Since
1992,
NSPG has been providing the tools that allow contractors to
increase profits and minimize business hassles. With our
simple-to-use-tools, you can make being a business owner
what you always wanted to it be -
successful, profitable and rewarding.
 What's
My Motivation?
The fate of your business rests with your employees.
Whether you're a one-man-band, or a large company,
productive, motivated employees are critical for
profitability and long term success. Motivating
your employees to continually perform at their best to
meet and exceed your company's goals is a difficult
challenge.
You expect your CSR to
answer the phone efficiently every time to maximize the
number of calls you can book. You expect your
technicians to not only complete the installation
efficiently, but to be a good salesman. You expect
the office and other support staff members to perform
their jobs well every day. Winning, serving, and
keeping your customers relies on the performance of you
and all of your employees.
What
motivates an individual to the high level of performance
the business needs is often as unique as the individual.
Most businesses rely on
money as a key motivator. Good performance is
rewarded with higher pay and bonuses.
Unfortunately, studies have shown that money is only a
short term motivator. The extra cash quickly fades
from memory, and has little effect on future
performance.
For many people, the
recognition of superior performance is the true
motivator. Many successful businesses combine the
short term motivator of money with a system that
recognizes and encourages superior performance. By
posting goals and achievements where employees can see
them is an easy way to accomplish this. Having the
reputation as a "top gun" along with the financial
rewards can provide both long and short term motivation
for all employees.
Top employees enjoy the
prestige provided by the public recognition. Other
employees have a scale to measure their own performance,
and a system that can lead them to the top. All
employees can be motivated because they have a public
system of clearly stated goals and rewards.
This type of system can
provide the framework to motivate your employees in ways
that really cover a broad range of proven motivational
techniques. Here are a few of the considerations
to take into account when setting up a system to
motivate your employees:
-
Clearly state goals
and expectations for each type of employee.
-
Have a feedback
mechanism so that the employee knows what he is
doing right and where he needs improvement.
-
Maintain a system to
support the employee through training and resources
to achieve his stated goals.
-
Set up a mechanism to
provide public praise for work that is well done.
-
Enlist the employees
in the process so that they can help refine and
expand their goals to create a more satisfying
career with your company.
-
Base rewards on
concrete performance results so the employee knows
he will be rewarded for achieving the goals
established for the position.
-
Show how each set of
goals contributes to the success of the business,
and that the rest of the organization relies on
their performance. Make everyone a part of the
team.
The first step in
setting up a "self motivating" performance system is to
set reasonable goals. You need to know how your
business is really performing so you have a basis for
your goals. For example, if you do not measure
your tech's performance, they can't know how they are
doing. They will tend to focus on the last job they did
not sell. If they have a bad day, it can spill
over into the next day, and affect how they present
themselves to prospective customers.
 Your
system for field technicians, can include publicly
posting performance information like close ratio,
productive hours sold, and average invoice. Short
term numbers, and longer term averages should be posted.
These numbers can inspire under-performing techs to work
harder, and can keep a few sub-par days from
discouraging a high performing tech.
Business managers should
not neglect their own motivation. Managers must
have goals, reviews, and rewards too. Management
sets the performance tone for the entire business.
Managers need to work hard to provide an example for
employees.
The bottom line is that
business performance goals must be set, actual
performance should be measured and used as a motivator,
and new goals must be set to keep top performers
motivated. It starts
with performance measurement, and yields more satisfied
and motivated employees, more satisfied customers, and a
more profitable company.
- - - - - - -
Give Mike Conroy a call to
discuss your business, your numbers, your performance
benchmarks, or your flat rate
books. Take advantage of his experience working
with hundreds of companies like yours to help you achieve your own business success.
Measure Monthly, Adjust Quarterly
& Achieve Your Annual Profit Goals
News You Can Use
 On
July 24, 2009 the
Federal
Minimum Wage rose to $7.25 per hour. I know
most of our readers pay more than the minimum, but some
may have temporary or new workers at this level.
This change also affects the overtime pay for over 40
hours of work in any seven day period.
You can see how today's
minimum wage
compares to the past here. looking at the
chart, $7.25 is about equal to the minimum wage in 1983
when Ronald Reagan was president. It is lower than
it was from 1960 to 1982.
 - - - - - - -
Periodically, the folks at
HPH issue a
notice of the price changes that they receive
from their list of suppliers. This list is
available to anyone who has subscribed to their price
update service.
We
have found over the last few years that these updates
reflect current and future market conditions that are
often hard to see from everyday news. For example,
shortly after the economy started to tank in 2007, many
suppliers rolled back projected price increases.
Over the course of 2008, most price changes were sizable
reductions.
The
current report shows future price increases ranging from
3 to 5%. This swing to price increases over the
last few months probably reflects higher raw material
costs, and improved product demand. If the trend
continues, it should translate into higher sales for our
industries.
At NSPG, we are not
projecting an increase in our prices in the near future.
However, some of our current discounts will expire soon.
Now is probably a good time to take a look at how we can
help your business as the economy improves, and save
some money in the process. Getting your numbers in
order, Flat Rate Books printed, and software updated
before your business picks up might make sense for you.
Interesting
Online
Items
Solar Drain Back System
Smart Power Outlets
Ford's new Transit Connect
Space Call Back
CHP in NYC
Recovered Diamond
The Oldest Plumber
The Best in his Field
Call 800 841-8542 today
to learn about our
easy,
subscription plans for
NSPG software
products.
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In This Issue |
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Phone 800 841-8542
Call 800 841-8542 today
to learn about our affordable, subscription plans for NSPG
software.
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The freebie of the month is a web site or
product that we feel gives you something worth looking
at or using that costs you little or nothing.
Google
on the Moon
Google has
released a new version of its free Google Earth program
that includes updated 3D moon information and pictures.
There are now high resolution photos, videos, and even
narrated tours of two of the moon landings.
After you
install the updated software, you need to select the
moon from the
 planet
locator button on the tool bar at the top of the screen.
The layers that you can see includes maps, video tours,
and the locations of artifacts left on the moon by man.
Most
locations have links to additional information and
pictures on the web. The Apollo 17 location
includes videos of the astronauts setting up the
American flag, and the lift off of the lunar module.
If you
don't want to install the Google software, you can
access more limited information on the web using
Google Maps.
That site includes very high resolution photos,
information, and links to more detailed information and
photos.
If you have
a favorite Free site, let us know.
nspginfo@nspgweb.com
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Quotations
I not only use all the
brains that I have, but all that I can borrow.
Woodrow
Wilson
I haven't spoken to my
wife in years. I didn't want to interrupt her.
Rodney
Dangerfield
I hope that when I die,
people say about me, 'Boy, that guy sure owed me a lot
of money.
Jack Handey
It's not the voting
that's democracy, it's the counting. Tom Stoppard
All things are difficult
before they are easy.
Dr. Thomas Fuller
It was
beautiful and simple, as truly great swindles are.
O. Henry
If it weren't for my
lawyer, I'd still be in prison. It went a lot faster
with two people digging.
Joe Martin
What's
another word for Thesaurus?
Steven Wright
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