Dominique Jones- How do your employees know you care?

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Kent Batman, Contributor of the Price of Business on Business Talk 1110 AM KTEK (on Bloomberg’s home in Houston) recently interviewed  Dominique Jones.

About the interviewee

Dominique Jones is Halogen Software’s Vice President of Human Resources. She has more than 15 years of experience in the talent management industry and is focused on providing practical insights that help HR positively impact business performance.

Tell me about your firm (number of employees, location, type of companies you work with, etc.). 

Halogen Software (TSX: HGN) offers an organically built cloud-based talent management suite that reinforces and drives higher employee performance across all talent programs – whether that is recruiting, performance management, learning and development, succession planning or compensation. Halogen has nearly 2,000 customers worldwide across various industries. Headquartered in Ottawa, Canada with offices also in the UK and Australia, Halogen has more than 350 employees.

Tell us about what it means to you to show your employees that you care?

There are two very simple yet effective ways to show your employees you care: listening and providing regular feedback.

Make the time to listen to what your employees have to say. Giving them your full and undivided attention is a clear demonstration that you value them – and what it is they have to say. We know that employees’ direct relationships with their managers have a big impact on their engagement and making sure they feel heard can help build a strong relationship.

In addition to listening, you should also make it a priority to give regular feedback to your employees. Employees are motivated and feel valued when they’re given positive reinforcement and shown how their work contributes to the success of the business. This means going beyond a ‘hey, good job’ and making the time to regularly offer employees specific feedback on how their work is feeding into the broader business objectives.

What mistake do businesses make when it comes to taking care of employees?

Organizations that focus on negative feedback are missing an opportunity to motivate their employees. While some leaders may think providing regular tough feedback will only help employees improve, the reality is that offering positive feedback and trying to encourage and reinforce certain good behaviors is actually a more effective way of driving higher performance and engagement.

Yes, there are times when you need to give employees difficult feedback but follow the 4:1 rule – offer four pieces of positive feedback for every one negative.

What is your firm doing to demonstrate your beliefs in this principle?  

At Halogen Software we have created a feedback-rich culture. All managers have regular one-on-one meetings with employees. These meetings are about creating a two-way dialogue where employees have the chance to talk about their successes and areas for growth, and managers have the chance to provide feedback and support employees’ development.

These regular one-on-one meetings demonstrate our commitment to our employees’ development and help employees feel truly valued.

Contact information:

 http://www.halogensoftware.com/