Managing people is not an easy task. They rely on you to guide them in the right direction with the company to ensure long-term success and development. Empowering your employees within the business is one of the most important aspects of being a manager. As a manager, you want to be able to help your employees thrive but within the boundaries of their skills while developing other skill areas. This article will highlight the tools used to empower your employees.
Trust
As a manager, you always want to aim to build a trusting relationship between you and your employees. Having a relationship built on trust will allow you to open doors for your employees that otherwise would not be available. A trusting relationship goes both ways, and you should also be able to trust your employee to make good decisions when they are presented with difficult situations. Communicating trust with your employee is crucial in giving them the comfortability to make those tough decisions. When your employees trust you, they are more likely to feel relaxed when faced with a difficult task or decision.
Feedback
Constructive criticism or feedback should be used to evaluate both your performance as a manager and the performance of your employees. Open up the conversation to your employees and inform that you are open to feedback and encourage it. Encouraging feedback from your employees will help to develop their sense of trust in you and ultimately in the company. Both you and your employee can learn from constructive criticism by getting a viewpoint from someone else on how you work. Feedback also lets the employee know that you value their opinion and are striving to be the best manager for them as you can be.
Ask and Listen
Personalize yourself with your employees. Ask thoughtful questions with your employees and engage in meaningful conversations about things that may be going on in or outside of work. Look to your employees to find answers on questions you have that pertain to the business. Find ways to include them on other problems and issues outside of their normal job duties. Listen intently to what your employees have to say and take their answers into account when making tough decisions. Employees will feel that their opinion matters on other topics and will continue to build trust in you and the company.