Are You Setting Clear Expectations for Your Employees?

Many employers are so focused on recruiting star performers and managing different age groups that they overlook a crucial factor of building a strong team: setting clear expectations. Employees need distinct objectives and performance goals to refine their expertise, and managers that monitor progress may discover an abundance of talent within their teams. If your workers are struggling with performance or motivation, ask yourself whether your management team is providing a blueprint for success.

Transparency is a fundamental need of workers of all generations, but managers often incorrectly assume employees understand the value of their contributions and the level of growth expected in each role. In a 2016 study, Gallup reported that roughly 50 percent of U.S. workers aren't certain about what's expected of them at work. Because of this organizational disconnect, employees may prioritize the wrong objectives and become frustrated when their misplaced efforts go unrecognized or lead to poor performance reviews.

On the other hand, employees of all ages and career levels are eight times more likely to feel engaged when their managers identify performance goals, according to Gallup. Managers play the most critical role in boosting employee engagement, and a popular culture filled with archetypes of oblivious, incompetent and conniving bosses is evidence that many Americans are indeed unhappy with leadership at work. In a Gallup study of 7,272 adult workers, 50 percent admitted to leaving a job to escape a bad manager.

Further research shows that employee engagement suffers when managers aren't approachable and fail to clarify expectations. Among workers who strongly agreed that their bosses established performance goals, 69 percent were engaged, compared to only 8 percent of workers who strongly disagreed with this statement. Employees want to take pride in their work, and repeatedly missing the mark because of poor guidance undermines their confidence in themselves and the company.

Fortunately, managers can reinvigorate a jaded workforce by establishing mutual accountability. Most workers want to grow, and they value employers who set performance goals based on personal strengths and empower employees to tackle new challenges. At the same time, workers are turned off by double standards, and they don't want to be blamed when managers fail to explain performance goals. Employees are more invested in their jobs when they're sure of their responsibilities and confident that their work will yield desired results.

Bosses can also improve performance management with routine check-ins to discuss team objectives, assess current progress and collect feedback from employees about any obstacles or ideas they've encountered. By initiating communication, managers make themselves more approachable, and employees feel comfortable sharing opinions, asking for guidance and challenging unhelpful policies.

Setting performance goals is a cost-free way to increase a company's bottom line, leading to higher engagement, output and retention among employees. Managers who encourage communication and optimize employee strengths can build efficient, supportive teams where everyone is a star performer.

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