Why Won’t My Staff Work As Hard As I Do?

By Perminus Wainaina

When my business was new, it used to irritate me when I found an employee not living up to their potential and, in some cases doing the bare minimum. I couldn’t understand why someone who had promised so much during the interview now seemed only eager for the paycheck and always looking at the clock.

With time it dawned on me that as a business owner and manager, the reality is that the way I look at things and the business is very different from how an ordinary employee does. It’s all about the salary to a typical employee, while it’s something bigger for me.

While it might be perfectly fine for them to leave things for tomorrow and not go that extra mile, as a business owner or manager, it’s not the case. More often than not, you have to go that extra mile to ensure that the business is running smoothly.

However, there are instances you hire an employee and they are not your ordinary employee. The staff buys into your vision and mission and is willing to give their best, go that extra mile, and do their best, but for some reasons you could be unknowingly sabotaging their efforts.

Employees fail to perform for a couple of reasons. Still, when I’m training managers and leaders, they get surprised when they realize they may be contributing to their employee’s lack of performance by not practising effective leadership and management skills.

Today, I’ll look at some of the reasons your employee could not be giving their best because of a problem of your own making.

Reason #1: Employees don’t know what’s expected of them.

One primary reason employees don’t perform well is that they aren’t aware of the work standards they should maintain. Managers don’t help them set goals and targets, and thus there is no motivation to achieve them.

Without clear written performance targets, employees don’t feel inclined to take the initiative and perform at higher levels. Unfortunately, many SMEs and medium-sized companies have weak HR structures that lack written targets/KPIs.

What to do about it: The first step is to clarify jobs and provide detailed job descriptions with KPIs (key performance indicators). Employees should have a clear understanding of what is expected of them.

There should be clarity on tasks needed to be accomplished and accountability processes. Hold them accountable for what they do and do so regularly. It’s the only way to ensure consistent performance from your staff. If you want our help in developing targets, reply to this email.

Reason #2:You don’t know them at a personal level

As a manager, you need to understand the strengths and weaknesses of each of your team members. You must consider how a person works, interacts and what motivates them.

If you keep assuming that everyone else is like you, you are likely to hit a number of stumbling blocks, and the work at hand will only be affected.

What to do about it:Make sure you are in constant communication with your employees and personalize the interaction. Endeavour to know them at a personal level.

Reason #3: Employees don’t know what’s in it for them

Do you think your employees are aggressive when it comes to salary, but they underperform on company obligations? Some employees perform well with directives, but most want to know why they are given a task and what it will accomplish. They want to be part of the bigger picture and would perform at their optimum levels when they develop ownership of the project/work.

What to do about it: Let the staff understand their contribution to the bigger picture and provide them with the necessary support to deliver. Avoid micromanaging.

Reason #4: Employees lack the skills needed for the job

The problem here is one of human resources. A new recruit who graduated with a degree in marketing may not be able to deliver in the finance department. When your employees don’t know how it’s done, the most obvious solution is to train them.

Have your subordinates been given on-the-job training to gain knowledge and develop essential skills to produce the desired output? Also, have the employees been equipped with appropriate tools, resources and support to complete their tasks?

What to do about it: Make sure that you get the right employees with the required skillset for a certain position and ensure that the staff is trained regularly. 

Reason #5: Changes at the organizational level

One reason behind employees being unwilling to perform at their job could be rapid changes in the work environment.

Consider this – when a business transitions from a small organization to a more professional one, it requires leadership and employee accountability changes. Some workers may resist this accountability, thinking that it doesn’t apply to them due to their long-time presence within the business.

What to do about it: Always ensure that change is handled well within the organization. However, if you’ve done all you could and an employee is unwilling to change, then separation is an option. However, ensure that termination is done legally and ethically.

Conclusion

The performance of employees and the business as a whole can be significantly improved if managers and leaders learn and practice a few simple leadership skills, including how to set clear expectations and motivate employees.

Motivated employees will certainly work more efficiently. But more importantly, they will work at a higher level. They will be better team members, work more cooperatively, be more creative, and be more dedicated and committed to the organization.

Improve your manager’s leadership and people management skills by sponsoring them for leadership training. For more, visit this leadership training link.

Perminus Wainaina is the C.E.O. of Corporate Staffing Services Ltd. An HR firm based in Westlands, Nairobi. He works with business owners and top managers, helping them solve their most pressing employee/people management issues. If you have a pressing employee issue, reply to events@corporatestaffing.co.ke,  and we shall organize a meeting.