Woody Allen is credited with having said, “80% of success is showing up.” If he hadn’t made the statement, I’m certain some machine shop owner would have! Attendance and punctuality is one of the most visible and easiest ways an employer can measure your reliability. That should be good news for most of us.
No matter what your skills or abilities are, they are of no value to the company if you are not at work on a predictable and consistent basis. Many high performers are let go because they could not meet that basic expectation of coming to work every day. I really don’t like calling these individuals high performers, because they were not reliable. But, people have been fired who had great machining skills, ran parts at or above expected rate, and played crucial roles within our organization. Yet their unpredictable attendance proved to be too much of a distraction to be tolerated.
Listed below are the negative impacts poor attendance has on a company:
1) Lost production and lower productivity
2) Increased work duties on the team members who come in consistently
3) Lower morale for those who are at work every day
4) Missed deadlines
5) Lower customer satisfaction
6) Lost revenue
7) Increased costs
The list above shows that there are huge ramifications to what others think was just simple act of “calling in or not showing up that day.” Many people don’t see the big picture or have a clue as to what chaos ensues. In this day and age, every company makes delivery commitments and promises regarding the timing of shipments. The end customer then makes promises based on your company’s promise. It’s important to know that a ripple effect happens when someone is not there to do their job. One of the biggest things a customer will measure is on time delivery. Nothing will destroy a good relationship with that customer worse than late deliveries.
What you can do as an individual is to make a commitment to yourself to be at work and on time every day. Plan and think ahead for your time off. Whether it’s for vacation, doctor appointments, or school events for the kids. Schedule well in advance and your employer will be greatly appreciative.
Not only is it good for the company you work for, but people who prove themselves reliable have a greater chance of the following:
1) Receiving greater skills training or responsibility in their current role
2) More likely to be promoted
3) Larger pay increases
4) Greater understanding from your boss or manager when something unexpected comes up
We all know and realize who we can count on in our lives. It’s a good feeling to have those people around us. Make an effort to be there for others. The satisfaction and good feelings you get will be tremendous.
