employees

i have learned quite a bit in the last couple of years about running a business. what to do, and what not to do. i think one of the most important things i've come to understand is how important employees are.

let me just share a couple of thoughts with you. i could go off on this subject but i will refrain for the time being.

1. employees are important!
2. if you are not willing to invest in good employees you need to do some re-evaluating
3. employees should be happy to work for you
4. you should treat employees like you are happy they work for you
5. a hard working, competent, reliable employee is hard to come by...so appreciate them!

sometimes there are situations where your employees need to be taken care of above other needs. unfortunately this may come as a financial or personal loss. yet, there are times that these losses are more effective in the long run to continue to have the loyalty of your employee.

let me share an example of bad employee relations:

say its tuesday and as a sales team there is a daily goal to reach in order to receive a bonus. after a hard days work the sales goal is reached and each person goes home that night with a $50 cash bonus in their pocket (good employee relations). a few days later you hear a customer service concern with one of the customers from tuesday. a few more days pass and you learn that despite your VERY strong policy of no returns the owner has decided give this customer a full refund due to a mistake on the stores part. the mistake was caused by the manager who pushed the sale when she could not guarantee that all services would be met. this is fine. the store knowingly made a mistake and went against policy to satisfy a customer. BUT since this sale was originally made on that tuesday and was refunded it essentially is removed from the sales numbers that day. therefore that goal technically would not have been reached. since that is now the case, the bonus is now void. and despite the fact that each employee walked home with CASH in their pocket the employer has asked for that $50 back from each employee 7 days later. ONE whole week. either in cash or to be taken from their next paycheck.

seriously? this is NOT ok, so not ok. had the bonus not been cash it may have been a different story. but money was given to employees that night! for a mistake that their boss made!

awful employee relations, awful.

if as an employer you are not willing to lose money in an unusual situation like this, that type of incentive should not be in place. but this should be one of those situations where employee needs should be taken care of above a financial loss in the store. (let be honest....$150 to employees is not that bad compared to a $5000 sales day) it just leaves a very bitter taste in employees mouths, and can potentially negatively affect the company in the future.

so treat your employees well! dont be afraid to show them that you are willing to take a loss for them to be happy.

the end.