Images Magazine Digital Edition October 2018

TIPS & TECHNIQUES www.images-magazine.com 34 images OCTOBER 2018 to consider for your company when it comes to the idea of preventing employee ghosting. Make no mistake, what we are trying to do here is to prevent the talented, skilled and trained members of your team from disappearing. Especially when you need them the most. Start with respect This is always a good place to begin: are you treating your staff with respect in every interaction with them? This goes for your managerial team too. I’ve seen instances where employees feel disrespected by some casual comment someone makes from the front office management team. Flippant remarks can cause damage. There has always been a level of distrust and stink-eyed glances with the division from the front office and production. Ensure that everyone on your leadership team is in alignment with how verbal and non- verbal communication comes across to others in your shop. Actually, spend time talking about this, it’s that important. Don’t let a snarky dig from your accountant drive off a key employee because they overheard something. Everyone that works in your shop is on the same team. Regardless of position, seniority, pay scale, job duties or any other classification. Demonstrate your respect for your team at every opportunity. Try giving out three positive comments for every negative one you mention. Communicate truth People want to know what’s going on. Don’t hide facts or sugar- coat challenges. In fact, the more you open up and trust people, the more forthright and empowered they may become. This means you need to talk to people and let them in on some things. There is zero room in this industry for secret agendas or back-door side deals with staff members. There is just too much at stake. I’m not sure if you know this, but there are no secrets in your shop. The breakroom- rumour mill cranks out the daily edition of gossip every day: ■ Who is about to get fired. ■ So and so just got a raise and it was lower than expected. Or higher and that sets off a chain reaction of people at your door with their palms out. ■ If we don’t meet our sales projections, there may be layoffs. Sound familiar? This industry is intense. There is a lot of pressure. While we might think that nobody will tell another person how much they make per year, or some other private fact, that information always gets out. While I’m not advocating putting sensitive information out on the company bulletin board, I am suggesting that your leadership teammake more things transparent to the workforce. People want to know these things: ■ That someone is noticing their effort. Are you measuring performance or daily activity? ■ That there is something better down the road for them. Is there a plan for their career? How do they make more money? ■ Company news. Are we doing okay? What’s needed? How do we stack up? The truth. Don’t mislead with white lies or half-truths. People can sniff out what is not being said, or wrong. ■ What does the future look like? Share what’s around the corner. That big job you just landed. The thank you from a client that came with a huge reorder. Transparency In the section above I alluded to some transparency concepts. I think that this may be a key to understanding why ghosting happens with employees, so I want to elaborate on that a bit. Transparency is about clearly communicating information to your staff that impacts their lives. For example, let’s look at some clarity in how a new vacation policy is rolled out. Did it just happen, or was the staff involved in creating the plan? Who was responsible for creating it? What are the accountability measures included on how many vacation days an employee will receive? Who gets to decide? How does it compare with the rest of the industry or business neighbourhood? When thunderbolts strike down from the heavens regarding company policy, often there is some pushback and resentment. This can lead to a feeling of disillusionment That’s when people start muttering under their breath, ‘Boy, I sure am tired of this place’.