Experienced Managers Know These Secrets
Are you a manager searching for a few new techniques and approaches? If so, why not dip into the collective knowledge base and see what long-time managerial operatives have done to achieve admirable profit levels? It’s a well-known fact that management is more art than science. That means there’s no one-size-fits-all strategy for hitting efficiency, earnings, and customer satisfaction targets.
What’s the answer? It starts with experimentation.
Try using highly effective tools like fleet management programs, realistic sales projections, and built-in processes for correcting errors. Understand a couple of fundamental truths, like the fact that workers will leave the company at the most inconvenient times. Plus, prolonged or frequent meetings can kill any rapport you’ve built up with your team. Consider the following suggestions for boosting your management skills.
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Sales Projections are Seldom Correct
Relying on estimated sales figures is a recipe for disaster. Unfortunately, too many company owners use projected sales totals to create other financial targets, tainting dozens of different estimates. Always view prospective sales figures as guesses, and don’t rely on them to build additional economic models.
Fleet Management Systems are Essential
Fleet management systems are at the heart of long-term profitability in the transport industry. One of the many features of standard fleet programs is truck tracking software that offers GPS accuracy and helps supervisors monitor shipments in real-time, 24/7.
Moving goods from Point A to Point B is the core mission of any transport business, and fleet software does most of the heavy lifting once vehicles leave their home base. Advanced software programs track shipments, help managers interact with and coach drivers, prevent hours-of-service violations, and develop efficient routes.
Errors Happen
Never assume your work will be perfect. The most diligent, experienced, educated managers make frequent mistakes, especially during the process of improving business management processes. The smartest ones understand this common human trait and implement plans for addressing errors as they arise.
The goal of a successful owner is not to operate an error-free company but to know how to fix mistakes as soon as they occur. Make an error resolution protocol part of your company’s standard operating procedure. Employees should know what to do when they spot a problem at every level. Preventing mistakes is a worthy aim, but understanding how to resolve common dilemmas is better.
Business Management: Workers Will Quit at the Worst Possible Time
Always have a go-to resource for finding temporary workers. That’s because you need to know what to do when an employee suddenly quits, as they will when you least expect them to. It’s one of the authentic Murphy’s Law situations in the business world. Protect yourself as much as you can by enforcing a two-week notice rule. Likewise, maintain a relationship with a local temp agency that can supply competent staff members at a moment’s notice.
Keep Meetings Short and Infrequent
Instead of in-person or online meetings, try using more email memos, five-minute video chats, once-per-month staff meetings, and phone calls to convey crucial information to your team members. Don’t waste everyone’s time by holding weekly staff meetings. Aim for less frequent, preferably monthly, sessions and keep them 30 minutes in length or shorter.
