SPEAKING领导艺术——员工激励A: Our manager considers that our employees' morale is not very high recently, and I'm sure that you can feel that, too.
B: Yes, it is not a good sign for the development of our company. It is not hard for us to find many signs reflecting this problem. First many managers complain that their subordinates usually do not finish their tasks till the deadline, therefore making them hard to control the overall situation.
A: I've heard of that, too. And they also told me that the employees are not as active as before, they contribute very little at the brainstorm meeting. But you know, as an advertisement company, creative and original ideas really mean a lot to us.
B: That's right. No wonder our boss is so concerned. What's worse, I'm afraid that our staff lacks sense of identity or sense of belonging to our company, and that may be the root of all the other problems.
A: Well, I think your analysis is quite insightful, so we must take some measures for this situation. High work efficiency should be encouraged more in our company, and employees should realise that initiative can be beneficial to everyone.
B: Right. And I think they can be more active and offer more smart ideas if given more material incentives, after all we have to admit that sometimes this is really the most effective way to encourage them.
A: That sounds quite reasonable, but I also think that carrying forward our company culture to arouse their sense of belonging can be even more helpful in the future. After all, material stimulation won't last as long as spiritual one.
B: I totally agree. Let's hope that we can run our business better after this round of reform.
1. What's the most common reason for the low morale in a company?
I think it's the lack of team spirit, because poor cooperation among members causes bad performances and low spirit.
2. Do you finish your work in advance or only a few hours before the deadline?
● I usually try to complete my task as soon as possible in case that I won't finish it on time.
● I will make a plan for my task and finish it according to the schedule. I believe that "more haste, less speed".
3. Which do you think is more effective to encourage employees, material incentives or special awards like Best Employee of the Year?
I think the employees will receive great encouragement if the two are combined together. But if only one choice can be made, I'd prefer the material stimulation.
4. What is the ideal or core value of your company?
● I work in a security company, and our goal is to create greatest value for our client.
● Our company produces drugs against some particular diseases, so we advocate human health.
5. Do you recognise your company culture? Why?
● Yes. My company encourages a harmonious and equal relationship between all people, and I really appreciate that.
● No. I feel that it pays too much attention to competition.
A: Our company is doing a great job in recent years and the market is also booming nowadays, so managers of the high level are considering expanding our business to other regions in China.
B: I think it's really a good time to explore new market, but before we start, we should make some comprehensive analysis and then decide which regions deserve us taking risks.
A: Sure. But as the third largest country in the world, there are many regions left untouched for us. Could you recommend some of the most promising regions?
B: Well, the western region developing campaign has launched for a period of time, and the economy is becoming ever prosperous there, so it can be our first choice. Then the central part of China has the largest population, so it can also be a huge market for us. Finally we cannot neglect the northeast part, for the economic situation is getting much better there, so it is also reasonable to reoccupy this market.
A: You have some very good points. Then can you think of some features of these regions which we should pay attention to before entering markets there?
B: First we should take note of the special tastes of the minority groups in the West, for they may have more diversified tastes compared with other regions of China. Then we must notice the rather low buying power of the central part, because most of customers are peasants. Finally the extreme cold weather in the northeast also calls for our attention.
A: Right, that means we should do some extra work in package and storage to avoid unnecessary damages.
B: I am sure that we can expect good performances in the new market as long as we take everything into consideration.
6. Does your company have any plans for expansion?
● Yes. We've decided to export our products to other countries in the Continent, like Czech, Hungary, etc.
● No. With such a bleak prospect of the economy, our company does not have such ambitions.
7. Which region of your country do you think has the largest consumption potential? Why?
I think it's the central part, which includes provinces like Henan, Hubei, etc., because this region has the largest population and is experiencing rapid growth.
8. Which do you think is more fatal for a company's development, a good strategy or implementation capacity?
● I think the former is of greater importance for a company, for a company without a good strategy is just like a boat without a destination, so it may go astray.
● As for me, I think the latter is more essential, because it is through specific action that a company grows, not a beautiful blueprint.
9. Is your company brave enough to explore new market all the time?
Yes, as a high-tech company, we have to try hard to promote our products to all possible customers before our products become obsolete.
10. Which part of the country can bring the highest profits to your company? Why?
The east part, of course, because it enjoys the most developed and prosperous economy of the entire country.
A: Since our department is taking more responsibilities, our boss has agreed to recruit a new employee for us.
B: That's very good news, which means that he or she can share some working load with us.
A: Maybe we don't have to work extra hours when the new member joins us, so it's very important to find the right one.
B: Sure. First this person must have a university's diploma in finance at the least, and it is preferable if he has a master's degree. Then he or she needs to master the usage of Excel and PPT, because these two sets of software are used very frequently in our daily work.
A: And anything else?
B: I was thinking that maybe an experienced person is more desirable than a grad. Do you agree?
A: I totally agree; we really need someone who can get down to work at once. And as for channels to put up our job notice, I think the job-hunting websites like Chinahr can be helpful and some of them are free of charge.
B: Right. But someone may not have access to the Internet, so we still have to publish advertisement in the newspaper and participate in some recruitment fairs.
A: OK. Hope we can find the right person with all the efforts we make.
11. Do you think your team needs new members?
● Yes. We need some fresh blood, but it's not easy to find a suitable person.
● No. I think all members in our team work very hard and we can always finish our task before the deadline.
12. Are you satisfied with your performance during your last interview? How do you plan to improve your performance?
● Yes. I've made lots of preparation for my job interview, and I think the interviewer was quite satisfied with my performance.
● No. I was ill-prepared and very nervous. I should have been more brave and better-prepared.
13. How many interviews have you attended before you found your present job?
To tell you the truth, I'd tried at least ten times before I found my present job. I think the main reason is that many companies are unwilling to hire inexperienced employees.
14. Which channel do you use most for job hunting, Internet, newspaper or recruitment fair?
I use the Internet most, there are so many companies putting up their job notices on professional websites, including Fortune 500 companies like GE, IBM, etc. And once you complete an e-resumé, you can apply for many positions very easily.
15. Have you ever attended any recruitment fair? What's your impression?
Yes. I was scared, because it was so crowded and my bag got lost.
A: It's April now, time for our performance evaluation of each department, and this time we will start our evaluation from the sales department.
B: Yes, as our routine, we will evaluate salespersons' performance according to three categories, namely, their sales figures of last year and the rank among all members; numbers of active clients they have, including the clients our salespersons gained or lost and the background and strength of these clients; and their operation costs.
A: Could you please say more clearly?
B: Sales figures are the direct indicator of a salesman's performance, and we should compare the figures with that of other years and with that of other persons, so we can know the trend of the sales. Clients means profits for our company, so the numbers and quality are of great importance to our development.
A: I see. And their operation costs also have a direct influence on our price, right? I guess these figures will give us a comprehensive analysis of their last year's performances.
B: That's for sure, we have adopted these categories for several years and the effect of such evaluation has been proved. But this year I hope we can find some new measures to encourage our salesperson.
A: So what can we do? ... I'm thinking of giving the Salesperson of the Year Award to spur them to work harder. Apart from spirit encouragement, we may also offer higher sales commission for those with the highest sales figures.
B: Speaking of monetary incentive, we may provide bonus for their cost-saving behaviour as well.
A: Good idea! I'll report our discussion to our manager, and I'm sure he will like it.
16. How much do you know about performance evaluation?
It's an evaluation that compares actual performance with that planned in terms of both resource utilisation and production. It is used by management to redirect programme efforts and resources and to redesign the programme structure.
17. Does your company do performance evaluations?
Yes, actually we do it every month and our salary is decided by our performances.
18. Would you like to make plans every day and carry out what you've planned strictly?
● Yes, I always write a schedule for me to follow when I arrive at my office. I won't leave my office till I've tried my best to finish my task.
● No, I am a freelancer and I do my job when I am in the mood.
19. What will happen if you fail to complete your task within a given period of time?
● I think in that case I'll have to leave.
● I'll try to persuade my boss that I've already tried my best and ask him to give me some extra time.
20. Do you regard yourself as an ambitious person?
● Yes, and I believe that I have the capacity to fulfill my dreams.
● No, I think work is not my priority, but my family is.
21. Why do some people always have a better performance than we do?
The answer is easy: because they spend more efforts than we do.
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