Newspaper Page Text
12A
JULY 31,1997 AUGUSTA FOCUS
Plagued with poor performance? Seek out the hidden causes
Poor employee performance is
caused by many factors. It is not
uncommon for a supervisor to
blame poor performance on lack
of motivation or on an initial
error in hiring selection by the
company. Without taking the
time to identify the true causes
of unacceptable work, the man
ager risks making a costly mis
take. The simple way to solve
the problem is to fire the em
ployee and rehire. On the sur
face, this simple solution is actu
ally very costly, often unfair, and
agreat drain on time, energy and
resources for the organization. Of
ten performance problems are
caused by poor management or
inadequate system, not bad em
ployees. Consider the fllowing
non-performance issue.
They are confused about
what to do
Very few people thrive in am
biguoussituations. Employees who
must guess what you wish them to
doorare confused by unclear direc
tion can feel as frustrated as the
manager who is not getting back
Moving welfare recipients
into careers is goal of
new state partnership
State Labor Commissioner
David Poythress and Georgia De
partment of Human Resources
Commissioner Tommy C.
Olmstead today announced a new
partnership to move welfare re
cipients into career jobs. The two
state agencies signed an agree
ment, effective July 1, calling for
coordinated job development and
job placement services for public
assistance recipients.
In support of the agreement,
Governor Zell Miller said, “Put
ting welfare recipients into low
paying dead-end jobs is not the
solution to reducing our welfare
rolls. By combining the employ
ment expertise of labor with the
planning and case management
expertise of DHR, any of our wel
fare recipients can become per
manent members of the workforce
and productive members of our
communities.”
The agreement calls for DHR to
pay the Labor Department $8.3
million from the state’s welfare
block grant to provide employment
related services to 58,000 public
assistance recipients, including
18,000 who will be placed in jobs.
Services include job readiness as
sessment, job search workshops
and referral to training and educa
tion. The Department of Labor will
use the funding to offset the cost of
hiring additional staff and admin
istering the program.
“This historic agreement will
enable us to help thousands of
Georgians each year to become
productive workers and gain the
satisfaction of earning their own
living,” said DOL Commissioner
Poythress. “With our state’s
strong economy, good job growth
and low unemployment, many
employers are struggling to find
enough people to fill the jobs they
MEAL DEALS!
ACLLATLA by, RN M
9 SELECTIONS!
Servedsamtoßam &4 pmto 1 am
(AVAILABLE 8 AM TO 4 PM MONDAY THRU FRIDAY, EXCLUDING HOLIDAYS, AT $1.99)
OPEN 24 HOURS
(706) 738-0554
2525 Washington Road, Augusta, Georgia
Enhance your office waiting room; buy a
subscription to Augusta Focus for only $24.95 per
year. Call 724-7855 to arrange your purchase.
RN tz;fis‘»t§«z@@m%~.firu~ . T e ; wam?mwwwwk
; 5 1 ) :
é\’\ i h " . e & 2 :
i & i . & 5 N
T 0O SR S A 0 B R B 0 SR S U S P B el A o
& $ i g
& & £ & g § § &
# £ -a 3
# 3 : §
e R S 0 00000 A 0 A O M AN A A 0 S sR S B st
satisfactory work.
Try this
Create accurate job descriptions
and update frequently. Supplemen
tary charts and lists that explain
the cycles of the work flow, i.e.,
certain tasks are daily, weekly, or
monthly, are helpful particularly
for new staff. Identify the specific
behaviors you expect.
They do not know why they
should do it
Many employees are unsure of
the relevance of the work they do.
Try this
Explain the purpose of their po
sition, and outline how it fits in
with the goals of the organization.
Be sure to demonstrate how their
have available. This partnership
will bring more people into the
workforce, assist them in obtain
ingtraining and match them with
employers who have jobs to fill.
It'sa winingsituationall around.”
DHR carries primary responsi
bility for implementing welfare
reform legislation, which requires
most adult recipients of cash as
sistance to participate in a work
activity and places a four-year
lifetime limit on receiving cash
assistance.
The number of Georgia adults
receiving cash assistance, now
known as Temporary Assistance
for Needy Families (TANF), has
declined by 44 percent in the last
three years, from 116,705 cases
in August 1994 to 65,386 cases in
June 1997. This reduction has
saved taxpayers $123.2 million.
Duringthat period, Georgia had
instituted reform measures, ex
panded its welfare-to-work pro
gram, toughened child support
enforcement and implemented
Workfirst. Workfirst changed the
focus of welfare from income
maintenance to employment.
“This partnership with Labor
will enable us to capitalize on our
success with Workfirst,” said DHR
Commissioner Olmstead. “We’ll
be able to eliminate duplication
and allow our caseworkers to do
what they do best. They will be
case managers, helping families
get back on their feet by arrang
ing for education and training,
transportation, child care, Med
icaid and child support.”
Implementation teams from the
two state agencies are working
out details on responsibilities in
areas such as computerized in
formation sharing, developing a
common application form and as
sessing clients’ needs and skills.
Business
specifictasks interrelate withother
departments.
They do not think you will
check on progress
This is often the case with a new
managertakingover from another.
Ifthe past manager rarely checked
that assignments were completed
or suggestions carried out, employ
ees learned to wait before doing
new things. “If no one checks, does
the work really need to be done?”
Try this
Always assign due dates, and be
sure to check on progress. No mat
ter how busy you may be, the em
ployee needs toknow that assigned
tasks are not frivolous, transitory
or unimportant.
the (5
? reat
207"
off original
prices when you
take an
extra 40” off
our entire stock of
clearance-priced
women’s, men’s
and kids' clothing,
shoes and
accessories.
Here’s an example
of how you save:
Original
20.00
Ci
14.99
-6.00::.
Final
8 @ 99 lolcvaprice
Excludes all blue-ticketed clearance
merchandise, all cosmetics and fragrances,
all costume and fine jewelry. Intermediate
markdowns may have been taken. While
quantities last. Assortment may vary by
store. Sale ends August 3, 1997.
©1997 Sears, Roebuck & Co.
Satisfaction Guaranteed or Your Money Back.
They believe something else
is more important
Priorities shift continually. Em
ployees’ priorities may be different
from the managers’.
Try this
Set priorities on projects when
they are assigned. A weekly review
of their task lists is helpful. When
your priorities shift, remember to
relay *hat information so staff can
make adjustments.
They believe they are doing
what you requested
Performance feedback is always
important. Ifemployees hear noth
ing, they are likely to believe that
allisfine. Thisisaninstance where
Come see the softer side of Sears
We”’ # it
e ve gor you covereda.
®
Exceptional Value coats
S Reversible velour/nylon anorak
' P " Versatile hooded jacket is just the thing for
3 - % E cooler days. Great in rainy weather, too!
5 y | Visit the outerwear department now to see
S . . 1 moreof our great selection, including these:
¥ Pearlized faux leather jacket............... 34.99
da 0 Hooded Pacific Trail mountain parka.... 59.99
. . Hooded leather an0rak...................... 99.99
o Prices valid through August 2, 1997.
) P .
"!.,,nmmmo-,.,_xfies E
? | [ |
’ ?‘-
‘«X .
. ’% .2515:.
\ ;. P
) }g "v
! ; i
F Y ;
¥
h i
alessthanglowingreview atevalu
ation time comes as such a shock.
Try this
Rather than waiting for formal
review times for feedback, give
employees performance informa
tion regularly.
They fear to fall short of im
possibly high standards
Working for a perfectionist often
erodes people’s self-confidence and
morale. When standards are too
high, no amount of work or accom
plishment is ever good enough.
When staffare faced with this situ
ation, high performers can actu
ally begin to fail.
Try this
Identify theacceptablelevel of per
formance for specific tasks. Every
thing cannot be done perfectly. Time
and resource limitations impact how
often an internal memo can be re
written for style versus substance.
They think their way is better
Some employees believe that their
assignment is to reinvent their jobs.
Try this
Be clear about expectations. Re
quest that people work a couple of
monthsusing the existing systems.
Then request input about proce
dures. Accept changes that are im
provements, but when their idea
will not work, sell them on yours.
They get rewarded for not
doing it
Poor performers can often skate
by because the manager only gives
them easy assignments.
Try this ;
Hold all staff accountable to a
work standard. When assigning
difficult tasks, monitor progress
more often.
Do you have a personal perfor
mance related question? Write
Odette at Time Management Sys
tems, 1441 Franklin Street, Suite
301, Oakland, Calif. 94612.
Odette Pollar is a nationally
known speaker, author and con
sultant. Her book, 365 Ways to Sim
plify Your Work Life is available at
book stores. Her company, Time
Management Systems, is based in
Oakland, Calif. Call 1-800-599-
TIME or e-mail at
Opollartms@aol.com.