with regular meetings and team days. This is the backbone of your company, utilise there strengths, clarify there role and listen to their needs.
Never be above the work and show your employees that you have built your business and that you want them to be part of the journey.
Also read the E-Myth or 'Something that Matters' by Blake Mycoskies, there great tips in these for being a great leader.
Thanks Emma.
My top tip is have a 'work hard, play hard' mentality. Really important to have a bit of fun in the work environment to promote teamwork and morale. Doesn't have to be big extravagant Away days, it can be simple things like doing a Secret Santa for the team, little quizzes during team brief meetings or having a team lunch at the pub. People want to work in environments where they feel comfortable and it's about finding out what makes your team tick.
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The challenges of managing a freelance workforce
The panel’s thoughts on some of the downsides, and their advice on managing this type of employee effectively:
I think a key challenge is they don't feel part of the team and don't always feel like they are included in all communication.
My advise would be to treat them the same as the other team members as much as possible. Granted they will not always have the same fringe benefits as other team members but they should be included in all other activities as much as possible. For example, simple things like Xmas parties, find ways where they can attend if team members don't have a guest to take. Team away days or briefings. Ultimately they are contributing to the success of the company and you should try to recognise this as much as possible.
I totally agree freelancers should be treated like permanent employees as far as is possible. This is actually a really thorny and increasingly complex area, as this great research paper on temporary agency work by Forde & Slater argues http://www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/abs/10.1108/JOEPP-07-2016-0043 . It will be especially difficult where employers are outsourcing specifically to push down wages or make employment less secure (as opposed to doing because of a genuine business need for flexible labour)
I personally do use quite a few contractors and freelancers. The main challenges i have found it ensuring that they communicate with the rest of the team. Its important that you treat them as an extended arm to your company, with regular communication.
We have a on the ground sales team and they are based all across the UK including 1 in Ireland. We ensure we meet in the middle of the country once every 2 months as this enables us to all catch up on what is happening in the business and what are the objectives going forward. I have found that ensuring that the same messages are projected through the sales team can be difficult too.
Hiring: how to recruit the right person for a job
What are the secrets to hiring the right person the first time? What are some of the most common mistakes in the hiring process?
Our panel’s answers:
People join and leave businesses on the basis of their manager. An effective interview has to establish sufficient rapport to form the basis of a great working relationship.
In addition, the hiring manager needs to be crystal clear about the skills required for their organization, and the behavior and soft skills that the interviewee will need to demonstrate every day at work. Don't hire on qualifications alone, but on the potential that you see, and that you are committed to develop through training and coaching!
Get your criteria straight for what a good candidate is and STICK TO IT. This the best way to avoid bias that will stop you from hiring the best person for the job, as well as stopping you recruiting 'mini-me's' who all look and think the same as you!
You can't be right 100% of the time, however being an active part of the entire recruitment process can limit the risk of employing the wrong people. We see this with apprenticeships a lot. Most small business owners use training providers to recruit an apprentice, which can help deal with the administrative and time challenges but can also mean they are kept at a distance from the recruitment process. When this happens, it can lead to unsuitable appointments of a failure to meet expectations. Being involved in the recruitment and selection process from day 1 leads to much more successful outcomes all round. 2 in 3 small businesses retain their apprentice, according to our latest research.
Hiring is one of the hardest things to do. As when someone comes in for an interview they are going to be different from how they will act in the workforce, everyone puts on their best for the interview. This is why i think its so important when interviewing to try and to one interview outside the workplace, a more comfortable setting.
Its also great to get your PA to take the applicants around, they can get a feel for how they would fit in the business. The applicant will also be more relaxed.
Do not hire just anyone, always look for the YES GENE and never keep someone on who is not right for your business.
How to be a trusted leader
The panel offers tips on how to build your team’s trust as a manager or business owner.
You need to lead by example. And give a little trust for your employees to then trust you.
By showing your employees your trust them to do their job will empower them to do it well. This may mean giving them the chance to try out a new process, pitch a new idea to you or to manage their own time through flexible working.
This doesn't mean that they won't make mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes and by encouraging employees to take ownership and to learn from the slip ups will help them move on quicker with more confidence.
I think that this is comes down to being an empowered leader - and not being afraid to show it. It's about inspiring confidence. Leadership involves having a vision of where the company will be in the future. Successful business leaders will generate support for this vision and have an understanding of how it might be achieved. Our research shows that 77% of small business owners review their business strategies every 12 months. This can then be communicated with their staff to gain trust that they know the way forward.
According to ILM's research, a quarter of employees are lacking a trustworthy or inspirational leader. 31% of employees believe that the most important change they'd like to see in their leaders is that they get back onto the shop floor more often. This means getting onto the phones listening to customer complaints, getting out on the road meeting customers, getting involved in the business alongside their employees. It's actions like this that build trust.
At ILM we believe that effective leaders are authentic, and demonstrate humility. The days of command and control leadership are over - they aren't effective - and leaders gain the trust of their staff through being authentic leaders.
Focus on your strengths to improve performance
A helpful tip from Jonny Gifford, research adviser for organisational behaviour at the CIPD:
As others note, a coaching style works a treat in people mgt. So does FOCUSING ON STRENGTHS rather than weaknesses - it helps improve performance. We tend most naturally to think we can best improve our effectiveness as professionals by fixing our weaknesses but there's good research to show that we can be better off trying to understand what we've done well and then replicate that success in other areas. The 'feedforward' technique brings coaching style together with a strengths-based approach. It's worth looking at (see www.cipd.co.uk/coulddobetter for more discussion of this)
How do you cope with growing management responsibilities?
afternoon
i moved from a large business as a sales team manager to a small engineering company as a sale team manager.
at times i struggle do deal with the difference in size, i now report directly to a director and the board where before the layers in management were vast.
my question is how would you deal with the increase in responsibility and who and how you report to?
Our panel’s tips:
Hi Jack, good question! Small enterprises can be a very different beast from large businesses. However, at both ends of the spectrum, communication is key. I would argue that due to the fewer stages of management it will hopefully easier to share your views and points of view. There are many benefits to working in a small business, and this is one of them. Your role is much more visible - what an opportunity!
This is a personal view; I see every role change as an opportunity to learn. While it's always challenging to start with, the more the challenge, the faster you learn.
In your particular context I would say the following. A coach is very helpful when the change is so significant. Someone you can talk things through with, who isn't your boss; and a good coach will just help you to work out your own solutions, without much direction - so after a while you realise that you're doing fine by yourself. You may be fortunate enough to have a boss who is a good coach; but if you don't there are many great coaches out there - find one you trust and build from there.
Reporting to a Board in particular is challenging, and a coach with experience in sitting on Boards, reporting to them or even leading them, will give you some great frameworks to use as you think about your own position.
Hi Jack,
I went from being a small fish in a big pond to Director of the Typeface Group and I now do not report to anyone (the MD and I talk across the desk every day). It is a change, but just make sure that you are clear in what your responsibilities are and what is expected of you on a day to day, month by month basis. If you think you are being asked to do anything that you are unsure of or is not what you expected then ask.
We encourage our employees (there is no middle management) to speak to us if they are struggling, need support/training, not happy or they want to bounce an idea off us.
We also confirmed conversations like that in writing. Via email of course. So when I have spoken to one of our employees we then follow up the agreed points from the meeting in an email. And we expect them to do the same back to confirm that everything is understood.
But is sounds like you have been given a great opportunity and so relish it and take the chance to mould the role into the job you want it to be. The fact is in a small business often there are elements you have to do that aren't 'fun' but that is part of being part of a team that you can really make a difference in.
Does that help?
Natalie
To Jack Hayter, I have seen people move from big to small businesses and vice versa and find the culture change a challenge. You are not alone! In the smaller business the advantages of simplicity and transparency are big but some people are unaware of this fact.. None the less, you have a great opportunity. The first thing I would ask is 'does everyone have 100% clarity on their role?' Seems obvious but its a common miss. Work with your managers to establish not just clarity but also the correct role scopes. Often SMEs muddle though in this regard but this can be am impediment down the road.
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Managing employee expectations around wage increases
Reader Michelle Godfrey has asked about setting wages in a small firm.
Can you give some advice on how to manage employee expectations of wage increases? We are a small private company and can't set the "pay scales/grade" which some are used to from previous positions, as we can't predict the future. It seems to raise a lot of questions about when or how much a payrise would be
The panel suggests:
Great question. As a small business, my MD and I have this chat often. There are obvious times when wages increase - promotion and if minimum wage jumps up - but what about those in-between times?
Performance related pay can be a way to give a raise when it is 'earned' and perhaps introducing a commission scheme can mean that the staff can earn what they want if they want to.
Also, pay rises can be small. What would be the true effect on 1% increase on wages year on year, to you as a business versus recruiting a new member of staff? On average recruiting costs a business just over £8k....the pay rise won't be that. much.
This is an important question to address, and of course salaries are very important to people. But research suggests that career development is more important to people than salary. The benefits to an employee of working in a small business are that they will generally gain a broader range of skills more quickly than they will in a larger one. While their immediate career development opportunities may at first sight seem more limited, they are getting very marketable skills that will place them very well in the future. In addition, our research indicates that people are increasingly motivated by the opportunity to work flexibly, in flatter and more flexible cultures. So while you may not be able to match others' pay, you can provide a better environment than larger companies.
Our research also flags that 40% of 18-25 year-olds say that they want leadership responsibilities, but only 5% are given the opportunity; as a small business you can expose them to leadership development much more readily than larger companies.
Motivating staff
The panel are discussing what makes a happy and productive workforce. How can a small business owner give employee wellbeing enough time and attention while running a busy enterprise?
In terms of staff motivation, our recent research identified some issues with leaders that have a negative impact on staff. Nearly one in four employees say their leaders make them feel stressed. 55% of employees say the structure of their business is holding them back from doing their job more effectively, while 53% say the culture is doing the same. So leaders need to create a flexible working environment, have appropriate work-life balance, and provide a flatter, more collaborative structure, and way of working. Soft skills are vital in leaders, who need to recognize when staff are getting stressed out, and provide them with the room to relax and grow. By soft skills we mean skills like communication, collaboration, effective problem-solving.
It's our view fundamentally that the best leaders are coaches to their staff. The vital conversation - on a regular basis - is what is motivating to their people. They then need to provide the environment to foster this.
How do you start an employee engagement programme?
The first question comes from reader Kathy B:
“I‘d like to know is what the panel thinks is the most important factor in an employee engagement programme (ignoring great internal comms). What would you start with?”
Hi Kathy,
The most important thing for us is to find out what motivates our employees. Some it is money, some it is promotional options, some it is flexibility within the workplace to work the hours that they choose, some it is purely down the team that they are working with. I recommend identifying this early doors (even add it to the recruitment process and review during appraisals) and evolving it.
Hope that helps?
Natalie
Employee engagement programmes clearly need to address the issues that are top of minds among the employee community - so the first step is getting the right tool to survey staff, and then the right questions...follow up to the results is then absolutely critical, so you need skilled leaders and managers, and a great process, to take the results forward. We've found that there is a lack of appropriate leadership and management skills throughout businesses, and particularly among those who are managing for the first time. So particular focus on this cohort from the outset, and planning ahead, is critical.
Hi Kathy,
I would echo what Natalie says, talking to your team to understand what is important to them. Therefore communication is a vital ingredient to find ways to improve staff engagement.
The role of the manager is fundamental to employee motivation and wellbeing and it is important clear expectations are in place so each manager knows what is expected. It's often said people don't leave companies, they leave Managers.
David
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How to join in the discussion
Make sure you’re a registered user of the Guardian (if not, it’s quick to register) and join us in the comments section below, which will open on the day of the live chat.
What we'll be discussing
What makes a good boss? There are some surprises around employee engagement – for example, piling praise on an employee for completing difficult tasks could be detrimental to their work, according to a study by the Journal of Organizational Behavior.
While managing staff is one aspect of running a business, in small enterprises the owner usually has to also wear the hat of business leader, which comes with its own challenges.
According to research from the ILM, there is a “leadership lag” in the UK. It found 28% of UK workers feel they don’t have a trustworthy or inspirational leader, while 24% said the leaders in their organisation make them feel stressed.
As the head of a small business, you have to strike a balance between having high standards and being supportive of staff. At the same time, you have to juggle the responsibilities you have to your team, customers and, for some, investors.
Questions we’ll look to cover in this webchat include:
- What makes staff trust a business leader?
- What type of management or leadership training is most effective?
- How can you run an efficient small business without putting too much pressure on your staff?
- How do you effectively motivate staff?
- What are the new challenges of management in a modern workplace (including workforces that include freelancers and contractors)?
Our panel
Annie Peate, policy adviser, education and skills, at the Federation of Small Businesses.
John Yates, group director at the ILM.
Julianne Ponan, owner and CEO of Creative Nature and the winner of the Leader of the Year category in the Guardian Small Business Network’s Small Business Showcase awards, 2015-2016.
Jonny Gifford, research adviser for organisational behaviour at the CIPD.
David Hilbert, marketing director at Kia Motors UK.
Stephen Archer, director of Spring Partnerships. He is a leadership expert and business strategist.
Natalie Weaving, director at The Typeface Group, a digital marketing agency
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Submit a question
You can post questions in the comments section below during the chat. Or you can send questions in advance, or during the discussion, by emailing smallbusinessnetwork@theguardian.com or by tweeting us at @GdnSmallBiz with your question.
Closing tip: Small business are like families, and you can learn a lot from them. We’ve seen businesses with apprentices really nurture staff and support particularly young or inexperienced staff as they develop. Being a good boss is also about recognising when people need less formal and more personal support and championing and building-on their strengths.
Also, don't discount formal leadership and management training. It's crucial to honing your skills, which in turn can be pass onto others. Find out what's out there to suit your needs and give it a go. You can only benefit.