I just finished talking to a customer about one of his staff members. 'He's a perfect employee,' the customer said. 'He's killing me!'
Sometimes agency principals and department managers differ in their evaluation of the office's 'perfect' employees. When these evaluations differ, it's time to take a look at how department managers' goals may differ from those of the principals or owners.
Department managers tend to look at exactly how specific tasks are being performed. Their evaluations are sometimes technically focused rather than focused on the agency's overall objectives. When looking at how employees process new business, the department manager checks the accuracy of all steps in the process. Of course, the efficiency of office procedures is important, but agencies must make sure that these observations are congruent with the agency's broad goals.
On the other hand, the agency principal is always looking at the bottom line. A so-called perfect employee may, in the eyes of the principal, be killing the agency with time-consuming perfectionism, sometimes missing critical deadlines and consequently falling short of agency goals. While the department manager may consider this employee's work perfect, business goals are not being addressed, and sales are falling behind. Insurance companies just love these types of employees; however, agency principals are looking for retention and growth, especially in these times.
When evaluating staff on a yearly basis, make sure to receive input from both sides-department managers and agency principals. The evaluation should reflect procedural efficiency and agency goals, giving a thorough, rounded employee evaluation.
When evaluating employees in your office, check the quality of their work by reviewing computer files and checking daily computer transactions. You may find that your most up-to-date employee is rushing through the work without completing all steps-for instance, entering an endorsement into the computer and then not placing the follow-up in the system to bring the endorsement into the office. Your meticulous employee may be spending too much time entering details of the account and in the process, costing you money. Yes, from the agency principal's point of view, this employee is wasting your money by using up time better spent in account rounding or new business sales.
Remember to evaluate employees from all sides. Since department managers usually perform the evaluations, they should make sure to talk to agency principals before the evaluation is actually communicated to the employee. Quality is an important aspect of any agency position, but take a look at whether your perfect employee is costing you money in the long run.