Manager's Minute 

When you've only got a minute for management you haven't got a minute to waste.

Clarify the INTENT of the task.

Much of the conflict in the workplace is caused by a lack of accurate instruction and the assumption that the person being instructed knows what to do. Something that I hear so often is "But they should have known what to do/how to do it" and my answer is always "Sure, I agree. But did you make sure that they knew?"

Let me give you an example.

One of our clients has a garden centre and was having a "performance" problem with one of the employees who was tasked with watering the pot plants. The problem was that she was either over watering them or under watering them and as a result the quality of the plants was not good.

When I was called in to "discipline" this employee I first did some investigation. This is a critical step to uncovering the "real" issue that is causing the problem rather than reacting to the presumed cause of the problem.

Q. What was she employed to do?

A. She was employed to water the pot plants.

Q. What was she told to do?

A. Water the plants every Tuesday and Friday.

Q. Was she carrying out this instruction

A. Yes. But. When it's hot she should water more often and when it rains she should water less.

Q. Have you explained this to her?

A. No. She ought to know.

Q. Why do you water the plants?

A. To keep them healthy and in a saleable condition.

Q. What do you have to do to keep them healthy and saleable?

A. Keep the soil they grow in, at optimum moisture levels.

Q. How do you do that?

A. By testing the soils moisture content and watering only if necessary.

Q. Could you teach her to do that?

A. Yes.

Q. If she did that would you, and your plants be happy?

A. Yes.

You see the problem here was that the focus was on the task and not on the intent.

The intent was to keep the plants healthy by keeping the soil at optimum moisture levels.

The task given was to water twice a week when the task should have been to test the moisture content of the soil every day and to water if necessary to keep the soil moisture at optimum levels, so that the plants stay healthy and saleable.

Always take the time to clarify the intent of the job and then ensure that the tasks deliver the intent.

That's it for today, I look forward to your comments and experiences related to this message. Mail them to me at johan@motivate.co.za

PS: Please pass this message on to any of your business colleagues you feel may benefit from it.

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Quote for the week

Leadership is the activity of deliberately taking a group of people in a specific direction.

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Did You Know?

To be given the "sack", meaning to be dismissed, stems from the time when craftsmen would supply their own tools. When taken on for a job, they would give in their sack of tools and it would be kept "on-site" so they didn't have to carry it everywhere.

If the worker was no longer wanted, or needed, on site he would simply be given his sack of tools and that was a clear sign that this job was over.

Definitely no CCMA, Unions or Labour Tribunals in those days. But look at what they achieved. Monuments we still marvel at today.

To live your best life be true to the YOU, that you want to be.

Live with passion. Change your life from making a living to making a difference.

Live up to the reputation that you want to have.