"The One Minute Manager" by Kenneth Blanchard and Spencer Johnson is an extraordinary book and one of my all time favorites.

If you have problems managing your team, then I highly recommend this short, simple, easy to read book -- The One Minute Manager.

The One Minute Manager - Simple Ideas Make A Profound Difference

Like many common sense ideas, it's only common sense when you know it, so the One Minute Manager book could have the impact of being hit on the head with a baseball bat, wielded by world super heavyweight boxer Lennox Lewis. Yes, I think The One Minute Manager is that good and powerful for anyone who has problems getting the most out of their staff.

The critical ideas in the One Minute Manager all comes down to three simple techniques:

1. One Minute Goal Setting

2. One Minute Praising

3. One Minute Reprimands

That's right. That is all there is to it.

Let's have a look at how The One Minute Manager works in a little more detail.

One Minute Goal Setting

The core idea behind One Minute Goal Setting is so simple.

You just have to tell your staff what you want them to achieve and what you want them to do.

I told you it was obvious, but surveys often show that many employees are uncertain of what it is that they should do, their responsibilities, and their goals.

Perhaps you should try a little experiment.

Pick two members of your team - a star and an average performer. Ask them to write down their main goals for their job, their responsibilities and accountabilities, and the important tasks that contribute to those goals.

Then you do the same exercise yourself for their roles and compare the lists.

There's a good chance that your lists and the lists for your high performer are more similar than the lists for your average performer.

Isn't that interesting? It makes sense. How can anyone do a good job if they don't know what's expected of them? Yes they could ask, but they don't want to look stupid in front of the boss and aren't you always busy rushing here and there anyway. So instead, they will try to find their own answers or lose enthusiasm because they don't understand the rules of the game.

There's no getting away from it. It is your responsibility to clarify the goals of each and every person who reports directly to you and to approve the goals for the employees at the next level down.

What? You don't have time? That's the other great thing about this system -- it only takes one minute when you are a One Minute Manager.

One Minute Praising

Do you know a simple, low cost way to improve the morale of your team of employees and help them to do a better job? Give them a one minute praising - tell them that they are doing a great job. But only if you mean it - otherwise it comes across as false and insincere.

Virtually everyone likes to be recognized, especially if the person has made a special effort to overcome problems or maintains impeccable high standards.

Incidentally, I always think that it's the sign of a great employee if the standards for their work are higher than yours. But how do you know when to give people praise? You have to keep your eyes open and catch them doing something right.

When you see something good -- behavior or results then tell the person, congratulate them, and thank them for their efforts.

A one minute praising shows that you care about performance, so they care.

It shows that you believe in giving recognition when it's earned, so they will strive harder to earn it. But sometimes you see more problems than things going right. That's where the third point of the One Minute Manager system comes in.

One Minute Reprimands

Most staff will hear some form of rant from their boss from time to time, although there are some who won't say anything and just store things up until the formal appraisal. Often it's water off a duck's back. Because they don't have clear responsibilities and duties and because they don't receive one minute praising, they assume that criticism is just the way bosses act. That's no way to manage.

The One Minute Manager recognizes that there are better ways and that people have to learn from their mistakes or unsuitable behavior. It can only happen if people are told about it quickly and in a way that encourages them to learn and do better next time.

Your Responsibility as a Manager

If you employ staff, then your responsibility is simply to get the highest and best performance out of each member of your team, as well as to manage the team so that the overall performance is excellent. The One Minute Manager is a remarkably simple system to learn and apply and will help you improve employee performance.

It will make your feel that you are a better manager because you have become proactive rather than reactive. You are setting goals and providing quick feedback on performance - whether good or bad. It will make your staff feel better about their work. Yes even those that receive a few One Minute Reprimands. They will know what is expected of them and through the reinforcement of praising and reprimands they begin to understand their role and the consequences.

Each of these three ideas - One Minute Goal Setting, One Minute Praising and One Minute Reprimands are covered in more detail in the book and there are specific techniques for making each of them work effectively.

To find out more you will have to read the One Minute Manager book by Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson. I am sure that you will be glad that you did.

I rate the One Minute Manager as a five star book - a must buy.

Source:

http://businesscoaching.typepad.com/the_business_coaching_blo/2007/10/the-one-minute-.html

Questions and discussion:

1. 1. Are the goals and responsibilities of your job made clear to you or are you still trying to determine what they are?

   2. Have you ever had to praise or reprimand an employee or subordinate? Was it easy or difficult? Why?

   3. What are the qualities of a good boss or manager?

   4. What do you think would help improve performance and productivity at work?