Tag: performance

Writing Position Descriptions (a “PD”) may feel like a drag… and you may ask yourself, do we really need position descriptions? – otherwise known as Job Description or JDs! We are here to tell you, yes you absolutely need them! In any well-organised workplace, PDs are more than just formalities; they are essential tools that contribute to both organisational success and employee satisfaction.

We think PDs are vitally important and should come hand in hand with any employment agreement (but shouldn’t be within the employment agreement). PDs outline the roles, responsibilities, and expectations associated with specific jobs. And while they might seem like just another administrative task, their impact on a company’s operations and culture is immense.

Let’s be honest though, they don’t need to be elaborate documents to be useful – in fact, here at Industryus HR, we are VERY big fans of simple PDs.

Here are seven key points that highlight the importance of position descriptions in the workplace:

1. Clarifying Expectations and Responsibilities

One of the primary reasons for having detailed position descriptions is to clarify what is expected of each employee. When employees understand their specific duties, objectives, and how their role fits into the larger organisational structure, they are more likely to perform efficiently and effectively. Without a clear position description in place, employees might struggle with ambiguity, which can lead to confusion, decreased productivity, and frustration.

2. Enhancing Recruitment and Selection

Position descriptions are helpful tools in the recruitment process. A well-crafted position description helps attract candidates who are not only qualified for the role but also aligned with the company’s needs and culture. Position descriptions provide a clear picture of what the job entails, which helps potential applicants to assess whether they are interested in the role and if the role is a good fit. This alignment can streamline the hiring process, reducing the time and cost associated with finding the right people for the job.

3. Supporting Performance Management

Position descriptions serve as a benchmark for evaluating employee performance. They outline the key responsibilities and objectives that employees are expected to meet, providing a standard against which performance can be measured. This helps to make performance reviews objective and fair, as both the employee and the manager have a clear understanding of the expectations associated with the role.

4. Facilitating Professional Development

Clear position descriptions also play an important role in professional development. By understanding the requirements and responsibilities of their current roles, employees can identify areas where they may need to improve or gain additional skills. This information is helpful when setting career goals and creating personalised development plans. Additionally, detailed descriptions can help employees see potential career paths within the organisation, which can be motivating and contribute to higher employee retention.

5. Ensuring Legal and Regulatory Compliance

Having accurate position descriptions is important for legal and regulatory reasons. Clear documentation of job roles and responsibilities helps to ensure compliance with labour laws and regulations. Position descriptions can be crucial in defending against employment-related claims or disputes, as they provide evidence of what was expected from an employee and what they were hired to do.

6. Promoting Organisational Efficiency

Position descriptions contribute to overall organisational efficiency. They help in outlining roles and avoiding overlap or duplication of responsibilities. This supports better coordination among team members and different areas of the organisation, leading to smoother operations and more effective collaboration across the board. By ensuring that each employee knows their specific role and how it integrates with others, companies can operate more cohesively and avoid potential conflicts or misunderstandings.

7. Job pay grading 

One of the most critical reasons there should be a position description for each role is to determine the correct minimum pay. Modern awards have pay classifications that outline what responsibilities are required for that particular pay level. Employers should not attempt to guess the correct classification. Rather, they should use an up-to-date position description to determine which pay classification aligns most closely with the role. When employers fail to use position descriptions as a guide, they risk underpaying employees.

Employers should provide position descriptions for all employees. PDs are much more than administrative necessities; they are essential to the successful functioning of any organisation. They provide clarity, enhance recruitment, support performance management, facilitate professional development, ensure legal compliance, and promote efficiency.

Investing time and effort into creating and maintaining accurate position descriptions is a strategic decision that will pay dividends in productivity, employee satisfaction, and overall organisational success.

If you don’t have position descriptions or think it might be time to review or update your current position descriptions contact us at Industryus HR. Our experienced HR Consultants would be happy to discuss your needs and explore how we can assist you and your business.

If you are experiencing a lack of motivation from your employees, you may need to look internally at your workplace culture, internal processes, and other ways your business does things to see if you can improve employee performance. Whilst lack of motivation can be caused by factors at home, the workplace environment can play a large part in employee performance and willingness to work productively.

To get the most from your team, use these tips from Gold Coast HR Consultant team Industryus HR:

Build a positive environment

Create an environment that encourages collaboration, openness, and respect. Celebrate successes and encourage continuous improvement.

• Encourage collaboration by offering opportunities for team members to work together on projects or tasks. Or hold regular team meetings where collaborative tasks and ideas are at the centre so that this kind of culture is fostered.
• Encourage transparency and honesty, and follow through on your commitments. Leaders that make statements or promises that they don’t honor create a culture of distrust.
• Ensure that everyone treats others with courtesy, dignity, and respect, regardless of their role, their position, how much money they make for the business, their gender, etc. Don’t just say it! Ensure poor behaviour and conflicts are addressed in the workplace consistently and evenly. A culture of disharmony is not the way to improve employee performance.

Communicate effectively

Clearly communicate goals, expectations, and feedback. Provide regular updates and encourage open communication channels.

• Encourage team members to provide feedback and suggestions on work-related matters. Provide opportunities for anonymous feedback if needed.
• Encourage active listening skills by modeling this behavior yourself and encouraging others to do the same.
• Create a culture where asking questions is encouraged and valued. Provide opportunities for team members to ask questions in meetings or through other channels. Have an open-door policy.
• Schedule regular check-ins with team members to discuss work progress and address any concerns. Showing your team that you are consistently too busy for them is a real de-motivator.
• Share relevant information with your team members and encourage them to share information with one another. This may be done via team meetings, quick huddles, or adopting technology such as an intranet or apps like Slack.

Develop your team

Invest in your team’s development and help them acquire new skills.

• Learning doesn’t always have to be costly. Search for free online seminars and courses from subject matter experts that employees can attend during work time. They will feel like you are investing in them and it mixes up their workday too. Even better, put the seminar on the big screen, get a cup of tea, and make a meeting of it!
• Ongoing learning and offering opportunities for career growth can also be achieved without costly outside support. Allow employees to be exposed to new skill sets by cross-training or even spending a day in the life of someone else. Assign them a mentor if one is available, or train them in a new task that might broaden their role a little if they are showing signs of being bored. The offer of challenging and meaningful projects that align with their strengths and interests will improve motivation.

Foster teamwork

Encourage your team to work together and foster a sense of camaraderie.

• Make sure every team member understands where they fit into the bigger picture and how their work contributes to the end product or service. Likewise, ensure everyone understands what others do each day in the organisation so that everyone’s contribution is respected and appreciated. Silos or an ‘us against them’ mentality are a big culture killer, so this one is important.
• Celebrate achievements together as a team and also team achievements (as opposed to recognising only individuals).
• Get out together as a team. Whether it is a seminar, event, or just a coffee catch-up, it’s nice for the team to spend time together in environments other than the confines of the office.
• Encourage an “all in” workplace culture where the entire team is responsible for keeping the ship afloat. For example, the team pitches in to clean the fridge out once a quarter (or it’s rostered), or buying the birthday cake is up to a different person each month, rather than just one person each time. No one wants to feel like the office slave, so by encouraging a shared sense of responsibility, respect for others is encouraged.

Recognise and reward good performance

Acknowledge and reward good performance, whether it’s through financial incentives, promotions, or simple recognition.

• Ensure you have a solid system and process in place that enables your managers to objectively measure employee performance and a mechanism for providing regular feedback so that you can improve employee performance. Employees like feedback and when good employees don’t receive constructive feedback about their performance, it can lead to a feeling of de-motivation and being taken for granted. Therefore make sure feedback is a priority – for everyone.
• Link pay to performance (measurable performance). A tried and tested way to maintain performance levels is where the annual increase or an incentive is performance-based. Unless you are required to by law, think twice about giving employees an increase where they are under a formal performance management process or have received formal warnings for poor conduct as this is a surefire way to demotivate your good people.
• The words ‘thank you’ go a long way. But amplify the impact by telling employees why you are thanking them and how much you appreciate their contribution.

Be flexible

Offer flexible work arrangements where possible to help employees balance their work and personal commitments. In 2023, those employers who are not offering flexible work opportunities for their teams are seriously disadvantaged.

• Think of how you can offer flexible working arrangements and make it happen! (as opposed to thinking how you can’t).
• Flexible work isn’t just working from home, although work from home is highly sought after by employees. Other options include part-time work, job sharing, condensed work weeks, and amended work days (e.g. starting earlier).
• Make sure you have a quality Flexible Work Agreement in place. Contact us if you need help with that one.

Improve employee performance by leadership – lead by example

Model the behaviors and attitudes that you expect from your team. Be honest, transparent, and approachable, and be willing to listen to feedback and make changes as needed.

As HR professionals, the amount of times we see one rule for senior leaders and a different set of rules for employees is astonishing. Culture comes from the very top and it will only ever be great if the very top is aligned. As culture is a key predictor of employee motivation it’s pretty important if you want to improve employee performance and motivation.

If you need support with changing the factors that contribute to employee motivation, get in touch with Industryus HR. With years of experience in large organisations, we are your Gold Coast HR Consultant of choice. Book a FREE INTRODUCTORY CALL.

Or call us on 07 5655 4047.

Q: One of my employees has recently been pushing the boundaries with his lunch break. This week alone he has been late back from lunch twice and I am worried it will continue. I have tried to address it by making a comment or joke each time it occurs, but he doesn’t seem to be getting my hints. How can I manage this better to stop him taking extended lunch breaks?

A: It can be uncomfortable managing undesirable behaviours of our employees, particularly in a small business where everyone works so closely together. Unfortunately the reality is though, if the situation isn’t addressed it may be interpreted as the employer condoning a flexible approach to lunch breaks and other employees may follow suit.

I read a great quote today; you can be comfortable or courageous, not both. Being comfortable is continuing to drop hints to the employee in the hope he will one day see the light and show some respect. Being courageous is tackling the issue head on so he understands that the behaviour will no longer be accepted by you.

If you are ready to tackle the issue, set up an informal one on one meeting with your employee with the aim of having an open and honest discussion about his lunch breaks. Explain to your employee why you are meeting together. I.e. to discuss some instances where you noticed he was late back from his lunch break. Don’t be afraid to be specific and to explain to the employee how the behaviour is impacting the business. Make sure you also give your employee some air time to explain their side of the story, even if you don’t agree with their justification. Before you finish the discussion, reiterate your expectation in relation to lunch breaks and that you expect to see immediate improvement.

In most cases, this gentle and informal approach should see your employee’s behaviour improve. Should the extended lunch breaks continue, we recommend you seek assistance from a HR specialist such as Industryus HR, who can provide advice on how to commence a more formal approach. Call us on 07 5655 4047 or visit industryus.com.au.

Q: One of my employees is just coasting along with poor performance. For some time now she hasn’t been achieving as much as my other staff and doesn’t seem motivated. How do I get more out of her?

A: Poor performance can be really frustrating for employers, but it can be improved with the right approach.

To change someone’s performance they need to first understand the issues and your expectations. Therefore arranging a simple discussion where the issues will be covered is necessary.

Prior to arranging the discussion however, think about what specifically your employee isn’t achieving so that you are prepared to make clear and concise points. You might even want to make a list with examples of each point to refer to if you have a few. Simply stating to your employee that they don’t seem to be motivated without any examples to back it up, probably won’t get you the result you are looking for.  Remember, your employee cannot improve unless they understand what exactly needs to improve.

Have the discussion in a quiet, private space and don’t be tempted to dance around the topic. Be brave and tell your employee why you are meeting and explain the specific issues as per the notes you prepared earlier. Ensure the tone of the meeting is supportive, and the agenda is about setting your expectations and implementing a solution for the issues at hand. Also, make sure you listen to the employee’s viewpoints too as there could be something going on that you aren’t aware of that could be contributing to their poor performance.

The meeting should result in you and your employee agreeing to an action plan which sets out the performance standard moving forward. The action plan should be monitored over a period of time, it should be fair and achievable, and ideally it should be agreed to in writing.

If you see an improvement in performance which meets your expectations, the action plan and monitoring can be removed. If the poor performance continues, our recommendation is to seek further advice from Industryus HR about commencing a more formal performance management process.

Did you know Industryus HR offers a membership for employers which enables members access to regular over the telephone HR advice?  If you would like more information or to discuss a specific issue, call us on 07 5655 4047 or send us an email via our contact form.

Employers don’t need to put up with poor performance.  Talk to a professional today.

Q: One of my employees is just coasting along. For some time now she hasn’t been achieving as much as my other staff, is quite negative and doesn’t seem motivated. How do I improve employee poor performance in this case? 

A: Employee poor performance can be really frustrating, but it can be improved with the right approach.

To change someone’s poor performance they need to first understand the issues and your expectations. Therefore arranging a discussion where the issues will be covered is necessary.

Prior to arranging the discussion, however, think about what specifically your employee isn’t achieving so that you are prepared to make clear and concise points. You might even want to make a list with examples of each point to refer to if you have a few. Simply stating to your employee that they don’t seem to be motivated is merely an observation and really doesn’t explain the core issue very well. In contrast, providing last month’s poor sales figures, or a number of customer complaints, or evidence of lateness to work, helps the employee better understand what you are not satisfied with.

Hold the meeting in a quiet, private space and don’t be tempted to dance around the topic. Simply tell your employee why you are meeting and explain the specific issues as per the notes you prepared earlier. Ensure the tone of the meeting is supportive, and the agenda is about setting your expectations and implementing a solution for the issues at hand. Also, make sure you listen to the employee’s viewpoints too as there could be something going on that you aren’t aware of.

The meeting should result in you putting in place an action plan which sets out the performance standard. The action plan should be monitored over a period of time, it should be fair and achievable, and it should be agreed to in writing.

If you see an improvement in employee poor performance which meets your expectations, the action plan and monitoring can be removed. If the underperformance continues, our recommendation is to seek further advice from an HR professional about your options.

Did you know Industryus HR offers over the phone advice for employers? Members can call us whenever they need to about issues just like this. If you would like more information or to discuss a specific issue, call us on 07 5655 4047 or email us here.

Many small business owners might feel out of their depth when managing employee performance and conduct issues in the workplace.  It’s not surprising, as the Fair Work Act is a daunting document even for many experienced human resources practitioners.

At Industryus HR, we specialise in realising great outcomes for employers but we are often engaged months after the performance problem first appeared and in many instances the action taken to date is not quite in alignment with Fair Work obligations. When this occurs we can assist with rectifying any concerns and setting up employers with compliant processes for better management of performance issues.

Here are four common mistakes that small business owners should be mindful of in the management of performance (and conduct) in the workplace.

1. Performance issues that haven’t been addressed

We see many employers battling on for months, and sometimes years with a problem employee before taking any real action. The sooner action is commenced the sooner the issue will resolve, so employers who are burying their head in the sand about an issue are not doing themselves any favours. If you are not sure how to start, get some help from a HR professional so that you can confidently move forward.

2. Flimsy discussions

From time to time we are contacted by business owners who tell of their frustration about having had numerous discussions with an employee about an issue but the employee never shows any improvement. Often when we delve deeper however, it becomes apparent that these discussions haven’t been firm enough, and expectations and consequences for failure to improve were never discussed. A successful discussion about poor performance will cover the issue, why it is an issue, the expectations moving forward and what action might happen if the issue continues.

3. Nil documentation

Taking adequate file notes of performance discussions had with staff should be seen as an essential staff management function, but it is often overlooked. Without documentation such as file notes, it is much more difficult to prove that the employee was previously cautioned about their performance. No documentary evidence of previous discussions can equate to a greater employment relations risk for the employer if they ever need to defend their own actions.

4. On the spot warnings

This practice is one of the riskiest we see but is quite common. The employer becomes unhappy with the employee’s performance and decides they will issue a warning to the employee. So, the employer holds a meeting with the employee and issues a warning on the spot without considering the employee’s view of the situation. The problem with this scenario is that because natural justice has not occurred the employer is now exposed to a greater risk level if an unfair dismissal claim is made.

If you are a small business owner considering taking action against an employee, or have already and recognise some of the mistakes listed above, Industryus HR can assist to ensure Fair Work obligations are met and your risks are reduced. Call us on 07 5655 4047 or click here for a confidential discussion.