If you’re a manager…

amother

Scarlet

Wed, Aug 28 2024, 2:52 pm

I don't work within eyesight of my team member. So yeah, sometimes a whole day goes by and I wonder what she even did that day or if she got anything done. I'm tempted to ask her to do an hourly check-in because otherwise unfortunately I just can't tell and that doesn't give me a comfort -level with her work.

amother

Amaranthus

Wed, Aug 28 2024, 3:01 pm

amother Scarlet wrote:

I sure hope you’re kidding about the hourly check in! That would be kinda nuts. And honestly, I’m just being polite by adding the kinda.

I’m a project manager and the way our work is set up, I can easily see the progress my team members have made or not made. I don’t need them to check in. They all work remotely so I don’t ever see them in person.

I do have weekly one on one zoom meetings with them as per our company policy so I can ask them about their progress then if I want to.

amother

Tuberose ↓

Wed, Aug 28 2024, 3:08 pm

Weekly updates should be sufficient. If needed, use a tool that allows employees to track/report where they are with what they're working on. If you aren't using any sort of project tracking tools, you could ask for a weekly write-up of what was done for the week. If you have no idea what your employees are up to unless they are constantly checking in with you, something is off on your end. Managing should not be micro-managing.

amother

Candycane

Wed, Aug 28 2024, 4:14 pm

I definitely worry because things trickle back to me when they're behind but there's also a lot of things that they do that needs to be run through me or that they have questions on so I know they are working in general

amother

Amber ↓

Wed, Aug 28 2024, 4:20 pm

I have a program where I can get a feel for the overall workflow but I sit in the same room so can easily see if someone is really not working... plus the issues/questions that come up..

amother

Beige

Wed, Aug 28 2024, 4:41 pm

This probably depends a lot on the type of work. I'm a lawyer and I don't ever wonder if our paralegals or admins are working hard. I know they are because I am and I couldn't do my work without them. I am constantly emailing and messaging with them, not to check up on them, but just to perform the work. We work together closely, even though we are mostly working remotely.

amother

Puce ↓

Wed, Aug 28 2024, 4:43 pm

Maybe I should start a spin off- I asked someone if something got done and she said yes, but when I checked I saw it wasn’t done.
How would you approach this?
I don’t want to micromanage.

amother

Coffee ↓

Wed, Aug 28 2024, 4:46 pm

As the manager- are you giving your boss hourly or even more frequent updates?

Does your boss trust you to run things smoothly without constantly checking in?

singleagain

Wed, Aug 28 2024, 4:51 pm

amother Puce wrote:

Maybe I should start a spin off- I asked someone if something got done and she said yes, but when I checked I saw it wasn’t done.
How would you approach this?
I don’t want to micromanage.

How long has it been and did you give them a deadline?

amother

↑ Coffee

Wed, Aug 28 2024, 4:51 pm

amother Puce wrote:

Maybe I should start a spin off- I asked someone if something got done and she said yes, but when I checked I saw it wasn’t done.
How would you approach this?
I don’t want to micromanage.

I would confront her and say I’m not sure if it’s a glitch because it looks like xyz wasn’t finished- unless I’m looking at something else. Is it possible there’s a mistake and the work isn’t showing up?

If it turns out she lied just say you understand things get put on the back burner and work doesn’t always get completed in time. But your most important rule is transparency and if she needs more time it’s okay but she needs to communicate that with you. Moving forward she should let you know what’s going on so you can be on the same page

Or you can avoid the confrontation and say you’d like to go over it together in an hour or two- so she’d be forced to complete it. But I don’t recommend this

amother

↑ Tuberose ↓

Wed, Aug 28 2024, 4:56 pm

amother Emerald wrote:

Yes I do wonder which is why I set up they need to cc me on all emails from hiring until I decide. It can last a full year

All the workplaces where I've seen or had this done have been very uncomfortable to work in. I would not recommend this.

amother

↑ Puce ↓

Wed, Aug 28 2024, 5:05 pm

singleagain wrote:

How long has it been and did you give them a deadline?

Didn’t give a deadline, but today was a week. I checked in to see if it was done and she said yes. (If she would’ve said no, I’d offer to assist.)
It was a pretty simple clear cut task but it could be she misunderstood. Maybe I’ll offer to review with her.

amother

↑ Emerald

Wed, Aug 28 2024, 5:05 pm

amother Tuberose wrote:

All the workplaces where I've seen or had this done have been very uncomfortable to work in. I would not recommend this.

I am a very easygoing manager and I give lots of positive feedback but this is how I train. Otherwise they can really mess things up bad. I give them lots of power from the start but I need to be cc'ed to be able to jump in and fix their issues

amother

↑ Puce

Wed, Aug 28 2024, 5:07 pm

amother Coffee wrote:

I like this, thank you!

amother

Chocolate

Wed, Aug 28 2024, 7:25 pm

Where I work they had a specific team hand in daily a sheet saying what they did. Their role is specific tasks that are quantifiable (ie number of people they called or similar task that is either done or not done). This team has a history of exaggerating what they did and failing to document things. Honestly if I were HR I probably would have fired them as they had multiple trainings and warnings. But that wasn't up to me. And submitting those forms helped them slightly be more accurate and honest. I still catch them not doing things they said they did. Can't Believe It

amother

Lily

Wed, Aug 28 2024, 7:47 pm

amother Puce wrote:

Maybe I should start a spin off- I asked someone if something got done and she said yes, but when I checked I saw it wasn’t done.
How would you approach this?
I don’t want to micromanage.

I don't know what type of office you work in, but I work in construction, we have a few people working on folders. Alot of time estimates get saved in the "broader" category ex - "roofing " ( depends who sets up the folder category)
My boss asks me for a quote, I say it's saved in the folder, and he doesn't find it.
He's looking for the company name folder, "ABC Roofing" and I saved it under "roofing estimates "
I had that for a very long time before I realized what was going wrong, and for newer projects I take the liberty to make a new folder for every company.
So yes, I felt so silly. But it's also sooo not the type for me to say that "it's saved in the general folder" he's too busy to hear that, he just wants the quote...

amother

↑ Tuberose

Wed, Aug 28 2024, 7:48 pm

amother Amber wrote:

I'm with Emerald, part of the training process is being cc'd on their emails and for some individuals that can be weeks..

Weeks, ok maybe. A year just seems controlling. It might be better for those who have that policy for much longer timeframesnto give more training up front and be able to stand back later.