By: Larry Weiss
SD LTAP
YOUR ROLE AS A SUPERVISOR
• You must be a leader with a plan
• Develop an annual budget
• Plan ahead for major expenses
• Oversee township business
• Oversee township finances
• Decision making on road and culvert projects
• To listen to constituents and respond with actions
• Act and abide by state law governing townships
• Be proactive in heading off liability claims
ANNUAL BUDGET
• Do you have a goal or a vision of what you want
your township to be
• You approve an annual budget?
• Who prepares the budget?
• Do you take public input prior to the budget?
• Who approves the budget?
• Who manages the budget?
EMPLOYER – EMPLOYEE
CONSTITUENT RELATIONS
BY THE NUMBERS
•Only 29 percent of employees are
actively engaged in their jobs. These
employees work with passion and feel
a profound connection to their
company. People that are actively
engaged help move the organization
forward.
Fifty-four percent of employees are
not engaged. These employees
have essentially “checked out,”
sleepwalking through their workday
and putting time – but not passion –
into their work”
“Never mistake activity for accomplishment.”
Seventeen percent of employees
are actively disengaged. These
employees are busy acting out their
unhappiness, undermining what their
engaged co-workers are trying to
accomplish
How many of you have these in your organization?
“YOU CAN’T EXPECT PEOPLE TO BE
COMMITTED, TO BE LOYAL TO AN
ORGANIZATION, TO BE ENGAGED IN AN
ORGANIZATION, [OR] TO WANT TO STAY
IN AN ORGANIZATION IF THE COMPANY
DOESN’T CARE ABOUT THEM.”
WHY DO EMPLOYEES LEAVE?
TOP REASONS EMPLOYEES LEAVE
• Things never change for the better
• Fail to connect with their bosses as leaders
and people.
• Work environment is not particularly friendly.
• Do not feel appreciated.
• Managers will not listen to employees
OTHER REASONS EMPLOYEES LEAVE
• Limited career growth or opportunity
• Lack of respect for supervisor
• Higher compensation
• Felt their job duties were unchallenging
• Felt their supervisor lacked leadership skills
• For better work hours
WHAT IS THE REAL REASON?-LIMITATIONS
• There is no incentive for employees to explain
why they are actually leaving their job.
• Employees want to leave their job and have
that boss as a good reference.
• Few exit surveys have been done.
• Last time you lost an employee did you meet
with them to understand why?
NEW EMPLOYEES
• Employees who have worked with an organization
for six or fewer months are the ones most likely to
leave the company.
• Those with one to two years’ experience are the
next most likely to leave.
• “On average, the cost of losing an employee is
about 150 percent. It’s one-and-a-half times the
person’s compensation,”
WHY IS EMPLOYEE RETENTION
IMP0RTANT?
EMPLOYEE RETENTION
• Employees are the heart and soul of an
organization.
• Employee turnover is costly for an
organization.
• Finding suitable replacements for key
employees is difficult.
• Low employee turnover leads to outstanding
performance of an organization.
WHY DO EMPLOYEES STAY?
TOP REASONS EMPLOYEES STAY
• Have a good connection with their boss
• Workplace is a team oriented environment
• Want to contribute, feel wanted
• Workplace is a “climate for learning
characterized by trust and openness”
• Feel supported
• Can balance work and life
WHAT DO EMPLOYEES WANT?
THE SECRETS OF EMPLOYEE RETENTION
• Equity and job security
• Employees want to be treated fairly and, just as
importantly, compensated fairly.
• Companies must demonstrate more than the
minimum obligations to people.
• Communication
• Individuals want to understand management’s
expectations so they have a clear idea of how
their work will be judged.
• It is important to set measurable goals and
evaluate an employee’s performance.
THE SECRETS OF EMPLOYEE RETENTION
• Pride and teamwork
• Employees want to feel good about their jobs, have a sense of
achievement, and be proud of their accomplishments.
• Individuals should be properly trained and provided with
adequate materials and equipment to complete their jobs
successfully.
• Employees want to work with teammates who are as enthusiastic
and competent as they are.
• Failure to address problem employees communicates to team
members that management view substandard performance as
acceptable.
THE SECRETS OF EMPLOYEE RETENTION
• Fun
• While it’s important that attempts at creating a
fun work environment don’t disrupt the overall
productivity of employees, making the job
enjoyable is beneficial.
• By never taking time to celebrate, employees are
more likely to experience elevated stress and
burn-out.
THE SECRETS OF EMPLOYEE RETENTION
• Recognition
• “People want to do good work and they want to
be recognized for it,”
• We recommend that recognition be significant,
specific and sincere.
• For example, telling an employee “you’re
great” isn’t nearly as meaningful as saying that
his/her innovative ideas and work to satisfy a
particular tenant or to keep a specific project
on budget was terrific.
HOW DO YOU FIND OUT IF YOUR
EMPLOYEES ARE HAPPY?????
ASK!
• Assure subordinates that they are free to express their
opinions without fear of negative repercussions.
• Consider seeking the services of a third party to survey staff.
• Be prepared to share the survey findings and a plan of
action with the team.
• If you can determine why employees are not happy, it’s
likely you can prevent them from leaving by changing
practices, culture, and sometimes even your management
style.
YOU-AS A LEADER
FOUR CHARACTERISTICS OF LEADERS
• (1)They
have open channels of
communication that lead to collaboration
and inclusion
• These leaders are open with information,
interested in learning what employees
think, and incorporate their ideas into
doing business.
• These leaders not only inform people
about issues affecting them but involve
them in decisions.
FOUR CHARACTERISTICS OF
LEADERS
2)They move beyond the
status quo.
•These leader take bold
action in support of their
people, raising the
benchmark.
FOUR CHARACTERISTICS OF
LEADERS
(3)They are very selective about
what to measure and why.
• Great leaders know what makes
their unique culture tick and
measure accordingly.
• A clear and accurate
understanding of their culture
allows them to choose and
reward measures selectively.
FOUR CHARACTERISTICS OF
LEADERS
“
(4)They are passionate about
values and culture.
• Values are tied to success and
measures, and the leaders are
very familiar with the values. Their
vigor for values and culture is
contagious.
HOW DO WE RETAIN EMPLOYEES?
•Train the Managers.
“Employees don’t quit jobs, they quit
managers.” That’s an overstatement, but
not by much. Top on the list of best
practices is regular meetings with
employees about performance and
expectations.
HIRE RIGHT IN THE FIRST PLACE
Too many employment interviews are
about personality: whether the job
candidate matches the manager’s
personality. Focus more on job skills and
you’ll get a better fit, which is more likely
to lead to a long employment tenure.
They were here the longest
Willingness to be micromanaged
No one else applied
We had to fill the position
We can’t hire anyone that knows more than we do
OFFER EMPLOYEES A PATH TO
BETTER PAY, RECOGNITION AND
RESPONSIBILITY.
Not everyone can rise to a manager
position, but every employee can build
skills. Find a way to recognize those skill
and challenge employees to gain even
more skills. That makes not only a better
employee, but one who feels a sense of
accomplishment and success.
LEADERSHIP CHALLENGE
This does not make a good decision making tool
THOUGHTS
Leaders must be
close enough to
relate to others, but
far enough ahead
to motivate them
John Maxwell
Failure can be
divided into those
who thought and
never did and into
those who did and
never thought.
Reverend W. A. Nance
It’s what you learn You manage things;
after you know it
You lead people
all that counts.
John Wooden
Grace Murray Hopper
A WORD WE OFTEN FORGET
THANK YOU!
Questions or comments