At a recent national conference for community bankers sponsored by the American Bankers Association, at least three speakers examined ways to improve staff performance. Roxanne Emmerich, CEO of the Emmerich Group, said employees need to be enthusiastic about their bank as well as serving customers. The right attitude involves certain "non-negotiables, she said, such as "we dont whine, we dont make excuses, and we dont hurt other people with our words." Emmerich added that the right attitude starts at the top. For instance, when a CEO walks by the teller line, he or she should make eye contact with staff rather than look straight ahead. The CEO can also set an example by spending a few moments making casual comments. Daniel Pink, a best-selling author and Wired contributing editor, observed that team spirit is increased when employees believe their day-to-day work is purposeful. To spur creativity, he cited an Australian software company that allows staff to work on anything they want 20 percent of the time as long as these efforts will be beneficial to the employer. Cathy Berch, president of the Center for Practical Management, and Jo Kinsey, senior vice president of Country Club Bank, said employees can improve their performance by going through several progressive steps--clarifying, tracking, setting goals, planning, reinforcing, and coaching--where the skill level rises at each step.

Source: BankNews, Vol. 111, No. 3, P. 28

Author: Bill Poquette

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