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Hi everyone, Marty T Hawkins with you here at Warehouse and Operations as a Career! Where are we at this week? Looks like Week 9, the first week of March, which is the last month of the first quarter! Everyone keeping to their plan? We each have a plan right! I won’t jump off on one of my planning and goals rants today, but I did want to talk about a few things that came up this week out in the field.
First, I was asked by a new supervisor, why every new employee that HR was sending him seemed so anxious, or, edgy. He wanted to talk to his generalist and help them better understand what he wanted the new boots to know! I hear this often. Usually from the newly promoted leads and Supervisors. I suggested we go sit down and grab a cup of coffee, that I did have a few thoughts on the subject.
This supervisor had been working at this facility for about 6 years. He had started out in the sanitation department. He’d moved on to be an order selector for 2 of those years, then he was a forklift operator for about a year and then an inbound receiver before being promoted to supervision. He’s doing a great job and his boss has been quite impressed with his progress so far. I can see that he’s feeling a little bit of the pressure, well, really, I guess he’s recognizing the responsibilities. Handling it, but feeling it!
So, we went to the break room and I asked him to think back to his first day that he walked into the building. Of course, he laughed and said that was almost 7 years ago, I don’t know how I felt! I asked him to think about who his boss was and did he remember meeting him maybe. It was so funny because then the memories started flooding back! He said his boss literally scared him so much, he remembered all the noise, all the equipment seemed to stick with him. I said you just answered your own question Sir. It is not that HR is sending the wrong people, or needs to be telling them something else. It’s you, you need to be helping them more. You have to take that additional 15 minutes with your new associate and help set them at ease. I can’t remember the last time I saw someone so excited to get back to the floor and start working with his people again!
And as a new employee. I think we can help ourselves in this area as well. I mean, if we have asked questions during the hiring process, questions about anything we didn’t understand and made sure we knew what our position, job description, and what expectations my new employer had regarding my success, I think I’d feel better about my first day? Whenever I can I try and walk a new candidate out to the docks, show them the aisles, let them see the pace and the movement. As a new associate we should ask to see the place. Couldn’t hurt! It’s our new job, we bare some of the responsibility regarding how we feel on that first day. Ask those questions as an employee and be that helpful team member is we’re given a new teammate!
Next, I wanted to ask, do we know how to ask for a raise? Is there even a good way to ask for a raise? Do we know why we’re asking for a raise? I think knowing the answer to that last question, in many instances, will determine the outcome of that meeting. You know, unless we’ve had a mentor, or a close friend share their experiences with us we maybe should approach the raise subject cautiously! I strongly urge you not to just approach your boss and say I deserve a pay increase. Their first question is going to be why! Do you know how you’re going to answer that? I mean, if you go down the I’m so productive path do you have those numbers and metrics in your hand or is that your opinion? If you say I’ve been here over a year. Well, so what. A company is not required to give us an annual raise. I had one associate last year receive 2, I guess you’d call them promotion raises. She was in a production department, doing a great job, and changed positions twice, both times with pay increases. On her anniversary date she went to HR and stated that she had not received an increase at her 1-year mark.
Some organizations have yearly reviews, sometimes with merit increases and sometimes with objectives or other incentives to earn increases. Sometimes our companies will give an across-the-board cost of living increase. And some companies, well, they may not have any type of structured or planned increase schedule. Working for one of these companies my put us in the position where we’ll need to make that walk down the hall and ask for that raise!
Ok, let’s talk about that for a minute. Why are you wanting a raise? I had a CFO ask me, do people ask for a raise because they want more money or because their doing an above average job, exceeding expectations, through their efficiencies and productivity, saving the company expenses. If we’re just wanting more money, we probably won’t have those metrics and figures to show as backup for our request. But, if we’re wanting a raise because we value our job and how we are performing it, well, I bet you we’ll have that kind of back up.
Here at WAOC we’re always talking about being that employee. That is the employee we’re always referring too.
When you know your value, and present it to your management team, along with your reasoning, that is documented, odds are you’ll see that increase if its available or at their desecration. I have to throw in the word Planning here. Shoot, I’m just going to go ahead and say it, planning and goals people! No really. If we are that person, have planned out our progress and done our jobs, odds are, we’re not going to have to set that meeting. Our management teams will come to us with the good news, right?
And then one last thing. Do we know how to quit a job? We did an episode back in November of 2019 on burning bridges and how we never want to do that! In this industry I assure you, I can promise you, we will continue to run into teammates, front line management and even directors and VP’s throughout our careers. We love what we do and so does everyone else. Don’t burn those bridges!
All employers would like 2 weeks’ notice of course. They need to get us replaced. With that being said, our new employer needs the help now. That’s why they’ve hired us. In our industry a week notice is ok. But, show up all 5 days. Thinking, on that Friday that, well, it’s my last day, I’m going to not go in. It’s just not right.
And some companies will go ahead and dismiss us when we turn in our resignation. It may be their policy. Maybe they’ve been burned by an associate before. Don’t let it upset you, just prepare the best you can for it. I always suggest that we share that possibility with our new employer. They’ll probably let us start earlier should our ex-employer lets us go.
Above all, never, and I know it’s hard sometimes, but never just walk away at break or lunch. We were given a job; I’ve always felt like the least I could do is to go up to my manager and tell them I’ve made a mistake. This just is not for me, it’s not going to work out.
Same thing about ghosting or no call no showing. Don’t go down that road. It’s our responsibility to let our manager know we’ve quit. I’ve always felt like I wanted to share why I’m leaving. Was there a bad supervisor, or was I mislead about the position. We’re all adults, I think we can communicate as such!
If we’ve done our research, planned, see how I threw that in. If we picked and targeted our employer correctly, then none of these scenarios are ever going to happen correct?
So, the first quarter wraps up in about 3 weeks. Do you want 3 more quarters just like this one? Are you happy with what you’ve earned, happy with your employer, pleased with your new job? If your answers are yes, then I’m proud of your planning and goal efforts! If you had to say no to one of those questions it is not the end of the world! I’d just step back, devise a plan, a new goal, and go get it!
The truth is ladies and gentlemen. Our jobs, our careers, are in our hands. Ours alone. With planning and knowing what we want, well, that’s all it takes to succeed.
I hope you could relate to something we talked about tonight! I know so many people that have struggled with all three before. Having a job is hard, it’s a responsibility. But so rewarding at the same time!
Until next week, I hope the coming week is great for you. Let’s all help a teammate through a struggle. Share a productivity hack, or just lend an ear. And tell them why safety is so important to you.