Management 101

I disclosed to her that one of the things that had frustrated me about this organization was their insistence on using quarterly employee engagement surveys and their over-reliance on the metrics – the percentage of employees who complete the survey and how much their score ticked up or down from the previous quarter. No survey can replace involved interactions to understand how people are doing. And survey results are inherently biased. For instance, would she say in a survey what she had just disclosed to me?

Employees are people and they want to be treated as such. It’s just that easy and it’s just that difficult. I’ve found corroborating evidence over the years through various studies, all of which point to the same thing at the end of the day. So, here is a list of what employees want to feel at work, what they truly value. It hasn’t changed much over our lifetimes.

To be appreciated.

Appreciation is a fundamental human need. Employees respond well when they can feel you appreciate them because it confirms that their contribution is valued. And, it becomes a positive reinforcement cycle: when employees feel they and their work are valued, their satisfaction and productivity rise; they are motivated to continue to perform good work and even improve upon it. Thoughtful little rewards go a long way to reinforce this – not certificates.

To be trusted.

Trusting employees is critical to organizational success. Can or will they make the right decisions, do the right things? Are they relied upon to do just that? If so, against what benchmark? Are these values built in to the organization? Are they part of the culture?

Can they be trusted to do the job as they see fit? Explain to them what you need done, not always how to do it. Studies have shown that work environments where employees feel that they are trusted with this freedom not only have higher job satisfaction, but higher productivity.

Trust has to be earned, and it’s a two-way street – can employees trust that you will do the right thing, that you will be honest with them, that you care enough about them? There are a million little things we do to undermine trust, and most of the time we are not even aware of them. Those things matter.

To be respected.

Respect is valued by all employees. When employees feel respected, they are more likely to stick with their organization than those who don’t. Employees who feel respected are more engaged. And, the opposite is also true. In an independent survey conducted by Harvard Business Review across a wide variety of jobs and businesses, respondents who feel they are treated with respect reported greater enjoyment and satisfaction with their jobs, greater focus and prioritization, and greater meaning and significance.

To be listened to.

And not just heard. As in any interpersonal interaction, we are aware when we are being simply heard or whether the other person is truly listening, in an engaged way. Doing so involves a commitment of time and to being there. If the conversations are fly-by or one-sided, you are not listening. Too often, every signal we send says that “we’re too busy”.

That’s it. That’s my list. These are not HR policies or programs. These behaviors must be genuine, they have to reflect or flow from who you are, not just something you do. And, it’s all up to you. Without these, little else you do as a manger much matters.