“I love my team and company, but they never follow through with promises on staffing.” I am sure every Commercial Real Estate leader has heard these words before. CRE staffing challenges due to cost cutting, employee turnover or growth can pose enormous risk to your culture and teams. Regardless of the reasons, it is a red flag for a leader and should not be ignored. As a leader, are you listening to the concerns? Running a business with too few staff can undoubtedly present some challenges. Here are a few potential risks and consequences to consider:
- Burnout: When a limited number of staff are tasked with an extensive workload, it can lead to employee burnout.
- Decreased Morale: Employees may feel overwhelmed with the amount of work, leading to frustration and lower job satisfaction.
- Reduced Efficiency: With a smaller team, there might be difficulty in meeting deadlines and maintaining quality standards, which can impact overall business efficiency.
- Limited Innovation: A lean team may have less time to focus on creative problem-solving or innovation, potentially stunting business growth and competitiveness.
- Customer Service Issues: With fewer staff, it might be challenging to maintain high levels of customer service, which could affect customer satisfaction and loyalty.
- Increased Risk of Errors: Overworked employees may be more prone to making mistakes, which can have serious implications depending on the industry.
Adding additional staff is not always the answer but spending the time “in the weeds” for a short time to understand how you can support your teams and create solutions will make a difference. Employees who feel heard and part of the solution will feel motivated and part of the strategy of a company. Employees need to feel powerful and not powerless.
Staying connected will keep you from losing exceptional talent and still be able to focus on what is most important but you must make it a priority:
- Clear Communication: Establish open and transparent communication channels. Regular team meetings and updates can help ensure everyone is on the same page and working towards the same goals.
- Collaborative Tools: Use project management and collaboration tools. Set up an advisory group to ensure there is an independent review of your CRE staffing challenges.
- Skill Development: Invest in training and development to build skills and improve productivity across the team. This can also help employees feel more engaged and valued.
- Feedback Culture: Encourage a culture of feedback where team members can openly share ideas and concerns. This can lead to improvements and innovation in operations.
- Role Clarity: Ensure that every team member has a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities, which helps to avoid duplication of efforts and confusion.
- Process Streamlining: Regularly review and optimize processes to eliminate any unnecessary steps that may be causing delays or inefficiencies.
- Celebrating Successes: Acknowledge and celebrate team achievements to boost morale and reinforce a positive team spirit.
- Cross-Department Collaboration: Promote interaction and collaboration across different departments to improve overall operational cohesion.
Remember an over extension of work from time to time is to be expected; however, it is more costly to lose key employees than to spend money on temporary support or facilitation and training that allows your employees to be heard and be part of the solution. Be careful of Leaning Too Hard for too long!