Help pls, strategy to get employees actually working ....

[AllUpHere]

Interestingly, the phone is no longer on Lady 1's desk this morning.
I think I might have reached the goal ...

Be honest, did you throw it out of the window when she wasn't looking?

 

[Wowee]

Nah - it was a temptation last week tho'

 

[NickGrogan]

If they are doing data entry for accounts, do they actually need internet access at all?

If it's an online portal or they need to use it for other work related purposes, then the next immediate step should be to block all social media/news/email/non work sites. There are plenty of ways to do this - and anyone finding a way around the block will be asking for a warning.

You'll be amazed at the increase in work done.

 

[smallclaimsassistance]

@ Wowee - Good stuff. Well done!

 

[Wowee]

Well, amazingly the phones are all now put away, even that of Miss Difficult, who has just returned to work.

HOWEVER, she has taken grave offence because I have asked her to change the way she does some things. I asked her very nicely, and I explained why I wanted the changes made (the changes are simply to improve the way we communicate with customers about their accounts).
She snapped at me about it - said she didn't think it would make any difference. I patiently explained my reasons again, and finally said that was just how I wanted it done. Later I left the office for a few minutes, and on my return she had re-arranged her desk so that I can't see her computer monitor from my desk.

I have said no more (I'm not going to be dragged into a verbal row with madam) , but she has now emailed one of the directors to complain that I am picking on her!
Right now I'm feeling just a little victimised myself, to be fair. Ho hum, meetings with the MD and madam next week I think !!

 

[Wowee]

If they are doing data entry for accounts, do they actually need internet access at all?

If it's an online portal or they need to use it for other work related purposes, then the next immediate step should be to block all social media/news/email/non work sites. There are plenty of ways to do this - and anyone finding a way around the block will be asking for a warning.

You'll be amazed at the increase in work done.

They do need internet access for some tasks, yes.
I do know we could block particular sites, and have discussed it with directors, but we do feel that we should be able to treat staff like adults ...

 

[smallclaimsassistance]

Difficult when they behave like children.

Impossible when management doesn't back you up.

Sounds like you're gaining ground so keep at it, and good luck.

 

[The Byre]

Interesting thread and case study - and well done Wowee!

May I suggest that you read (and then give as a present to the MD) the book 'The Great Game of Business' by Stack and Burlingham. There are some great tips in there about dealing openly with staff and telling them just how big and/or serious the damage is when they swing the lead.

In this case (but then I'm an old hand at this) I would have sat them down and explained just how serious the situation is and even have given them the figures. Show them the graphs of how the business is going. If you are open with them and explain why things are going to have to change, they will look upon it as their company and their responsibility.

It then ceases to be just another boring day at work, but a mission. And those who waste time (money!) will not only have to answer to the management, but also to their work colleagues!

 

[DavidWH]

Wish we had such great success.

Terms of employment issued on 5th Jan, still not signed, still using Facebook & personal Gmail (now blocked).

Then find out our apprentice didn't attend college yesterday (apparently snowed in) and didn't inform us, and had a days holiday today, the college assures me that all students are told that they are to notify employers of absence.

Monday will be a very interesting day. my patience is running very thin, should have sacked them last time I had good cause.

 

[Wowee]

Wish we had such great success.

Terms of employment issued on 5th Jan, still not signed, still using Facebook & personal Gmail (now blocked).

Then find out our apprentice didn't attend college yesterday (apparently snowed in) and didn't inform us, and had a days holiday today, the college assures me that all students are told that they are to notify employers of absence.

Monday will be a very interesting day. my patience is running very thin, should have sacked them last time I had good cause.

ooh, I think I would have demanded the signed copy of the terms back by now. You definitely need a deadline within the next 2 working days for that !
Surely, not informing you of the absence is a verbal warning issue? You need to start formally warning, and keeping a count of the warnings.
At least those are concrete countable issues.
Being 'mardy' when asked to do something is harder to manage. It's difficult to make a complaint about it without seeming 'mardy' oneself.

 

[peggyprice]

Fascinating thread, and really impressed with your tenacity and approach Wowee! Having been in a similar position with a small group of women in the days when I managed a large team in a large organisation I can completely sympathise with the need for moral support - sometimes the only thing that kept me going was knowing that other people were relying on me to tackle issues that every previous manager had dodged (and exacerbated) and my mantra of 'I'm not going to let them beat me'!

One other comment - one of the hardest things to do is shift your attention from the difficult ones to those staff that are busily working away, doing a great job but not demanding anything of you. It's the 'naughty child' syndrome. But there is good evidence in staff engagement circles that in any organisation you'll find three types of staff - the positive, engaged, productive ones; the disengaged, negative, troublesome ones; and the majority who sit somewhere in the middle. And the middle sitters will tend to drift towards whichever of the other two groups get the most attention. So if most attention goes to the troublemakers, the culture becomes one where bad behaviour is 'rewarded' by attention; same process happens though if it's the good behaviour that gets noticed. And what happens then is that the few hardcore ringleaders find they don't get made a fuss of anymore, so they start looking to move elsewhere to find someone else to disrupt. Result! So now that you've made it really clear what your expectations are and that you aren't going to be messed around, maybe you'll get real benefit from focusing on the best people in your team and celebrating their successes. Plus you deserve to be getting to enjoy their company after everything you've had to deal with ;-)

 

[peggyprice]

Monday will be a very interesting day. my patience is running very thin, should have sacked them last time I had good cause.

DavidWH, just a thought - as the mother of a (dyslexic) young man who probably used to drive his employers mad in exactly the same way (now much improved, thank God!) are you sure your apprentice really understands what is expected of him? In my experience a lot of people assume that because something's been said once it's been taken in, but sometimes we don't communicate as well as we think we do. Especially with young people who don't have the experience to know what we might think is a normal expectation in the workplace.

Definitely set a (short!) deadline for returning the signed agreement (if you haven't got it yet!) but maybe ask your apprentice to tell you what he thinks is expected of him? That way he'll have to take some responsibility for understanding his obligations and you can pick up the things he just hasn't 'got' yet.