Little John

Not long after I joined the company, John came onboard for the first time in Dubai. He was interviewed and selected by previous management, so I could only welcome him. Since he was not performing well for the role he was hired for, I checked his CV. He was skilled and experienced heavy vehicles driver from Africa. He had very basic knowledge, initiative, and was willing to work, but lack of knowledge was obvious. John was on his probation period, so I could terminate his employment contract within few minutes. Instead, I called John and offered him to shadow all team for some time, so he can choose technical trade he wants to learn. Then I will rearrange the teams and give him opportunity to learn. He accepted and after some time he said he likes HVAC. That been said I put him in a team with electrician and AC technician so he can be trained. I ensured this team gets basic tasks as well so John can start learning easier. After some time I did not see progress. I knew there would be not much progress since HVAC is so complex and cannot be learned so quickly. I talked to John again and ask him if he chosen well or he wants to change his mind. He said he noticed that he could be good pool cleaner. ?I laughed because we had lot of small pools with tiny underground plantrooms and John was big muscular guy almost 2 m tall. That was the reason we called him Little John. I asked him few times if he is sure about this, and he confirmed his choice.

To be honest, this was not what I expected to hear from the employee who had been granted with the chance to keep his employment.? Majority would give excuses and ask for more time. I knew he has no basic knowledge about pools, he did not know how, but he was very sure he can do it. This kind of people is worth to train, even if it is from the scratch. That moment I remembered he managed to drive truck throughout Africa for so many years. That means he is capable to find solution on spot for almost any situation that may occur. Swimming pool maintenance is very sensitive, so this decision had more risk involved. Regardless the risk, I had big hopes in John, so I put him on the roster with pool technician. Positive feedbacks were coming almost on a daily basis. When pool technician told me he is just going with John who is doing all necessary, I gave John few pools that we kept in shape for sales department. So, this was like final exam for John, and no risk for swimmers. I did regular unannounced visits and chemical tests myself. All values were in range, plantroom cleanliness was good and no complaints from sales department. You know, if you dealt with sales, they always need to blame someone or something if there was no target met. All in all, John became skilled and capable to maintain pools by himself. It took some time to train him, but most definitely worth it. Not a single complaint received on his performance ever.

What could happen if I went for other option and terminated his employment? John would be so disappointed, and I could end up searching longer than it took to train him. ?Sometimes easy way is not the best way. From my experience, it is always better to develop someone in house rather than hire from outside. In house training may take less time but definitely requires more effort than hiring. I saw potential in him and decided to give him opportunity to grow. And yes, I am so proud on him. Did not regret about my decision, and would do it again.

Company reached targeted revenue; all figures were good, so giving chance to employee for growth will not cause bankruptcy. Always have that on mind when you are in position to change someone else’s life.