5 Simple Ways to Make Good Employees Great Employees

Many companies have good employees. Several of these employees have the potential to become great employees. Recognizing this, it is your responsibility to take them from good to great. Employees can be motivated by a variety of different things. Anything from positive reinforcement to providing methods of professional development and upward mobility can have a desirable impact on employee development.

Here are just a few ways that you can help your employees go from good to great.

Compliment Them

Your goal is to build your employees up. Make sure to compliment the good things they do. You should not have to hold their hands, but a compliment can go a long way. This makes an employee feel like their efforts are acknowledged and appreciated. It also helps to keep the environment positive.

Also read: How to Handle Criticism and to Criticize Wisely: 8 Tips to Feel Better at Work

For constructive criticism, try The Oreo Cookie Approach to Constructive Criticism. This approach acknowledges something good the employee did before communicating the constructive criticism. The conversation is concluded with another positive statement. Complimenting employees is a simple way to make employees feel empowered and invested.

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Give Them Learning Opportunities

It has been shown for years that lifelong learners make the best employees. Providing your employees with quality opportunities for professional development is a great way to make learners out of your employees. It can also increase their knowledge of their career field, and it helps certain staff, such as IT staffing, stay current in technology.

Encouraging participation in industry conventions, company meetings, and/or collaborations between employees on big projects are just some ways that employees can continue to grow their knowledge, not only in their company but in their career field as well. Even in simpler manners such as holding an employee book club or having a smooth, company-wide communication platform can allow employees easy access to engage in more learning opportunities. The importance of lifelong learning should never be underestimated.

Be Flexible

This is a broad statement. However, a good way to make employees feel motivated is to recognize that their job is only one part of their lives. Be flexible on scheduling. If you are able, give them major holidays off. If they feel that their employer sees them as a whole person, they will be more likely to strive at their job.

Be flexible on new ideas. If an employee wants to take a project in a new direction, be open to it. This is how ideas are made. Sometimes, employers get so caught up in how things are supposed to be done that they fail to feed creativity. Don’t be afraid to be flexible.

Make Them Feel Ownership

When an employee feels like they have ownership in the successes of the company, they will strive for future successes. Recognize the part the employee had to play in the success. In fact, do not be afraid to compliment them in front of others. This will also make the employee feel invested in defeats. Address those problems, but do not dwell on them.

Also read: 8 Small But Powerful Ways To Recognize Employees

When an employee feels like the company that they work for is theirs, it is more likely they will fight to protect it. No one wants to feel disposable. Giving the employee a sense of ownership is also very likely to have a positive impact on job retention and employee morale in addition to productivity.

Provide Upward Mobility

Many sources have reported that a key to keeping employees happy and engaged is upward mobility. One article reported that upward mobility is also a key aspect in keeping excellent employees around. Start slowly giving employees more and more responsibility. As they take on more, make sure that they have incentive. Create positions if needed. Give them a pay raise. Providing these opportunities will make the employee feel like their hard work is appreciated.

Create a system where the newer employees can learn from the more experienced employees. The newer employees with strive for those leadership positions. A little bit of healthy competition for promotions can also motivate employees. There are many ways to provide upward mobility. Find a way to make it work for you.

Making great employees does not happen on its own. Employees will often reflect the environment for which they work. An environment that encourages excellence will make excellent employees. Even with these tactics, it will only remain effective by having a long-term strategy in place to continue the improvement of growth in employees.