Summary: Management Strategies that Will Increase Productivity Today

One of the professional development training items on the books for FY17-18 at work was a Pluralsight course I’ve had on my to-watch list for several years: Management Strategies that Will Increase Productivity Today by Jay Mcfarland.

This post gives a quick overview of what I learned, with more details to be found in this PDF.

Opening questions

  1. It’s getting harder and harder to find good employees.
    1. False. It’s harder to find good managers.
  2. Hiring the right people is the only way to find productive employees.
    1. False. Good managers create productive employees; bad managers destroy them.
    2. Bad managers seem to always be hiring; good managers have good retention.

Summary

  • Good managers use techniques from this training and help people want to become better than they already are.
  • Productivity has to do with your systems and understanding of what motivates employees so they can feel success on a daily basis.
  • Know where your employees are on the job satisfaction pyramid, because you can help them move upward.
  • There cannot be a win if there cannot be a fail. You must define what both are.
  • Build systems of accountability to help people feel successful.
  • Micromanagement robs employees of success, which pushes them into minimum expectations mode where they only care about their paycheck (or finding another job).
  • Treat people well every day, and give them room to grow.
  • Listen to peoples’ concerns and help resolve them so that people feel heard and valued.