Maybe you consider yourself to be a good employer. Maybe your employees believe you to be, or, maybe not. If you have had difficulty managing employees, it may be useful to learn a little about some things you can do to become a better employer. Managing people is hard work and takes a lot of practice, patience, and time.
Regardless of whether you are a small farm with only family labor or you employ several people, communication is probably one of the major labor-related challenges you face. For good business communication, everyone in the business needs to take responsibility for making sure information flows to the people who need it. Miscommunication can have many negative effects, including the potential to cost you money, time, opportunities, and can increase the exposure to potential risks. It is the manager’s job to be constantly aware of all the ways miscommunication can happen. It is also important for managers to take proactive steps to prevent miscommunication whenever possible.
One way to prevent miscommunication is to think of communication as coming in two different types: “Hard” and “Soft.” Hard communication refers to the written materials that should already be in place to prevent problems and is the easiest form of communication for most people. Hard communication refers to black and white facts and figures and is frequently accomplished through signs, handbooks, notes, and other ways that communicate simple pieces of information. Something as simple as a bulletin board to post notes, notices, and general information employees need to do their job is a good example of this type of communication. A checksheet that communicates how to complete routine tasks, such as cleaning the milking system, are another example of hard communication. To complete these will require an investment of time and resources and will likely not be completed overnight. The advantage of using hard communication instruments is that they will communicate for you, especially if you tend to shy away from interpersonal communication. Although important to have in place, these will never serve as a substitute for good interpersonal communication.
Soft communication is, for most, a much more difficult form of communication because it involves conveying feelings and emotions. This form is also sensitive to personalities and is usually accomplished through honest conversations between individuals.
One of the best and most important communication instruments is a job description. Job descriptions are important because all too often employees and employers have different perceptions about what an employee’s responsibilities are and how those responsibilities relate to the overall business. The job description allows managers and employees to each have the same expectations about what is required to be successful. Job descriptions can also be used when recruiting, interviewing, and selecting job applicants.
Not only will job descriptions assist your present employees, but will be especially useful when selecting a new employee. Selecting employees is a process of making a long-term decision based on a short-term encounter. If you don’t have time to do something right the first time, how are you going to find time to do it a second time? Employee turnover is a tremendous headache for managers and costs the business in many ways.
Evaluating applicants can be done using a variety of methods, including written applications, interviews, tests, and checking references. Written applications are useful because they can determine an applicant’s literacy level and basic technical knowledge. Interviews might also test knowledge, but they also reveal a lot about personality. Assuming you have two equally qualified candidates, personality is often a determining factor in which candidate is offered the job.
Interviews are a very popular selection tool, but like anything else, you only get out of the process what you put into it. Involving future co-workers in the process of developing questions and participating in the interview process is encouraged because your present employees know best the jobs to be done and, because they will be working day-to-day with this person, their opinions should be considered. It is difficult to do, but as you interview applicants, avoid basing your decisions on first impressions and do not make up your mind until you have interviewed all applicants. Make certain you ask all applicants the same questions and take notes during the process. After each interview, take a few minutes to compare notes and summarize your thoughts.
Managing people is sometimes difficult even for the best managers. However, investing time and effort to build good communication systems, creating and using job descriptions, and using suggested interview techniques can help make you a better employer.
If you have an interest in employee management, you may want to consider attending the Employee Management for Production Agriculture conference scheduled December 8 & 9 in Kansas City, Missouri. For more information on this conference, see the article immediately below.
(Adapted from materials developed by Sarah Fogleman, Kansas State University Extension.)