Your Secret Sauce to Increasing Frontline Manager Efficiency

As leaders in HR and people management, it’s essential to prioritize creating a positive and sustainable workplace environment. Investing in the development of frontline managers is a key strategy to achieve this.

These managers supervise a significant portion of the workforce, making up about 60% of a company’s leadership and directly overseeing up to 80% of employees.

The pandemic highlighted the critical role of frontline managers in industries where remote work is not possible. As frontline managers face increasing stress, it’s crucial for executive leadership and HR to support them. Empowering frontline managers can improve employee engagement and contribute to an organization’s success.

Outlined below are three strategies that can be implemented to empower frontline managers, enhance employee engagement, and ultimately drive organizational success.

Given the ongoing changes in the world of work, it is crucial for executive leaders and HR to maintain their emphasis on supporting frontline managers during this critical time.

• Equip Frontline Leaders with Adequate Support and Tools for Effective Implementation of HR Policies

Frontline managers play a critical role in any organization, as they directly oversee and manage the largest percentage of the workforce. However, they are often overlooked when it comes to leadership development and resources. This is a mistake, as frontline managers have a significant impact on employee engagement and the overall success of the organization.

The relationship between HR and frontline managers is essential, as both have high expectations of each other. However, with the rapidly changing landscape of HR delivery services, frontline managers are being burdened with more administrative tasks and responsibilities, leaving little time for their own team development. It is crucial to provide them with the necessary support and resources to carry out strong HR policies that impact the overall employee experience and customer satisfaction.

One way to provide support is through the provision of tools and resources that empower frontline leadership, such as flexible shift swapping. This allows frontline staff to take control of their schedules and manage their work-life balance more effectively, reducing stress and improving engagement. This, in turn, allows managers to focus on managing and empowering their teams, resulting in a positive impact on employee engagement and business objectives.

It is important to recognize that frontline employees often have to navigate numerous life and family responsibilities, such as finding reliable transportation, managing long commutes, and securing childcare. Empowering them with tools such as shift swapping can go a long way in improving their work-life balance and overall engagement. Ultimately, investing in the development and support of frontline managers is critical to creating a positive and sustainable workplace environment.

• Provide Flexible Training Programs for Leaders to Foster Adaptable Learning and Development

It’s crucial to provide support to frontline managers, who have a significant impact on the overall performance and engagement of an organization. Despite this, many organizations focus their leadership development efforts on senior and executive leaders, neglecting the development of frontline managers. It is important to recognize that many frontline managers may lack training in people management and HR policies, especially if they were promoted based on their technical competence.

As HR and learning and development leaders, it is crucial to create training programs that are accessible and adaptable to the daily lives of frontline managers. Traditional classroom-style training may not be feasible for managers who are busy serving customers or handling conflicts. Organizations should consider offering multiple on-site trainings during work hours, in various languages and based on real work and challenges that frontline leaders face. By doing this, organizations can ensure that frontline managers are well-equipped to carry out strong HR policies and improve the overall employee experience.

It is also important to clearly communicate career advancement opportunities within the organization to help frontline staff advance into management roles. This can help to improve equitable access to leadership roles within the organization, and ultimately contribute to the organization’s success.

• Revamp Communication Methods for Diverse and Modern Workforces

Effective communication among teams, management, and frontline members is crucial for cultivating intercultural and multigenerational dialogue in a diverse workforce. Communication outlets accessible to all employees are fundamental for ensuring that frontline managers can communicate with people at all levels of the organization, especially their frontline teams.

Frontline managers have constraints on their time, working night shifts, part-time, or multiple shifts, and need to communicate in a variety of ways. Traditional methods such as phone calls and texts are just as important as videos, emails, or in-person communication for the flow of information.

Communication strategies and how they reach frontline managers are significant, particularly for policy updates and deadlines. Short and concise messages work best for many employees with time constraints. Multiple outlets such as digital signage, text messages, short videos, audio, and infographics are excellent ways to distribute communication. Frontline managers are often the ones communicating these updates and emails, so brief and concise messages are critical.

• Unleash the Power of Storytelling:

The importance of storytelling in training and managing frontline employees is highlighted. The use of storytelling can create cohesion among team members, make employees feel their actions matter, and inspire and impact them in a meaningful way. An example of a real-estate company utilizing storytelling through simulation videos to provide training is shared, where viewers can learn how to handle specific conflicts that may arise.

Frontline leaders are encouraged to share stories from their field experiences as a valuable tool in providing training. It is recommended to follow the standard story arc when telling a story, beginning with a relatable character, building tension with a conflict, and introducing concepts and actions to resolve the conflict. By incorporating storytelling into frontline leadership training, it creates a memorable and impactful learning experience for employees, ultimately leading to improved performance and increased job satisfaction.

Final Words- Investing in Frontline Workers is Worth It

Development of frontline managers can have a significant impact on employee engagement, especially as employees seek their support for workplace well-being. By investing in their development, frontline managers can effectively coach and motivate employees, leading to better experiences for both customers and employees, and ultimately contributing to the organization’s long-term success.