Once you have the right type of person it is then essential to get them working as part of a strong team. Putting the new member of staff with an experienced person, as a mentor, who they can learn from, is a good idea. Give them a clear role and guidelines on the job they are doing and you are likely to find that they quite quickly build up confidence in the job, become part of the team, and feel happy serving customers. 

Being clear about what you want staff to do is essential in any business. The clearer you are about what is expected of them, the more confident they become in doing what is asked and the more their abilities will improve.

As a manager, it is essential that you are not seen to be taking all the best jobs, which often means getting your hands dirty on the less interesting tasks. If staff see that you are prepared to do a whole range of jobs then delegation becomes easier and everyone will muck in together as part of the team. 

If the managers become picky about their work, then you can be sure that the staff will follow suit and the team spirit will disappear. This may mean taking on quite menial tasks at times but it’s a good way of keeping your hand in and understanding what is reasonable to expect from your team.

By employing people with a passion for fishkeeping, staff automatically have something in common which means that, on the whole, they are more likely to bond and get on well. This also helps with sharing knowledge. Their passion means that they are likely to exchange ideas and information on both a formal and informal basis.

In terms of getting the teams to work effectively towards business goals, incentive schemes can be very effective but these must have a direct relevance to the business. For example, you could encourage staff to set up a tank of their own at home and they can chose which type of tank depending on their specific interest; whether it’s for coldwater, tropical or marine fish. They can get equipment at a discount and order in the type of fish they want to keep. This way you feed their enthusiasm and they increase their knowledge, which benefits the staff, the company and the customer. You could also allow them to borrow the books they want to help build on that knowledge.

Working with livestock means that a delicate balance has to be maintained when investing incentive schemes. You don’t want to encourage staff to sell too many fish or the wrong type, as this leads to problems for the consumer. An incentive scheme which directly relates to, and builds on, the existing enthusiasm of the staff benefits everyone.

It’s also important never to throw staff in at the deep end. This would not only risk the health of the livestock, but also potentially destroy the confidence of the staff. Start them off with an experienced member of staff. This way they can start learn about the different types of fish and their nutritional and environmental needs, while under close supervision. It should be a gradual process of learning which is helped by the team working closely together and sharing their experiences and what they know.

We would always therefore recommend that where possible staff should take additional qualifications in their area of interest, but having said that, there is no substitute for learning from direct experience and other team members who already have knowledge. There is no substitution for having worked through a problem yourself so you understand all the complexities that your customers face.  

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