Question Training fail

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KincadeOverdose

KincadeOverdose

True Grumbler
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Jan 9, 2008
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I have recently hired an employee (about two months ago) and she is just. not. getting. it. I have tried several different methods. The "watch me" method. The "read these books" method. The "jump in and do it yourself" method. Nothing is working. She just doesn't take it in. I'm getting a vibe that she's just not that motivated to remember the pearls of wisdom I'm imparting. It's frustrating, and lately has been embarrassing. The two pieces I had her fit after I prepped them were picked up, then subsequently returned due to one having marks on the glass, the other had "bits" in it. I know, I know, I should've checked these before having her call the customer. The frustrating thing is that she came here with experience. She had worked in a frame shop before fitting pictures, so I erroneously thought having her fit wouldn't be a problem.
I'm reminded of Jay Goltz' column about the expenses of firing a new employee, it's motivating me to double up my training efforts, are there any training tips you guys have? I trained the last three employees to my liking, I think this employee is going to need some sort of Jedi mind trick.
 
No but I have always heard it is better to get new people that have NO experience elsewhere....No "bad habits/practices" you don`t want that are pre loaded by the previous employer...Explains why I`m on the board at my freind`s Reptile zoo....I know suat about snakes,he`s fee to do what is best without MY 2 cents...And if I wanted to learn,it would be HIS facilities practices.......Also some people just aren`t cut out to do some things,no amount of practice will get them good at it,no matter how smart they are. L.
 
I had an employee like that. I just kept trying and trying to teach her. Until the day I found her ATGing a customer's poster to foamboard. I ended up having to send her on her way before she destroyed anyone else's art.
 
Just tell her that it isn't working out and get rid of her before you lose any more time/ money.

I had a guy come work here who said he had worked at other shops. He actually was fast and willing to work but there was always a ton of fingerprints on the glass of ALL of his pieces. I figured it out when I saw him working at the desk and every so often he would rub his bald head and then keep on working. His head was nice and shiny and he was transferring it to the glass. Even after explaining it to him, he kept doing it, subconsciously. I had to let him go.
It gets easier each time.
 
Don't invest more time in her. Let her go. Sure, you've lost 2 months, but it doesn't seem that it's getting better. Don't waste more time.

And I agree with Laura. Most times it's better to hire someone who has no experience whatsoever. Blank slate; you can fill.

Good luck! It does get easier, doesn't mean it is easy though.
 
I worked in a Corners, and one twenty-something guy would drymount canvas to foamboard, even though the customer wanted it stretched. His reason - it was easier.

Brought it up to one of the managers, but I don't think they did anything.
 
It sounds like she doesn't learn by repetition or by example. Don't keep someone who can't work independently after two months. Mistakes are one thing, but habitual lack of attention can't be corrected.
 
Either send her to a professional class or show her the door. But letting her practice on customers work is going to come back and bite you really fast :)
 
Sounds like you've made more than a reasonable effort. Occasionally, there are indivuduals that you can't mesh with and this sounds like one. Maybe it is time to let her go.
 
Create an action plan. Start by sitting down with the employee and explaining that they are not meeting your expectations and where they are falling short. Next, ask them to prepare a plan as to how they will improve in these areas. Give a deadline for getting this done. Sit down with the employee and review their proposed plan. Work with them to create the final draft. Give the action plan a deadline. State what the results will be if the action plan does not correct the deficiencies (termination). I usually give the employee six months to complete the plan. Meet with the employee every month to discuss progress to plan.
 
John Golden has the right idea. People often have difficulty comprehending instructions, especially if a certain level of competence is assumed. Maybe nobody ever told this person how to perform each task properly. Or worse, maybe someone trained her that saving a few minutes is more important than producing quality results. Indeed, maybe she doesn't yet understand your definition of quality results.

I suggest starting at the bottom. Make your expectations clear and lay out a schedule of performance improvements. Instruct, demonstrate, monitor, critique. Repeat. John suggests a monthly review, but for detailed framing tasks, I believe a weekly formal, written review would be more appropriate at first, to give her more-frequent feedback about where she's improving, and wher she's not. Adding daily, informal monitoring/commentary would yield even better results. She needs to know that you are watching everything she does all the time, and comparing her work to your well-stated expectations.

Positive feedback generally stimulates more cooperation and better results. She needs to know when she performs well, as well as when she does not.

That said, if your best effort can't bring her around, there is a point at which you have to be brutally honest. In that case, do it dispassionately and without bias or malice. If your expect/inspect/report goes well, and separation becomes inevitable anyway, she should realize it and quit before you have to fire her.
 
How's your lighting in the fitting area and how is her eyesight.

If the lighting isn't good or she needs new glasses the problem you spoke of could easily be caused by these problems.

Believe me, I am a very mature man now and the older I get the brighter the lights have to be and the cleaner I have to keep my glasses.

:icon10:

If that doesn't seem to be the problem then why would you want to continue to nurture someone who doesn't have any sense of acceptable quality. I don't think you can redeem someone from that rabbit hole.

It makes me wonder (and should make you wonder) how many other pieces with your shop sticker are out there where the customer was too shy to bring it back but now gets their framing done elsewhere. It's the ones you don't know about that should scare you the most.

It might even behoove you to call recent customers just to query them about their satisfaction with your finished product.

You cannot afford poor craftsmanship.
 
Luddite said:
...Explains why I`m on the board at my freind`s Reptile zoo....I know suat about snakes,he`s free to do what is best without MY 2 cents...
Click to expand...

And you get bit instead of him?
 
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