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Confidence in Competence

Assuming you’ve done the employee assessment discussed earlier, you should have confidence in the competency of the people you’ve selected to take on the designated tasks and responsibilities.

But that may not be the case with the employee. Don’t be surprised if you get push-back from an employee about taking on a given job. And don’t take that push-back as a sign the employee is refusing or trying to wiggle her way out of work. Your employee could suffer from a lack of confidence in his own competency in a certain skill set or job knowledge.

When assigning tasks or responsibilities, review the employee’s accomplishments with her, and be very clear about why you believe that history of success makes her the best person to take on the role you have in mind. You can also use it as an opportunity to show how the task or responsibility will enhance his existing competency.

Also, acknowledge what skills the employee may be short on. This is not to emphasize the shortcomings, but rather to assure the employee that you have reasonable expectations of him and realize that finance, for example, may not be his forte. But nonetheless, you believe he can successfully accomplish the task based on the skills and knowledge he brings to the job. Follow-up meetings will allow you to give continued encouragement and reinforce your confidence in him.