Running a business or practice can be a daily challenge. Everyone else seemingly does it so easily, so why does it sometimes seem like so much hard work? Business owners don’t always have someone they can turn to for answers to daily frustrations, which is why more and more are looking to find a business coach. The most common issues revolve around people, money and time. In particular, the lack of it. This question and answer series of articles provides scenarios for practice and business owners to find answers to those frustrating situations.
Q: In the spirit of open management, I asked my office manager what his biggest frustrations were so we could address them. Among those he listed were: I don’t know what my job really is; and ‘inconsistent direction and instruction’. How do I deal with this?
First of all, congratulations on asking the question. That is the biggest step towards addressing problems both seen and unseen and to being an effective manager. The two frustrations are related with the second almost certainly a direct result of the first. What happens in many small businesses is that the owner nominally gives someone responsibility and then takes it away, saying, “I know what to do here, let me handle this one.” The result is that the manager is never fully given the chance to manage or take on higher accountability. The missing piece here is a clear understanding on both sides of what the job entails.
With all our business coaching clients we introduce written Job Agreements.
We have a simple definition of a “job”; it is the responsibility to produce a specific set of results. You either do the work to produce the results or you do the managerial work to see that other people or systems do the work to produce the results. To do that, the job must carry enough authority for appropriate decision making, to get resources and sometimes to supervise other people in other jobs. A job agreement is an understanding between the business and an employee and a commitment to produce specific results. It has a stated purpose; it lists the different kinds of work inherent in the position; it sets out the reporting relationships and the authority to make decisions, get resources or manage others.
Having an agreement such as this in place will very quickly clarify the situation for you and your manager. You will both know exactly your roles in the business and move towards a more satisfying consistency and certainly clearer direction.
Watch for Part Twelve…coming later this week!
Until next time…
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