Clarify Expectations

He was upset when he called me. I could still hear it in his voice. "Scott, when I told him I was not happy with his performance and that I was firing him, he just stared at me and his face turned bleach white. He actually thought he was doing well in his role as one of our key vice presidents." My client went on to tell me that their termination meeting lasted over two hours, and finally concluded in a mutual explosion of emotion. The fired employee ran out yelling profanities, full of feelings of hostility and shock. My client, a dignified CEO of a large professional services firm, just sat there alone after the meeting feeling empty and hollow inside. And then he started doubting his own decision.

"Tell me about the expectations you gave the employee when you first hired him last March," I said.

"What do you mean?" he responded. "I just hired him and expected him to do his job. He's been in this industry long enough. He should know what's expected of him."

"So, what you're saying is that through your mental telepathy and his psychic abilities, you were hoping that he could read your mind to know what was expected of him without you clearly expressing it… is that what you're telling me?" I responded in my gentle but frank style of tough love. Oops. I knew I had probably crossed the line…but the point was definitely getting through.

Silence ensued for nearly 30 seconds on the other end of the line. Wondering if my client had hung up on me, I was relieved when I heard a frustrated sigh eek out of his voice, followed by what was barely understood as, "I see your point." My client realized that he never clearly communicated his expectations of performance to the new employee, and that the employee honestly thought he was performing well in his role.

When you hire a new employee, how do you clarify expectations to increase the odds of a productive and happy work relationship between you and your new hire? Follow these three steps the next time you bring on a new member of your staff.

1) First, tell your new hire what is expected of him or her. Move beyond duties and responsibilities and enter into the realm of specific expectations. Use these SMART objectives: How do you specifically define as success? How do you measure it? What action steps do they need to take to be considered successful? What results are you looking for? What timelines are associated with success on the job?

2) Second, ask them how they see themselves succeeding in that role. What is their action plan to be successful? How will they use their past experience to become successful? What specific steps will they take to accomplish their goals? What are the goals that they will set for themselves?

3) And third, set up an ongoing system to measure their progress of goal achievement. But even before you and your new hire establish goals, you need to make sure that this new employee knows how his or her role fits exactly with the accomplishment of the team goals. So you need to show them the big picture. No matter what level of position, draw out an organizational chart so they can see where they fit in relation to everyone else. Show them exactly how their contribution helps the team reach its collective achievement. Show them why they are important and why they matter to you personally and to their colleagues on a personal level. Leadership is very personal, so you need to bring those expectations to the personal level.

Hopefully, by starting right from the beginning, you will help your staff perform at their peak performance levels, which means that both you and your team will be pleased with the working relationship. And you'll never find yourself in the position of terminating an employee who thought they were performing well.

Scott Love shows managers and sales people how to manage their risk and win the game of business. He is a professional speaker and can be reached at 828-225-7700 or on his website at www.nolimitachievement.com