Do you have one or more superstar players on your team? If you do, you are very fortunate. The question I often get asked by my coaching clients and audiences is how do we keep them engaged? We always want to do our best to keep them on our teams. No one wants to see their superstars take their talents, enthusiasm, energy and experience to another business.
So how do you keep your superstars engaged? Paying them more money can be one option. I certainly hope you are in a position to pay your superstars fairly but we all know that in a small business that can be a challenge.
Here are the Top Ten strategies that I have used while at Disney and other companies to help keep our superstars engaged: How many of them do you use to engage your superstars in your business?
1. Communicate and check on them regularly to make sure everything is going well. Provide regular updates and feedback on their tasks, responsibilities, projects and work load. Sometimes our superstars are often given additional projects, responsibilities and work because they are so good.
2. Conduct brainstorming sessions with them to obtain their thoughts and ideas on recurring problems, opportunities and creative solutions. Make them feel important to your team and business.
3. Learn from them and their front line on the job experiences. They can provide you great value and let them know it.
4. Provide them help and support to pursue any professional training opportunities.
5. Satisfy their needs and wants so they are not looking for another job. Look for ways to reward their efforts. Ask them how they would like to be recognized and rewarded.
6. Keep them challenged by empowering them with short term special projects and leadership opportunities. Make sure you coach and guide them along the way.
7. Teach them your expertise and skills.
8. Ask them about their long term goals and pursuits and develop a plan to help achieve them.
9. Brag about them to others. The word will get out how special they are to the team and business.
10. Thank them always and often.
We all know how important our superstars are to us. The role they play in our small businesses can be the difference between a successful business or not. We need to do what ever we can to keep them engaged. Their success is our success. Don’t take them for granted. Having superstars in our business is one way to make sure our customer experience is always magical.