Leaders do not always leverage the strengths of their team, which puts them at risk of losing their top talent. I’ve read several articles from consulting firms and from the Harvard Business Review about employee retention. They all come to the same basic conclusions and virtually never does it have anything to do with compensation. So, what are the three most significant reasons that people quit their jobs? (1) Bored - they were not being challenged in their current role; (2) Underutilized - their strengths were not being utilized; (3) Ignored - their employer was not interested in their future. Here is a suggestion that touches on all three reasons and it costs you nothing more than some of your time – which I understand is valuable.
In your next team meeting with your direct reports ask them to pull out their planners. Tell them you want to schedule an hour-long meeting with each of them next week. The focus of the meeting will be on how to more effectively utilize their strengths. To prepare for the meeting each of them is to complete a 1-page M/S Word template – which you supply – that identifies the following:
(1) Improvement Projects – What are the three most significant projects our organization is working on to improve our overall business performance and what are the specific goals and objectives of each project? (Note, this question tests two things: Do we in fact have up to three business improvement projects underway, because some organizations do not. Can they name the improvement projects and the goals/objectives for each? If there are improvement projects and they are not familiar with them, more than likely they will increase their awareness before you meet with them.
(2) Prioritized Strengths – Identify and describe your three most significant strengths - maybe the ones you would plan to communicate to a potential employer if you were preparing to interview for a position you highly desired - inside or outside the company.
(3) Strength Application – Pick one of the prioritized business improvement projects and explain, specifically, how we could begin to more effectively utilize your strengths on this particular project.
(4) Benefits – Describe the specific measurable benefits we and you would realize by applying that strength on that particular project.
(5) Barriers and Solutions – Identify the most significant barrier that prevents us from utilizing your strength on this project and then explain what needs to be done to overcome that barrier.
Meet with each person. During this meeting your role as the leader is to listen and understand – not to critique. Summarize the input received from each team member. Send the summary out to each direct report.
Then meet as a team. Each team member will review and discuss their input for items 1 - 5 above. The primary outputs for this meeting will be: (1) Clear understanding of the top three business improvement projects and the associated goals and objectives; (2) Alignment on three specific actions, along with accountability and timing, that will be taken to improve the performance on the project/s identified.
At the end of this meeting the team should complete an After-Action Review: (1) What was supposed to happen in this meeting? What actually happened? What went well and why? What did not go as well as it could have and why did that happen? When we have a meeting like this in the future what three things could we do differently that would help us create a better result?
There are numerous approaches that can be taken to increase retention and to engage your top-talent. If you want to learn more about our Results-Driven Leadership Development approach, contact Incline Insights, LLC
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