Managing Employees Archives

When Should You Fire an Employee

By Matt Tarkenton | Jun 13, 2013

As a small business owner, you can’t afford to take risks when it comes to hiring the right employees. Sometimes, however, you make a mistake and you hire someone who you shouldn’t have. When is it time to fire this employee?

How to Retain Employees

By Angela Cordle | Jun 13, 2013

High turnover is not uncommon in small business, but it is expensive. Most small businesses cannot afford to constantly hire and let go of employees. Having a dedicated staff is one aspect of a successful company that should not be overlooked.

4 Ways to Make Your Employees Happy

By Angela Cordle | Jun 13, 2013

One way to grow your business, apart from having a great product or service, is to have employees who love working for you. While you might not be able to offer the same benefits package as most large corporations, there are more slick ways you can go about seeking your employees’ favor without breaking into the budget.

Managing in Cyberspace

By Matt Tarkenton | Jun 13, 2013

In today’s work environment, it has become a necessity for many businesses to hire employees or independent contractors who take care of their work out of office. Here are a few keys to help employers manage their out-of-office employees effectively.

The Customer Service Training Success Equation

By Teresa Allen | Jun 12, 2013

When you invest in customer service training, you naturally want results. The sad truth is that many times there are no lasting results from business training programs. Sometimes this can be the fault of a poor instructor or materials, but more often it is a result of how training fits into a bigger business picture.

Coaching for Better Performance

By Jerry Osteryoung | Jun 3, 2013

Coaching is one skill that managers should practice on a continual basis, as it has become so much more important in recent times. With fewer staff members and a sustained emphasis on reducing costs, managers are being challenged to coax the best possible performance out of everyone on their team.

Sometimes Revenue Is the Wrong Sales Metric

By Dave Brock | May 30, 2013

Revenue is important! The top sales executive needs to be accountable for producing the expected revenue. But the top sales executive is also accountable for executing the corporate strategy. Sometimes to do both, we have to change the way we measure (and compensate) sales people. Sometimes revenue quotas are the wrong thing.

Who’s the Boss of Customer Service?

By Teresa Allen | May 28, 2013

Are you bold enough to BE THE BOSS of your customer service efforts? Although it may seem politically incorrect these days to assert your position as a manager, sometimes it is the only course of action that brings about the kind of customer service that you want to offer your staff and that will build your brand as a customer service leader.

4 Leadership Behaviors That Build High Performance Work Environments

By Bill Hogg | May 17, 2013

Successful companies understand that achieving success is about addressing larger culture issues within the organization. Getting your organizational culture right is what leads to building a high performance work environment. This starts with leadership.

How the Most Successful Leaders Manage the Brilliant Naysayer

By Mike Maddock | May 16, 2013

Most every company has a Harold (or Harriet). Typically, he has been with the company for 20-plus years. He knows more about industry norms, the company’s intellectual property, your IT capabilities, what legal will and will NOT go for, interoffice politics, and the CEO’s family than anyone in the building. And unfortunately for you, good old Harold can effortlessly—and with absolutely no malice intended—recite four to six reasons why your idea won’t fly.