leadingtoday.org

Leadership Tip of the Month

October 2004

Copyright 2004ã weLEAD, Inc.

Leading “Part-Time” Workers

It is often difficult to lead part-time workers. Most organizations give them lower-level work and they are often made to feel like outsiders by full-time employees. In addition, part-time workers are usually given a limited opportunity for advancement within the organization. This leads to a motivation problem and lower productivity. Within this negative environment it is often difficult to “spot” the positive potential in some of these workers that may result in full-time opportunities. Here are some tips that leaders can use to develop and motivate part-time employees!

Offer above average financial compensation. Give your part-time workers a reason to appreciate and be enthusiastic about the work they do. Offer bonuses based on company established incentives. By doing this you will attract and retain the best part-time workers available and prevent competitors from raiding those who offer the most potential to grow into full-time positions.

Provide a good orientation program. Start off by treating these employees with respect and value. The first impression they are given is important and will make them more productive. Let them know about their assignments, who is allowed to give them work, and the basic rules of the workplace. Take the time to review their duties in detail, and let them know what is expected and considered good work skills.

Offer variety in their workload. It is demoralizing to give part-time employees only “grunt work” or mundane boring tasks! Take the time to find out what special skills or talents a part-time worker has. Then give them some tasks that that will develop or nurture these skills. Interesting work makes for a better and more fulfilled worker and it also increases their longevity.

Provide each worker a mentor. Even with good orientation a new worker will become confused and have questions. The best way to make these new workers more effective and make them feel like a part of the team is to assign them a mentor. The mentor should be a full-time worker who has the time and temperament to work with newbies and patiently answer questions.

Offer flextime as a benefit to part-time workers. Allow these workers to have flexible hours to meet their individual needs. Many of these workers have situations that require them to work only part-time. For example, they might be raising children, caring for parents or also working another job. You will retain the better workers by making this perk a distinct advantage in your organization and reduce costs for the constant retraining of replacement workers. Establish a weekly schedule that accommodates both their needs and the organization’s ongoing needs.

Eliminate competition and resentment toward part-time workers. From the perspective of full-time workers, the “part-timers” may be considered a threat to their jobs. Make plain to full-time employees that the goal of having a part-time workforce is two-fold. First, they reduce some of the workload of the full-time staff and their employment makes everyone’s jobs easier. Secondly, some part-time workers will develop skills that can be incorporated into the organization in the future as new job openings are created.

Think about creative ways you can use to grow part-time workers into productive and valued staff. The benefit of moving part-timers into the full-time staff is you already know their work habits and skills. On the other hand, they also know your organization well and will blend into the workplace culture more quickly.

For weLEAD, this is Greg Thomas reminding you that it was Henry I. Kaiser who said, “When your work speaks for itself, don’t interrupt.”

On the weLEAD Website you will find over 70 other free helpful leadership tips. They are all available in a text version or as an MP3 audio!