How many times you have heard employees talking about how they feel micro-managed, fearful of making mistakes and also feeling they are not trusted?
We all know that learning implies making mistakes, while I agree that sometimes it might be difficult to accept this learning process or trying new things because we are worried about the unexpected…It is all about making your employees accountable, knowing that they learn from their mistakes and giving them the trust they need to grow, as Kathryn says ” I would rather have people make mistakes and then learn from them“
I have reproduced this interview extract from an HR Director of Dine-in Restaurants at Pizza Hut.
Testing then trusting is my management style. I am not really into micro-managing. I give people the opportunity to grow but typically it is in return for them having been brilliant. Whenever I work with a new team, I tell them what I learned from participating in a leg of the Round the World Yacht Race in 2005. I joined the crew knowing nothing, but I remember seeing how people developed in the most amazing way, achieving things they never thought they could. If affected me a great deal.
There will be good days and bad days I am more directive and task-focused; on good days I am open to the most off-the-wall suggestions. The point is, I will give people permission to see me on a good and bad day, because that is how work sometimes is.
Giving substance is something I am stickler for. A lot of people have their personality to thank for their careers, but often there´s not much behind it. That can happen in HR because it´s all about having strong relationships, and in some cases this emerges as people thinking they need to be self-promoting and showy-often because they are desperate to prove themselves. As soon as I sniff politics, I turn off. Sometimes people really are too good to be true, and I don´t like players. If you have a positive mental attitude and back it up with delivery, that´s the magic combination that works for me. I´d rather have people make mistakes and then learn from them.
There is brilliance in everyone, but sometimes people are in the wrong job-often through self–promotion. In some of my teams I already have a plan for their long-term career, but for other I will rotate roles. I will helicopter people in if I think teams need a hand, but at the same time, I will rely on people, and I will relinquish control when I can depend on deliverability. I have promised myself I won´t be tempted to intervene.
For more information read People Management Magazine March 2013 http://www.cipd.co.uk/pm/
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