Everything rises and falls on
leadership. – John
Maxwell
Addressing
the topic of work many years ago, Indira Gandhi said, “My grandfather once told
me that there are two kinds of people: those who do the work and those who take
the credit. He told me to try to be in the first group; there was less
competition there.” While there may not be a shortage of people trying to take
the credit for work, many a leader faces the challenge of a strong workplace
culture and its accompanying morale.
In my
research on the topic of employee morale much of the focus I’ve seen is
employee driven. By that I mean the attention leans toward what can be done to
make the employee happy (perks driven), motivated, etc. I see little on what I
consider to be the root of the problem which is leadership driven.
In Gallup’s
2013 State of the American Workplace Study, as reported on in RYOT (http://bit.ly/1poqwxQ) 70 percent of those who
participated described themselves as “disengaged” from their work. Only 30
percent admitted they honestly enjoy their job and bosses. Interestingly, the
study revealed that workplace perks which have been popular approaches to
boosting workplace morale, “do not compare to the employee enjoying and feeling
engaged in their work.” Here’s the takeaway – employees and employers desire
the same results, but often have two distinctly different means of getting
there.
Strong
morale is essential to your success as an organization. Leaders need employees
who are engaged on all fronts. Employees need strong leaders to show the way. The last thing you want to do is kill employee
morale with ineffective leadership. Here are six ways it could be happening.
You kill employee morale when you ignore
input
A leader who
won’t listen to his or her people is a leader who is out of touch. If you are
out of touch with the people that make your business work then employee morale
will suffer. If your people attempt to be engaged and offer their input only to
be ignored then you are killing employee morale. A smart leader will make it a
priority to listen and to invite feedback from team members. Buy-in begins when
you invite them in.
You kill employee morale when you
hoard decisions
Killing
morale happens when leaders hoard the decision making process and by-pass those
directly affected by the decision. The most successful teams are those whose
people are engaged and invested in the well-being of the organization. They are
the ones who have bought in and go all out to be successful. A smart leader
won’t hoard decisions but will bring others in to help make them. Employees
don’t want a dictator; they want a facilitator. Here’s a simple rule to
consider: if a decision affects your people then talk to your people.
You kill employee morale when you
keep people in the dark
Communication
is the life-blood of any organization, but if you keep your people in the dark;
especially with things that directly affect their performance, then you are
killing employee morale. This weak leadership style not only builds walls but
it tears down trust. If you want your people engaged and enjoying what they do
then make open communication a practice and a priority.
You kill employee morale when you
play favorites
While
responsibilities may differ among departments and personnel, it is important
not to play favorites with your people. While not everyone’s role is the same,
the way you treat them should be. As a leader it is important to understand the
basics of good social skills. The amount of time you spend with the people in
your organization will vary depending on assignments, responsibilities, skills,
etc., it’s a variable. But not the way you treat your people. If you are
perceived as playing favorites you will kill employee morale. Be nice to
everyone.
You kill employee morale when you
lead from behind
Successful
organizations have strong leaders who are not afraid to lead. Employees respeect
a leader who will confidently lead his or her team. A leader who is perceived
to be weak, indecisive, reactionary, or uncertain of their role will kill
morale. How can an employee confidently follow a leader who is unsure of
himself? Leaders who lead from behind can’t possibly know what direction they
are going, the pitfalls in front of them, and how to stay relevant. Leaders; be
out front, lead with confidence and with clarity, and you will have employees
who will go the distance with you.
What do you
say?
© 2014 Doug
Dickerson
Let's talk:
1. The list
is not comprehensive. What would you add?
2. As a
leader; what other ways can you engage your team to avoid negative morale
issues?
3. Do you
agree or disagree with my premise that employee morale issues are at the root
leadership issues? (I am not discouraging perks, bonuses, rewards, etc. These are all good things, but as the study showed, most employees place a higher
value in being engaged and enjoying their work.) What are some other measurable
steps leaders can take to bridge that gap?
1 comment:
Well detailed article. However there are various ways to measure employees morale. If the morale is high, it will increase productivity for the organization.
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