Creating a Proper Workplace Environment

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Creating a Proper Workplace Environment

• March 2006

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HIRING PROCESS

• Maintaining Positive Workplace Environment
• Getting it Back!

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• Communication!
• Communication!
• Communication!

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HIRING PROCESS

• JOB DESCRIPTIONS
• What is expected of employee?
• Qualifications
• Experience
• Essential Functions

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• Provide Job Description to Applicants
• Have the Job Description Available While
  Interviewing Candidates
• Last Question Do you have any concerns about
  meeting the responsibilities listed on the job
  description?

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MAINTAINING POSITIVEWORKPLACE ENVIRONMENT

• Hold Administrators Accountable
• Superintendent, Human Resources Director, and
  Business Administrator Cannot Do It Alone
• Certificated Administrators Need to Improve
  People Management Skills

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• P Provide a positive working environment
• R Recognize, reinforce and reward individual
  efforts
• I Involve and engage everyone
• D Develop the potential of your workforce
• E Evaluate and hold managers accountable
• Work z Benefits of a Great work Environment

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• Communication
• Consistency
• Courtesy

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• Communication
• Do your employees hear what you are
• saying?
• Have you communicated goals objectives and
  procedures clearly?
• Exercise

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Why Do New Hires Fail?

• 40 of new hires fail within 18 months
• 26 fail because they cannot accept feedback
• 23 fail because they do not understand the
  responsibilities
• 17 fail because they have the wrong temperament
  for the job
• 11 fail because they lack technical skills
• statistics provided by Leadership IQ

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• How Do We Interpret What We Hear?
• Article

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Obstacles To Good Listening (Communication)

• We hear faster than someone can speak
• Our brain creates mental pictures of what we hear
• We take side trips daydream
• Our brain searches for correct meaning
• Focusing on internal and external distractions

• We do not always interpret the word in the way it
  was meant
• The way something sounds can be even more
  important than what is being said
• Jumping to conclusions or prejudices prevents us
  from listening

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• Focus
• Take Notes
• Ask Questions

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CONSISTENCY

• Treat Employees Fairly
• Give Praise When It Is Deserved
• If a position or person In the office or dept.
  has rank state it from the beginning
• Flexibility is necessary, but do not go beyond
  benefits covered in the collective bargaining
  agreement or company policy

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EVALUATIONS

• Managers must complete evaluations at least on an
  annual basis
• Evaluation should be based upon employees
  ability to complete responsibilities associated
  with the job description
• Avoid Evaluation Inflation

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COURTESY

• Ask for feedback - Communication should not be
  one way
• If employee needs discipline or corrected, do it
  in private (generally not a public issue)
• Unsatisfactory Evaluation
• Provide Corrective Action
• If employee does not respond positively
• Move to dismiss

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EMPLOYEE FEEDBACK

• Climate Survey
• - Identifies issues important Employee Groups
• - Identifies employee group satisfaction
• - Results can be skewed
• (on-going collective bargaining)
• Employee Evaluation of Administrators
• - Another source to identify administrator
  strengths weaknesses
• - Do Employee evaluations agree with District
• - Results can be skewed
• (collective bargaining, employee discipline,
  policy enforcement)

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MOTIVATORS(Business Model)

• Conceptual Deal with Facts/Realty
• Aesthetic Visual Awareness of Their
  Environment
• Economic Common interest in economic gain
• Power Authority Enjoy influence and seek
  positions of power
• Social Concern for others equal opportunity
  enhances an organization
• Doctrine Support tradition and customs
  Loyalty
• Success Performance Solutions (scales for each
  category 0 100)

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INCENTIVES

• - Bonuses
• - Safety Awards
• - Gift Certificates
• - Paid Time Off
• Incentives can be difficult in a union atmosphere

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GETTING BACK!!

• FIRST RULE
• Never Let It Go!
• This Rule is not realistic
• Promotion
• Transfer
• You Change Jobs

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NEGATIVE WORKPLACE ENVIRONMENT

• Generally the result of some type of conflict
• Office Politics
• Personality Conflicts Between Employees
• Between Employee Supervisor
• Union Sentiment
• Employee Just Does Not Like Working for A Living

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You Take Control!

• If you are new to the position as Supervisor
  inform your Department employees that you will
  review the procedures and the entire operation of
  the Department
• Following that review you will advise the
  employees of any recommended changes
• Mini Entry Plan
• Do Not set an arbitrary deadline unless it is
  required

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CONFLICT RESOLUTION

• Methods
• Negotiation
• Mediation
• Arbitration
• Litigation

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• Negotiation.Self Control
• Mediation.Third Party Control
• ArbitrationNo Control
• Litigation..No Control

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RESOLVE OFFICE CONFLICTS

• DICTATOR Risk High Turnover
• NEGOTIATOR Tell the parties to resolve it
  themselves
• Risk Gridlock
• MEDIATOR You are the mediator

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OBJECTIVE CRITERIA

• What are the issues?
• Are they work related?
• If non-work related, issue stops at the workplace
  door
• Put yourself in their places!!

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SEPARATE THE PEOPLE FROM THE PROBLEM

• What is fact?
• What is perception?
• Advise parties to deal with facts

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CONSIDER SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES

• WAGES
• BENEFITS
• HOURS
• WORK RESPONSIBILITIES
• Getting To Yes, Without Giving In

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CONSIDER RELATIONSHIP ISSUES

• Balance of emotion and reason
• Ease of communication
• Degree of trust and reliability
• Degree of mutual understanding
• Getting to Yes Without Giving In

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IDENTIFY OPTIONS TO RESOLVE ISSUES

• Distribute responsibilities
• Provide opportunities for improvement
• Enforce policies everyday
• Organization comes first!
• If the solution solves the employees problem,
  but hurts the organization, then it is not a
  solution.

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GOALS

• 1. Define the problem.
• 2. Identify a mutually acceptable solution that
  is good for the employees and the organization.
• Develop or re-develop a working relationship.
• Employees do not have to like each other, but
  they must work together to achieve Department/
  Organization goals.

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• Do Not Ignore Employee Issues!
• If they cannot resolve it themselves you must
  decide based upon the facts and what is good for
  the organization.

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HIGHLY EFFECTIVE PEOPLE

• Be Proactive
• Begin With The End In Mind
• Put First Things First
• Think Win-Win
• Seek First To Understand Then To Be Understand
• Synergize
• Sharpen The Saw
• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Franklin
  Covey

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PRINCIPLES OF LEADERSHIP

• Pathfinding
• No involvement, No commitment
• Aligning
• The parts affect the whole, and the whole
  affects the parts
• Empowering
• Different needs, different approaches
• 4. Modelling
• Trust is built from the inside out
• The 4 Roles of Leadership, Franklin Covey

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COMMUNICATION

• Consistency in a changing workplace
• Courtesy
• Control Balanced Control