How to be a better boss

How does a company start? It all begins with an idea. Then, the entrepreneur looks for funding. Only after these two major steps are met, can the company start doing business. Naturally, as a company grows, it hires more employees to manage all the incoming customers and new tasks. However, an entrepreneur’s work doesn’t end with hiring employees: One also has to excel at being a boss. It may be easy to forget, but being a good boss is work that never ends. However, some may not understand what it means to be a good boss, and why it is so important.

“Every successful business needs three essential elements: a good product, a sufficient flow of funds, and good management,” said Ofir Bar, a veteran investor who has a special interest in young startups and innovators. “Good management isn’t a perk. It’s a necessity. Too many entrepreneurs tend to forget that. They may have a brilliant idea or product, and endless funds. However, if they don’t know how to manage their employees well, their business is in serious danger of collapsing.”

The boomerang effect

Employees who feel the business cares about them as people and not only as workers tend to reflect this positive feeling back to the business and its clients. This is a well-known fact, yet many employers tend to neglect it when facing their demanding everyday tasks. Maintaining good relations with one’s workers is, therefore, a necessity, not a luxury. Having a positive relationship with one’s workers means a few things.

• * It means asking for their opinion and feedback on work-related matters. It’s important to keep in mind that a company’s ‘people in the field’ have a different perspective on the company’s conduct, so they may have some interesting insights about what can be improved. Asking employees for their opinion also makes them feel valued and encouraged.

• * It means acknowledging both high and low performance. Business owners never forget to criticize their employees when they underperform, but many neglect appreciation of workers’ high performance. Acting this way will most definitely discourage employees and make them look for other places to work. That doesn’t mean to say one shouldn't criticize their employees when it’s needed, but it’s essential to balance the good and bad reviews. Studies show acknowledging good performance motivates employees more than bonuses.

Expectations and communication

Good communication, as can be understood, is key to maintaining a healthy relationship between a manager and their employees. It also translates into these:

• Communicating one’s vision to their employees - It’s important to help workers understand why they do what they do. Knowing this will get them involved and interested in assisting the company in reaching its goals.

• Being clear about performance expectations from their employees - Adding this work frame will help workers get a better understanding of when they are not meeting the requirements or deadlines. As a result, they’ll be able to adjust their performance to what is expected from them. Since a company’s expectations from its employees may change over time, it's also important to keep one’s workers up to date about what is expected from them.

• Helping them see the broader picture - Once workers see how their daily tasks help the company achieve its goals, they are likely to be more motivated. Sometimes, employees entrusted with somewhat repetitive work may lose their drive. Showing them the end results of their work can encourage them.

• As mentioned before, giving feedback to employees is essential. It’s also important to know how to give this feedback. The most popular and successful approach for this is a kind of a sandwich method: The feedback starts and ends with positive remarks, while the negative statement comes in between them. Keep in mind that employees might not be aware that they aren’t meeting their requirements.

The job itself isn’t the issue

Most people spend about a third of their adult life at work. Therefore, if they don’t enjoy, in some manner, the time they spend at the workplace, it will slowly but steadily get filled with bitter employees. Needless to mention, this is far from an ideal situation for one’s business. It’s true that most workplaces don’t offer jobs that are ‘fun’. However, it’s not about the job itself. It’s about all the things surrounding it. Investing in team development is not cheap, but well worth it. How can this be done?

• * By incorporating events, activities, parties, yearly subsidized vacations, and so on. Once employees have something to look forward to, their performance is likely to increase.

• * By hiring social people, who love teamwork, and bringing a good spirit into the workplace.

• * Task delegation helps employees feel engaged while allowing the management team to be free for other tasks. Once they are directly involved in the company’s success, employees will care more about the company’s performance. Needless to say, delegation means the manager trusts their employees. What else can motivate workers better than this?

The chicken and the egg

Employee management is one of the most important fundamentals of a successful company. Without this done well, a business cannot expect success. Being a successful manager means being a leader, and it takes everlasting work. “Any company is as good as its employees, and employees perform well when they have respect for their boss and the workplace,” Bar added. “The employees are the ambassadors of a company. When business owners ask for my advice, I always remind them of this: Treat your employees well, and they will treat your business well.”