There is a well-known saying that goes “Hire the best, develop the rest.” It’s important to hire the smartest people, so they are in fact trainable. Some of the most effective managers only hire a tiny percentage of job applicants to ensure that they get the cream of the crop.
Once you have hired the best people, make sure that you are supportive and mature when reprimanding, not angry. On average, punishment is counterproductive, so be careful when you are forced to reprimand those who aren’t following your best plans and practices.
It is also important to provide clear job descriptions at the beginning of the process as a means to reduce turnover. Starting with a higher quality employee base will go a long way when you begin the continuous process of delegating responsibilities.
If a person doesn’t really like their job or their pay, it’s pointless to waste time training them unless it’s already clear that they are moving in the right direction. The person who is being delegated the responsibilities really needs to “take ownership” of his tasks in order to make the delegation process worthwhile.
When you are training new employees, try to use real-life case studies and scenarios that they will deal with on a day-to-day basis. Also, consider sending the public facing employees to a Dale Carnegie sales training course or even Toastmasters. To train is to learn; that is why it must be a daily process among your employees—and for you, especially if you hope to train others.
