After hearing from clients and colleagues undergoing organizational restructuring, I’m totally confounded by their descriptions of what’s happening. Managers are brought in from “corporate” or outside the organization and placed in positions to make changes without gathering any input from current managers who are running successful business units.
Yes, I get that company execs can change strategy and supporting structure(s) when and how they want to. It’s the processes they use that are most concerning – especially when they seem designed to disengage. Like changing job responsibilities with no consideration or input from the managers and employees in those roles. Or telling people they have to re-apply for their current jobs. While such an approach might be a way to eliminate under-performers, it’s insulting to those who perform at or above expected levels.
Executives who initiate strategic changes without engaging current managers in the process disrespect them by dismissing their institutional knowledge and experience working in their respective departments.
While organizational change isn’t easy. it doesn’t have to be made more painful by those in charge.
“The trick is to know what to change when. And to achieve that there is no substitute for a leadership with an intimate understanding of the organization working with a workforce that is respected and trusted.” Dr. Henry Mintzberg
“Using emotional intelligence and showing deep human respect for employees is key. Without that, your IQ, occupational knowledge, and educational degrees mean little to employees.” Kate Nasser
About Kate: Known as The People Skills Coach™, Kate Nasser is a thirty year workplace-tested consultant who continues to advise leaders and teams throughout the world on high morale and service for operational excellence. She is highly sought speaker because she brings morale issues to life and delivers solutions. In her first book, Leading Morale, she offers everyone the intersection of research and practical experience to lead morale instead of taking it for granted and scurrying to fix it later.
QSM: Please tell us why you wrote Leading Morale.
Kate: I wrote Leading Morale because leaders weren’t doing it. They saw morale either as something that just happens (i.e. you can’t actually lead it) or cheer leading events — brief moments of appreciation — that don’t lead, build, or sustain morale.
QSM: What do you think will surprise readers the most when they read your book?
Kate: I believe leaders will be surprised at what morale really is and how much they are influencing it. They will read insights that will stop them in their tracks and make them question what they subconsciously do. Lastly, leaders will be happily surprised at how they can easily lead morale.
QSM: In your experience, what is the biggest challenge in building and sustaining a more empowered and engaged workplace culture?
Kate: The biggest challenge is for leaders AND managers to replace their comfort of leading/managing goals to inspiring people to lead and manage their efforts to reach the goals.
QSM: I dream of an ideal world where people treat each another with genuine respect and dignity — a world where we wouldn’t need your book (no offense!). Accepting reality, however, what do you think is needed to get us closer to this ideal (beyond making your book required reading in all schools)?
Kate: I love this question, Sybil, and I am not offended. To have a world where people treat each other with genuine respect and dignity we must:
a) Think of it as very reachable not as an ideal. As soon as we see something as an ideal, our brains tell us that we won’t get there. Some people then check out and think, well then … forget it.
b) Do it, show it, and discuss its importance daily. This is how you create a culture..
c) Politely demand it. When someone treats you disrespectfully, don’t tolerate it. Speak up civilly and say, “I treat you with simple respect and I expect the same in return. Nothing more, nothing less.” As Eleanor Roosevelt said, “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” So don’t consent to disrespect and indignity.
QSM: Thank you, Kate! You can see her in action in video footage at KateNasser.com. She welcomes your questions and challenges.
When leaders are replaced – whether due to retirement or changing jobs – it can be tricky for the incoming executive. It’s also tricky for the remaining staff members.
Consider these three scenarios drawn from organizations that will remain anonymous. As an employee, how likely would you stay to work with the new leader?
A newly hired executive meets with employees to lay out new goals and directions. Eager to dive in, she accompanies staff members to a meeting with an organizational partner where the new exec dominates the conversation to showcase her expertise and undermines the current staff-partner relationship in the process. She also revamps a regular customer communication piece without asking the employee to explain the situational context. After a few staff members approach the exec to express concern about growing employee frustration, they’re told unhappy employees are welcome to find new jobs.
A consultant in an interim executive position tells the management team how his consulting expertise will help them become successful in their jobs. The exec’s intention and other ego-driven behaviors are received as condescending. Wary in their dealings with the new CEO, team members resort to telling him what he wants to hear while they slowly disengage.
A new nonprofit exec reaches out to staff members, current and former board members, constituents, funders/donors, and community partners to learn their thoughts about the organization. She uses the information and insight gathered from her listening tour, along with the Board’s directives, to develop a collective plan to move forward. In the process, she enlists people’s support in continuing to help the nonprofit further its mission.
The common thread in these situations is respect. In the first two organizations, employees’ expertise and experience are dismissed, whereas in the third they are acknowledged and valued.
Understandably, new leaders want to make their mark. It’s not just what they do but how they do it that impacts employee engagement – positively or negatively.
I am reminded in this graduation season of the time my husband and I spoke at an honors convocation at our alma mater, Lehigh University. It was back in 1987 when we were “young professionals.” It was also a time when making a lot of money was considered an indicator of success.
But financial success was not what we spoke about. Instead we focused on the importance of getting involved in both community and professional life to “give back” in positive ways — a message that’s still relevant. Here’s an excerpt of our speech adapted for this post.
What we said then
Being in school is like being in a cocoon — you’re in a relatively insulated environment in which you grow and develop. But what happens when you graduate and enter the “real world?” The difference is your growth doesn’t just “happen” anymore. You’re solely responsible for your own development at that point. It’s kind of scary, but the good news is there are lots of opportunities out there for you.
I’m talking about “continuing education” — the personal and professional development you get through involvement in professional, civic, and community organizations. The contacts you make in these groups provide a valuable source of continued education and professional growth. They provide the opportunity to share ideas with and learn from others: to find out whether you’re on the right track with a project you’re working on … where to go if you’re having problems … or just to know you’re not alone with the challenges and frustrations you face. Besides serving as support networks, these organizations also provide opportunities for you to develop and exercise your leadership potential.
I know from my own experience that the opportunities and rewards are invaluable. From my involvement with the American Marketing Association [I served on the national board of directors at the time], I’ve traveled throughout the U.S. and Canada to meet with marketing professionals in different industries. I’ve also gotten to know many academics well known in the field. Working together with them I’ve been able to broaden my knowledge of marketing and gain insight into the different career paths that are available.
But professional development is not limited to organizations like the AMA. Through involvement in community groups such as the local Chamber of Commerce and United Way, I’ve met and worked with top executives in various capacities. Whether serving on or chairing a committee, I’ve had the chance to observe their leadership skills while exercising mine.
In a broader context, why is continuing education through this kind of involvement so important? Because it’s characteristic of the social environment in which people are looking for self-fulfillment. According to noted social observer Daniel Yankelovich, “Seekers of self-fulfillment are determined to prove that life can be more than a grim economic chore. They are eager to give more meaning to their lives, find fuller self-expression, and add a touch of adventure and grace to their own lives and those of others.”
Another reason so many professionals get involved is based on their need to be part of something, to belong. These groups serve as a valuable network; they provide an ideal opportunity to share ideas and discuss common problems. More importantly, they convert strangers into colleagues and colleagues into friends.
My husband, Michael, also spoke about his experience as a student volunteer and later as a community volunteer and leader.
This real world experience put my classroom experiences in perspective, and I was hooked. As a result, there has rarely been a period of time in which I have not been involved in some community-based voluntary activity. I learn a lot. It provides a challenge different than the challenges that I face on a daily basis. I can choose to get involved in areas in which I believe I need more experience or understanding. Everyone wins because the more and the brighter the heads there are to solve a problem, the better the solutions.
I also believe that a better understanding of the problems which affect our communities make us better citizens, more intelligent voters, and more complete human beings. The skills you gain by performing your duties as volunteers can give you confidence to do your job better or help you expand your horizons and learn more diversified skills.
Our communities need us more than ever … Use your energy and your minds creatively. Get into your community. Don’t try to escape it; invest in it. You stand to gain personally as well as professionally.
And now As we plan for retirement in the future, we will continue to seek opportunities to learn, grow, and give back as volunteers. It’s a fulfilling form of “engagement” that we still strongly recommend.
Best of luck to all graduates in your professional and community engagements!
This is why engaging staff members and volunteers involves special care beyond just a “recruit ‘em & recognize ‘em” approach.
How do nonprofit leaders and managers effectively attract, develop, and retain talent? They succeed by intentionally creating a positive workplace culture. Here’s how.
1. Learn about your employees and volunteers: who they are, their interest in serving your organization, and their expectations of working with you. Ask them:
What appealed to you to join our organization?
What inspires you most about being here?
What do you expect to give and get from serving as an employee or volunteer?
Would you recommend this organization to others?
Also conduct exit interviews with people who voluntarily leave your organization so you can learn more about their employee or volunteer experience.
2. Clarify and clearly communicate what your organization expects from its staff and volunteers and what they can expect from you. Be honest about what everyone’s commitment entails.
3. Provide the necessary tools and information people need to best serve your nonprofit. This includesorientation and training; sharing the mission, vision, strategic plans, and goals; program overviews and updates; etc. Also considerhow operational or policy changes may impact staff and volunteer efforts, and communicate any changes and the rationale behind them in a timely manner.
4. Recognize and acknowledge your employees’ and volunteers’ value. While designated “holidays” like Employee Appreciation Day and National Volunteer Week provide an opportunity to celebrate the people who serve your organization, it’s important to let them know they’re appreciated throughout the year.
5. Proactively listen to your staff and volunteers – ask for their feedback and ideas – and respond appropriately.
Nonprofit employees and volunteers are precious resources. Treat them carefully and with the respect they deserve.
Need to create an engaged workplace? While workshops, webinars, and articles abound on the subject, it takes more than just buying into the value and practice of engagement to be effective. It’s also important to understand who is actually responsible for engagement in the workplace.
Engagement is aresponsibility shared by both employees and employers:
Employees are responsible for their own engagement in that they need to show up on the job ready, willing, and able to do their best work, and
Employers are responsible for creating and maintaining an engaging workplace where employees want to and are enabled to do their best work.
This responsibility also involves choice. Here is what several thought leaders say on the subject.
Quotes on individual employee engagement
“You are the boss of you. That means you get to decide/choose what your attitude is and how you react. Choose wisely.” Alexandria Trusov
“…you have to want to be engaged. There has to be deep-seated desire in your heart and mind to participate, to be involved, and to make a difference. If the desire isn’t there, no person or book can plant it within you.” Timothy R. Clark
“Wellbeing at work is based on our intentions, actions, and connections. It is not an employer program, policy, or work perk. What are you waiting for? Walk through the door and let work make you well.” David Zinger
Quotes on employer engagement
“Working to create a positive culture where people choose to join, stay, develop and perform is part & parcel of any HRD or CEO agenda.” Tony Jackson
“On what high-performing companies should be striving to create: a great place for great people to do great work.” – Marilyn Carlson Nelson
“Engagement will happen if and when an organization sees engagement as something done WITH people, not something done TO people.” Paul Hebert
Quotes on the employee-employer engagement relationship
“When employees feel that the company takes their interest to heart, then the employees will take company interests to heart.” Dr. Noelle Nelson
“Employees who believe that management is concerned about them as a whole person – not just as an employee – are more productive, more satisfied, more fulfilled. Satisfied employees mean satisfied customers, which leads to profitability.” Anne M. Mulcahy
“If the employees come first, then they’re happy. A motivated employee treats the customer well. The customer is happy so they keep coming back, which pleases the shareholders. It’s not one of the enduring green mysteries of all time, it is just the way it works.” Herb Kelleher
My recent post about Zoltan Merszei‘s message on organizational strategy included developing a “vision of what’s to come” as “the ultimate insurance of success.”
Articulating and sharing a well thought out vision certainly contributes to success, but it’s not enough. It also takes a leader who knows how to effectively engage and connect employees with the leader’s vision.
Professor Emeritus Stephen W. Brown, former director of Arizona State University’s Center for Services Leadership, describes this type of leader as one “who leads from the front, not the top.”
“Too often in traditional hierarchical organizations, the people who make the product never see the people ‘upstairs’ who manage. They can’t feel the passion of their leaders, understand their commitment to quality, or see their dreams for excellence because they’re not visible.”
I experienced such a leader earlier in my career. In my first job with a regional bank, the president, who came from outside the community, led from the top. He maintained an office on the sixth floor of the main headquarters/branch and was rarely seen by front line and operational employees. His contact with corporate customers took place mainly in executive offices and country clubs.
So it was culture shock for me when I changed employers to work at another regional bank whose president was much more visible. His office was on the second floor of the bank’s HQs, just off the escalator from the main branch lobby, where he was accessible to all customers and employees. He was also a major presence at all-employee meetings and social events. As a former teller who worked his way up to become bank president, he loved the bank, and his passion for the bank’s brand was contagious. This was an executive who led from the front.
You might think that the difference between these two CEO’s backgrounds — outsider vs. insider — might account for their different leadership styles. That was my thinking until I moved to a third regional bank where the president also had started as a teller, yet he led from the top. So being “home-grown” wasn’t the common denominator for leadership style.
All three CEO’s were professional and respected; all three banks were successful. Among all the banks, the most engaged and engaging corporate culture belonged to the second bank. It was also the most exhilarating and satisfying organization I ever worked in — all because I was caught up in the vision and success of a CEO and management team who led from the front.
The yellowing, decades-old piece of paper I found in my files featured this striking advice from Zoltan Merszei, former executive at Occidental Petroleum Corporation and Dow Chemical Company. Merszei wrote it “as a reminder that we need to protect people from too much organization, while never destroying the organization itself.” His message is still relevant:
Always have too few people. Always.
Judge people carefully; if you choose well, everything becomes easier.
Seek changes in business; don’t just accept change.
Make sure decision making is centered where the action is.
Remember that organization follows ability, not the other way around.
Fit your organization to people, not people to the organization.
Learn from the past, but invest in the future.
Don’t just accept responsibility — usurp it.
Don’t hope for excellence — demand it, of yourself and others.
Develop a vision of what’s to come in this world. That’s your ultimate insurance of success.
— reprinted from the March-April 1980 newsletter, “Oxy: The Occidental Report.”
So much has changed in business since it was written, and yet so much hasn’t. Effectively managing people and the organization they support continues to be a challenge.
The answer depends on management’s attention span.
No matter how well intentioned, executives who are unable to keep their focus on doing what it takes to make a new approach work will move on when the initiative fails and go after for the next best thing — frustrating their employees in the process.
In this situation the latest greatest management trend might be new, but not the employees’ experience with it. So they shake their heads and roll their eyes – out of management’s sight – when executives launch their business strategy du jour to increase/improve:
innovation
productivity
engagement
collaboration
all, or any combination, of the above.
Employees are asked to ascend the roller-coaster of executives’ initial excitement, only to endure a steep drop in efforts to sustain the approach. Without sufficient investment in the necessary resources and follow-through, employees are left feeling cynical rather than invigorated.
Jumping on the management bandwagon isn’t the issue; what’s critical is how seriously a new approach is considered and applied. As Robert Bacal writes in his article, Management Fads – Things You Should Know:
“Because management fads do usually have substance, those who take the time to explore the possibilities usually come away from the experience as better managers. Those who do not take the time to learn, but adopt a management approach on only a superficial understanding of the techniques, become worse managers.”
I had an interesting discussion with a colleague who manages an internal service department for a medium-sized organization. She’s a supportive manager whose team takes pride in providing quality service to internal clients. However, she finds it a challenge to keep her employees at the top of their game when some internal clients are unappreciative of their efforts. Part of her dilemma is rooted in an organizational culture where administrative support is taken for granted.
She and her team acknowledge the situation and focus on how to work effectively within – and despite – the culture. She also encourages employees to rise to the challenge of working with unappreciative clients. Yet there are still occasions when team members find it hard to muster enthusiasm to serve such clients.
You can’t fake it and other important tips How does she continue to motivate her team? She knows she can’t fake her own engagement, so she starts by staying positive. She also focuses on how she can best support her team and internal clients with the following actions:
Keep the “big picture” front and center by reminding employees how they support the department’s mission and contribute to the organization’s mission in the process.
Engage employees in sharing what works to keep them motivated, such as providing peer support and finding the humor in their experiences and ways to safely blow off steam. This is done regularly in staff meetings and when difficult situations arise.
Share and reinforce client service success stories with the manager’s boss as well as with the team itself.
Acknowledge those clients who are appreciative of staff efforts, while also diplomatically standing up for employees dealing with difficult clients.
Maintain a positive culture within the department that values both clients AND team members.
Continue to acknowledge and recognize employee efforts with little gifts, food, and ongoing professional development.
Just as importantly, she models and reinforces what Chip Bell describes in his new book, Kaleidoscope:
“We are what we serve to others. It is our signature that sums us up each time a customer is on the receiving end of our efforts. And your customers remember how you served long after they have forgotten what you served! How can you deliver service in a fashion that says, ‘This is me, and it is my very best gift to you?'”
