Often when coaching a customer, a common complaint is: My admin/sales rep/accounting person isn't doing what I ask him/her to do! At that point I ask the owner to give me a specific. What isn't being done? They'll usually give me an earful, and I will then ask:  Did you tell him how you wanted this done?

I shouldn't have to! is the common reply. I hired them because they should know what I want done and get it done for me.
 
This is a classic case of shooting yourself in the foot and setting your team up to fail.  When I was in the field as a Sales Manager back in my corporate days, whenever a new rep was hired it was mandatory that he ride with me for two weeks, shadowing how the corporation wants it done. Obviously the rep was already qualified to do the job, or he wouldn't have been hired. That is entirely different from discovering the methods and the standards of the corporation.
 
Small business owners have a different idea: Quite often by the time they get around to hiring someone, they are so overwhelmed themselves they hand off tasks, keep running and hope for the best! Sometimes they have a procedure manual or operations book (most of the time sadly outdated!) and then wonder why they are disappointed or having to 'clean up' after their hirees.
 
When Barbara sets a task for a new team member, she may over-simplify or over-describe, but there is usually no room for misunderstanding! Sometimes I think she is TOO detailed in her instructions; however, she was a successful office manager for many years and always built a loyal team, so it's hard to mess with success.  Here's a three-step process for success when hiring a new person:
 
Number 1 - Make sure the person is truly qualified for the job that you are hiring him/her to do and not just filling a seat. If you desperation hire, it may take care of the short-term problem but you will end up re-hiring and re-hiring over time.
 
Number 2 - YOU do the job you are asking them to do while they take good notes. Have them SHADOW YOU. Show them how you would do it and let them know you expect it to be done that way OR BETTER! We always encourage our folks to tell us better ways of doing things - but our way is the threshold.
 
Number 3 - Review, monitor, ask questions, touch base, review, review, review. Don't dump and run! It takes vigilance and time to create a successful new employee. Be prepared to be a great boss and set expectations for your newest hire, then HELP the team member meet or exceed those expectations.