Magazine for the professional nail industry.
Issue link: http://nailsmag.epubxp.com/i/213903
how to survive… n atio sign ter Re let a staff walkout Help for when you've got no help on hand. 1. Get off your knees; begging won't do much (not to mention that it totally ruins your pants). "The probability of getting them to turn around is slim to none," says Debbie McGrath, founder and chief instigator of HR.com, which helps companies and organizations in the human resources arena. Instead, cut your losses and give ex-employees the evil eye every time you pass them in the beauty supply store. 2. Protect yourself. You should make sure they can't access cash and equipment, and you should also protect your intellectual property, such as client lists, says McGrath. Client lists and contact information should always be password protected anyway, so they shouldn't have been able to get this prior to the Big Day. Helpful hint: To avoid clients following any techs to their new places, always make sure clients interact with many different employees at the salon. Promote salon loyalty, not tech loyalty. 3. Rally the troops. If it's just you who's left, this is a really easy step. But if you've got a few faithful left behind, you have to stabilize the rest of the team, says McGrath. "Call a meeting and talk about why the others left and how the new workload will be divided," she recommends. "Get them re-motivated. Those kinds of things can be very de-motivating. Clear communication is very essential." 98 | NAILS MAGAZINE | 2013-2014 THE BIG BOOK 4. Get hiring! Fast recruiting is not easy, but you need to find a way to service all of the salon's newly displaced clients. Do you know any techs who work part time somewhere else or maybe even from home? See if they have time to come in and pick up a few shifts at the salon so you can stay open. It's also a good idea to always have a backup file of nail techs who are looking for a place to work. Don't ever shut a door — even if you are fully staffed. You never know when something like this might happen and if you have resumes on hand (with detailed notes about each candidate), you don't have to go through the whole interview process again. 5. Finally, consider for a moment that the walkout could have something to do with you. I know it might be hard to believe that not everyone in the world loves you, but well, this whole walkout thing does say something about you, or at the very least your management style. Now is a good time to look at everything from your hiring practices to your listening style to your pay structure. Learn from your mistake(s) and hire an excellent new staff that you will treat as they should be treated. (But you should still feel free to give those ex-employees the evil eye in the beauty supply store.) >>>