Good Morning – I have tried several leadership approaches in running PacificPillows.com. For about 3 years from 2007-2010 just after I left the Marine Corps I tried a more heavy handed approach. I was very concerned about whether people arrived on time at work, kepts to do lists for my staff, followed up on the to do lists, entered into all kids of different business ventures, demanded weekly progress updates, weekly focus on monthly sales numbers, etc. This approach ended up makinng our office a pressure cooker. I was micromanaging my staff and pushing new business ideas on them before they were ready and before we can done the last idea right. In 2010 I decided it was time for me to leave. So, I found a job practicing law and I left. And, I let my staff run the show. I dumped the other businesses (appliance repair – totally crazy that I had an appliance repair company – why would you have that when you have a great ecommerce company – that is for a different blog), trimmed our staff down to the most loyal employees who were hard workers, and I let them run the show. The result – 2010 was our best year for net sales ever. WOW! Everything may not be done exactly the way I would do it, but it is done well, my people are empowered to do a good job, and we had a great year.
In terms of incentives I don’t give a lot of pay raises. I give out bonuses based on the success of our business. And, I give out gift cards. A cool gift card at the end of the month really can be great for an employee. Give an employee a gift card to Wallmart or Target and they can use it on clothes, groceries, or electronics. This usually makes both the employee and the spouse happy. Or, give them a gift card to a resteraunt and they can take the significant other out on the town. Again, spouse happy and employee happy. Gift cards (vice bonuses) give employees the chance to splurge.
With all of this said … I want to highly recommend:
I go here to buy gift cards for my staff at discounted prices. They deliver quickly and are reliable. Highly recommended.
Have a great weekend.
Craig
