The best way to manage performance is to know your subordinates’ jobs and have performed them yourself. By performing their jobs you also discover better ways of doing things that the workers themselves might not think of.
When I owned a television transcription company in the 90’s, I personally had performed all the tasks for which I was hiring workers. I like to think I was our best transcriber, our best proofreader, and I knew all the other tasks from answering the phones and processing orders to printing and mailing the transcripts. Only by knowing these tasks myself could I (a) hire the best candidates and (b) assess their performance. When I hired a transcriber, I proofed their first transcripts myself. Indeed, the job interview entailed a transcription which I proofread for accuracy.
The same applies to owning a real estate brokerage. I am a practicing broker myself and know how to train and evaluate broker associates. We have weekly meetings where we share learnings and give each other feedback.
Performance management is a holistic process involving all team members. They can teach me and each other, not just be taught by “the boss.”
One of my favorite TV shows is “Undercover Boss.” Almost every edition has the boss learning things about his or her operation that can be improved. The line workers in any business can teach management a lot if we’ll just look, ask and listen!
Jim