Employee Voice as a Strategic Priority

We've all heard, and most of us (hopefully) have adopted employee voice strategies in our organizations, right? We've built formal systems that allow our 'most valuable assets' to participate in our success.

More Than Talk
Plenty of organizations wrestle with the concept of the war for talent, addressing culture change, empowering staff, and on and on. 

It is the precious few though, that put those words into action. 

Policy changes that formalize employee voice channels...leadership visibility on a massive, sustainable scale...and taking action based on employee feedback are hallmarks of the most successful organizations. 

Do you have these systems in place yet?

Head In the Sand
If you are not one of the organizations that has committed to a positive employee culture, be warned. Simply because you have a long list of justifications as to why certain things need to be done (which oddly enough lines up exactly with your way of thinking); that does not mean your team is blindly following along.

Do you believe all of your employees simply follow you regardless of their insights?

How About You
Right now is the perfect time to pause and consider how you can provide a new level of leadership for your organization. What communication channels can you establish to create the culture you desire? What are you afraid of hearing from your people? 

It's better to be proactive now, instead of facing a dramatic shift in morale later, right?

I'd love to hear from you.

No Excuses.

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The Great Unsaid

"Oh, yes...he has always acted that way. It's just part of life here."

"She does that all the time...her team has learned to work around her."

"When he gets in one of his moods, look out!"

"She's always rude and interrupts..yet we hold everyone else accountable for that."

All Quiet on the Corporate Front
We've all experienced this bizarre phenomenon. Leaders are allowed to behave poorly, yet we're fast as lightning to hammer employees who act the same way.

What holds us back from speaking up? Do we actually believe our career path will be compromised by leading? Could we be ostracized from our peer group for addressing the very public skeleton in our shared corporate closet? 

"It is perhaps the greatest failure of leadership...that is... to passionately espouse the values of the organization, and fail so miserably to hold it's leaders to that standard."

Speak Up or Fail
Consider what happens to the front line employees when leaders are allowed to behave like fools:
- morale tumbles
- engagement evaporates
- turnover rises
- revenue dwindles

Why would we ever wish for these things to happen to our organizations? Yet, when we remain silent on leadership behavior, we are stating quite loudly that we WANT these terrible things to happen. 

There is no in-between stance...if you do not speak up and coach, counsel, or discipline poor leadership behavior, you are in fact endorsing a dark and painful course for your company.

How About You
I don't even have to ask...you already have the name of the person in your head that fits this post. So, what will you do the next time they 'do their thing?" Perhaps stare at your shoes and hope they stop talking; or, have a very direct, professional, and purposeful discussion with them?

I'd love to hear from you.

No Excuses.

The Talent is Coming! The Talent is Coming!

I’ve been reading a lot about the pending exodus of talent from every organization on the planet. Apparently at some undetermined mystical hour when the global economy improves  just enough everyone is going to quit their jobs, or at least the majority will.

Hmmm. I wonder where they are all going to go? Perhaps the rumors about a parallel universe are true and that’s where everyone is headed? Or, there might just be a massive explosion of new companies and they’ll end up hiring every single person who is working today.

Wait a minute…I’ve got it! When every person quits their job…soon…I’ll recruit them to work for my organization. All of that talent has to land somewhere, right? Unless their current companies actually step up, and give their employees a voice now before it's too late.

I’d love to hear from you.

No Excuses.



pic courtesy of ipswich

There's No "I" In Team, But There Is In "Fired"

I have been blessed over the years to work with some brilliant minds.  Leaders who are far more accomplished and insightful than I can ever wish to be.  As I’ve (hopefully) grown in my leadership style, I’ve become painfully aware that without those bright people around me, helping me, guiding me, and often times working for me, my success is in jeopardy.

I’M THE SMARTEST PERSON IN THE ROOM, RIGHT?

Getting to this realization is a painful journey.  As leaders, don’t we feel powerful, and start to believe our own self-talk that “our way is the best way?”  After all, I’m the boss, right?  A risky perspective at best.  Why is it that over and over again I see leaders who fail to use the talents of the people around them?  It seems to me they are insecure.  Dr. John Maxwell effectively describes the risks of being an insecure leader and how that approach could be their downfall.

peoplegrowthllc.com

WHAT HAPPENS TO THE KNOW-IT-ALL-LEADERS

Far too often we see leaders that are allowed to stay on; or worse, a revolving door of employees who feel they don’t have a voice and walk out the door.  None of us can afford to lose good staff.  Ever.  More and more we see organizations breaking through the traditional barriers of complacency and holding leaders, even senior leaders accountable.  Isn’t that our job as HR professionals anyway?  Aren’t we supposed to drive the accountability agenda?

When we step-up and make bold moves to remove failing leaders, we send a powerful message to our colleagues, employees and customers that those behaviors are simply not acceptable.

HOW ABOUT YOU

How have you dealt with the leaders who believe they are the smartest person in the room?  Have you been able to support them through executive coaching, constructive feedback, or formal discipline?  Or, are they sitting in the office next to yours, wondering why your organization is full of imbeciles?

I’d love to hear from you.

No Excuses.