February 26, 2014
1. Treat prospective employees with disrespect during the interview process and drag out the application/interview process too long.
2. Do not return job candidates’ phone calls or keep them posted on the status of the jobs for which they have applied.
3. Tell new employees that they will be a vital part of the “team”; then fail to keep them in the loop when changes are occurring in their department.
4. Do not actively listen to your employees’ ideas or act on their suggestions for process improvement.
5. Criticize employees in front of their peers, or, worse, other members of the management team.
6. Do not follow up with employees after they have completed work projects to let them know the final outcome of their efforts.
7. Forget to thank employees frequently and sincerely for a job well done.
8. Provide customer service training for employees but fail to require upper-level managers to attend or hold them accountable for the same service skills.
9. Focus more of your time and attention on negative employees than you do on your positive, loyal, reliable employees.
10. Give your employees orders using words like “should,” “must,” and “have to” instead of asking them to carry out their duties and helping them to understand why it is important.
Although the talent pool may be larger these days due to growing numbers of individuals seeking employment, it is a wise investment to recognize great employees as a valuable resource. If we fail to reward and respect quality prospects and employees, it is likely that they will develop apathy toward the company, or, worse, head to a competitor where they believe they will feel more valued.