Your new hire has all the enthusiasm in the world but very little know how on the job. Anyone ever experience this gut wrenching feeling? If you have you’re not alone.
It’s 7:00am and you get to work early and realize Jack starts today. You quickly get your day started knowing this is going to be a major, yet necessary distraction to your day. You’re working fast and furious when your phone rings, Jack has arrived. You bring him into the office and start the process of showing him the basics – where the bathrooms are and where the coffee/lunch room is located. As you walk him around, you dread the next 30 minutes, saying the same thing 20 times to all the people you will be introducing him to – what a pain. You can’t wait to get him into his space and get back to what you are hired to do, lead the team and your people.
But now that the excitement of the introductions and getting comfortable has worn off and you are now at a point where you need to get Jack to work, you just get hit in the gut. You just spent an hour with him and realize Jack doesn’t know jack about what you do or how you do it. This is when the real anxiety and stress kicks in and now you need a plan of how you are going to get him up to speed and get him productive as possible – not just for his sake but for your sake as well so you can get back to doing what you need to do. Without a plan and without a process, this can be one of the most painful times for a leader and manager.
The excitement will burn out quickly and be lost if you don’t implement a clear management strategy to ensure your employee learns the job quickly and develops the necessary skills to deliver your product. Many managers mistakenly interpret enthusiasm for competence and the two couldn’t be more different. It is your job to be a good steward of their beginner’s enthusiasm by telling them exactly what to do again and again and again. Model it for them. Show them what a good job looks like. Share examples. Take on a directive style of leadership for this situation and your new employee will interpret it as safe structure and guidance. This is the stage to micromanage for a season…. with the intent to make your employee self-sufficient. But if you approach this with a process and a plan, this can help eliminate one of the biggest pains in your neck as a manager.
As a leader it is important to understand the difference between enthusiasm and competence in your employees. For further information see Ken Blanchard's outstanding book, Self Leadership & the One Minute Manager.
