All of those resolutions you made for yourself for 2014 — get healthier, save more money, and find work-life balance, etc. — are certainly worthwhile endeavors. But the best thing you can do for your business this year is become a stronger manager.
That’s because excellent managers encourage the best possible performance and, therefore, achieve the best results. Here are seven management goals to set for 2014.
- Provide better feedback. If employees don’t know they aren’t meeting your expectations, they can’t improve. You need to provide constructive feedback, which involves more than simply pointing out a mistake or commenting on a strength. Tell employees exactly how they fell short or went above and beyond. For example, instead of “You handled that customer complaint well,” say “You stayed calm, listened without interrupting, and asked the right questions to get to the root of the customer’s problem.”
- Set clearer objectives. You can purchase all sorts of software apps and do tons of work to streamline procedures, but if you don’t establish clearly defined goals for every employee — and yourself — productivity will suffer. Meet with each employee to set three or four long-term goals for 2014. Then, break those goals down into shorter-term (monthly or quarterly) targets that employees can realistically hit. Monitor their progress and make adjustments, if needed.
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