Building and Retaining Superstar Performers in the Workplace

What is the best way to build a superstar team? You can pay top market salary, offer unique incentives, incorporate flexible schedules, provide more benefits, or give employees the option to volunteer for a few hours in the community without a loss of pay. According to Forbes, all of these are frequently listed as ideal features of employment.  So to attract and retain superstars, you need to do something, right? Right. However, you may not have the budget to increase pay or offer more benefits, or you may not have the manpower to enable staff to work from home or
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Ask Questions That Open Job Candidates Up

The purpose of an interview is to discover whether a candidate is qualified for a job. It’s also your best chance to learn about the candidate’s personality and attitude and how well they would fit in with your organization’s culture. Here are some questions that will help you explore these areas: “What are your career goals?” The answer will tell you about the candidate’s level of maturity, planning ability, and focus on achievement. “Tell me about your first job.” You can find out a lot about the candidate’s work ethic by listening to their early job history.  “What do you
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Ask the Right Questions to Find the Right Employees

Hiring people may seem like a gamble, but you can increase your chances of hitting the jackpot by getting to know candidates as thoroughly as possible during the recruitment process. Here are some probing questions to ask:  “Tell me about your best and worst boss.” The answer should give you some insight into how well the candidate deals with authority, rules, and conflict. “Where do you see yourself in one year?” Five- or 10-year goals tend to be vague and theoretical. A look one year into the future can tell you how the employee realistically views his or her prospects
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Make Sure Your Team Understands Your Words

Whether you’re talking to an employee or addressing an important client meeting, the basic rules of communication in the workplace apply. Make sure you’re getting your message across by following these guidelines: Become the other person. What does your listener want to hear? Expect to hear? Need to hear? Anticipate how your audience—whether it’s one person or hundreds—may respond to your message so you can tailor your words appropriately. Be sure to speak their language and avoid accounting jargon.  Know what you want. Don’t describe a problem unless you know what you expect the other person to do about it.
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