Page 59 - Becoming a Successful Manager

50 KNOWING THE TERRITORY

Send a message (e-mail or other) to each of your employees
requesting his or her comments on how you can improve on your
performance as a manager. If you have only a few employees, you
may want to talk with them directly instead. For example:

(E-mail) I want to be the best manager I can be for you. To do
that, I’m enlisting your help. Please respond to the following
fi ve items and send your responses back within the week. Be
completely honest—I’m trying to improve my performance as
your manager, and your assistance is much needed and much
appreciated.

1. Note specifically what you expect from me as your
manager.
2. Concerning each of your expectations in question 1, on a
scale of 1 (low) to 10, how well do I fulfi ll them?
3. Concerning each of your expectations in question 1, on a
scale of 1 (low) to 10, how consistently do I fulfi ll them?
4. Complete the following sentence concerning your desires in
as many ways as you would like: Although I don’t expect it,
it sure would be nice if you .
5. Concerning each of the desires you mentioned in question
4, rate how important each is to you: 1 (very important), 2
(important), or 3 (slightly important).

Please include your name so that I can respond. And, in the
spirit of helpfulness, feel free to add any other comments before
sending it back.

When drafting your e-mail, be conscious of the language you
use; regardless of your staff members’ generation, culture, or gen-
der, you want them to feel comfortable offering constructive criti-