How do you treat your high performing employees?

Every business has people that perform better than others. They are good and they know it. Usually they will try to get a better position or a salary raise, as an exchange to their high performance. You must have in mind that they are attractive to other organizations. If they are not happy where they work, there’s a high probability they’ll get another job elsewhere.

By Vassilios Canellos

If you give them privileges, just because they are good it can cause problems at work. If you spoil them allowing them to break certain protocols, other employees will notice it and create a bad working environment.

So which is the best way to treat your business’ assets in order to uplift your quality and income?

MOVE THEM OUT OF THE COMFORT ZONE

Without interest in the job, they would probably get bored and leave. So from time to time try to change the working routine, giving them new targets, more complicated assignments. When you give these kind of assignments, let them get full responsibility about the result. 

FEED THEM PROPERLY

When we speak about food, we mean mental food. Every star employee wants to learn more and become better. Training is good for everyone but they need something more. They need to get higher value training. Make special trainings just for a few people, just for the high performers. This will give them the feeling that the organization recognizes the different value of their work.

SET LONG TERM GOALS

Star employees want goals because they motivate them. Think out of the box and don’t set sales goals. Make clear a long-term goal for getting promoted and advancing within the organization. Something that they will know from the beginning. Your star employees set the example for the rest of the team and if they put all their effort to achieve a long term goal, almost everyone will try to follow.

MICROMANAGEMENT IS A DISASTER

You know who is real good and who isn’t. Give them an assignment and leave them to implement it. Trust them! Follow up regularly but don’t micromanage. If you don’t trust your high-performing employees to get the job done, what do you do with the rest? And good employees get very annoyed when they are micromanaged. Besides this leaves you more time to help others who require more assistance by you, or more intensive control.

FIND WAYS TO RECOGNIZE THEIR SUPERIORITY

Everyone needs to be recognized. It helps them feel a little bit more “partners” than just employees. Give them a paid Day off, or offer them a meal at a restaurant, or simply upload them on the social media fan page, making loud & clear that they did something good. Do something for God sake, to make them happy.

DON’T THINK ONLY ABOUT THE COMPLAINERS

Whatever you do, don't ignore the ones that don't complain. Try to meet all your best employees from time to time. Unofficially, in an unstructured way, to learn what they need, or what they hate in the job. Most of your good people will never complain but they will start the interviews, until one day that they will tell you, they had a better offer. Don’t try to raise them, they are already out of the door.

DO NOT HESITATE TO ASK

You are a good Manager! They are the ones that deal with the guest every day. Ask for their point-of-view and listen to their ideas. Ask them what’s working and what’s not. I guarantee you that your rock stars, think about these things all the time. Their ideas will be surprising. You will think why you didn’t do it earlier. That’s why they’re your rock stars.

People leave from Managers and not from companies … as they say. Create a safe environment for the people that show high performance. Promote someone if you can. Give them credit. Show that you care about them. Don’t let them break the rules, to show your respect. Treat them equally but show everyone that you count on them. It will provide the rest of the staff with comfort and security and you will see others, trying to get the same treat, by making progress.