 Image by andycarvin |
Do you invoke fear in your employees? Or maybe you’re cool, but you got that great at paperwork, bad with people kind of manager working for you.
Today I want to talk about something most people don’t think about when it comes to their company – internal fear.
The internal workings of a company and interpersonal relationships between your managers and employees are just as important as treating your external customers like treasures.
In their quest to earn a profit, many entrepreneurs forget there is a such thing as an internal customer (internal customers are your employees). Many times these customers buy from you, but more importantly their attitudes and work ethic reflect how well your business will do.
If you own a company, it’s important to keep a watchful eye over your staff and read between the lines.
A person I know works for a large corporation where a small group of employees fear their manager. No, they don’t fear for their lives, they fear if they speak up they might be “retaliated against” (to use their own words).
They feel if they speak up and voice their opinion their boss will snap at them, make them feel they have the problem, and in turn watch them for any mistakes they make. In essence, it puts them in the spotlight.
After talking with this small group for a bit, a reoccurring theme became present. None of the employees had any desire to go the extra mile for their boss. They also admitted they have talked about how bad of a company the place they work is and the first chance something better comes along they’re going to take it.
Wow. What great marketing this company has going for it – yeah, whatever!
When managers and employees fear one another they may feel alone, worried, distrust, skeptical, unwilling to speak up, etc.
This kind of environment can severely limit your company’s success.
Let’s turn it around and look at some traits of a workplace environment without fear:
- a helpful and understanding atmosphere
- open communication which promotes employee feedback to help improve service and product sales
- humor which helps promote a positive attitude and will reflect on external customers
- ideas freely bouncing around
- teamwork
- reliance on one another’s expertise to ensure the best results
You get the point. The thought I want you to take away here is what would a business be like if the above traits were removed?
Ok, this is all fine and great. But what do you do if your staff may be experiencing a little internal fear with one another?
Here are a few things I’ve either done or experienced that has helped promote teamwork in the workplace:
- Define roles in the company. Make sure everyone knows where they land on the totem pole.
- Have an open door policy where employees can speak with managers and owners alone and about anything (i.e. feedback). This will backfire if you a) tell everyone, “Jason came to me and said . . .” and b) turn the employee’s opinions against them and make them feel they’ve done something wrong. It is important here to be a good listener here.
- Give recognition of achievements regularly
- Stay away from managers socializing after hours with a few employees. It’s best to keep the manager/employee relationship professional.
- Provide plenty of training so employees can learn their jobs well and not be afraid of some tasks.
- Only discipline an employee and point out their major problems behind closed doors.
- Don’t show favoritism.
- Beware of gimmicks to raise morale. If employees are having issues with one another, playing a game or having a buzz session won’t fix the problem.
If you own a company, is internal fear a problem for your employees? Is teamwork absent and you feel you’re the only one that “cares.”
What can you do to make your employees feel wanted and extra special while working for you?
May 6th, 2008 at 11:58 am
Hi John,
I love the picture. That’s precious!
We are self employed, with employees. Over the years, we have had our share of different personalities. It’s actually been an interesting “mix”.
I don’t think there’s ever been an internal “fear” (based on my and my husband’s personalities), however, we have seen a lack of teamwork from time to time, based on who our employees were. Some liked to “stir the pot”, and sway others to their way of thinking, leading to negativity amongst the crew. That was a tough thing to “break up”, as you can’t change someones’ way of thinking (easily).
Now we have a small crew that works well together. We squash any bad mouthing that arises as soon as it happens, and communicate that we do not tolerate that behavior. By doing so, we see increased productivity and employee morale.
I agree that being social (outside of work) with employees is not a good idea. It gives an impression of favoritism, and that can only lead to subsequent problems with those who are not included. Just as we need to be a parent to our children, we need to be a boss to our employees.
Barbara Swafford’s last blog post..NBOTW Will Set You On Fire
May 6th, 2008 at 2:14 pm
Hey Barbara – yep, we have had the same issues with our landscape company.
Fear is a strong word and there are many different levels. Usually you’ll see fear coming into play between a boss and an employee once communication has broken down. However, in many cases it’s just simply an employee with a bad attitude like you said.
May 7th, 2008 at 9:35 am
Hi John – I don’t think I’m scary enough to invoke fear in people. And I know what you mean about socializing outside of work – it’s just not a great idea. The only person who worked for me that I socialized with outside of work is Stuart but I’m married to him now. That didn’t matter too much, because nobody else at work really knew about it until he moved in.
Cath Lawson’s last blog post..To Share Or Not To Share?
May 7th, 2008 at 4:39 pm
Hi John, fear is such a problem in work place today. I worked for a major hotel for over 20 years in the legal department. I think most companies have the right procedures in place but unfortunately not practiced. If an employee does not have clear access to management that they feel they can speak freely to without the fear of retaliation, then minor sitatuations escalate instead of being resolved. Favoritism to an employee is a big problem and once witnessed by other employees, competition for recognition becomes the main focus along with fear of not measuring up. Great suggestions!!
Love the Tigger illustration!
May 7th, 2008 at 4:41 pm
Hey Catherine – I’m glad to see you’re not one of those bosses people are afraid to come to. It’s vital to keep a good open line of communication between bosses and employees.
People say you shouldn’t date people you work with, but there are a few times it works out and I’m glad to see it did for you.
So now that you’re married . . . are you still the boss?
May 7th, 2008 at 4:47 pm
@Theresa – you summed my post up very well. That is exactly the point I was trying to get across.
If open communication is broken down in the workplace because of the fear of what might happen if an individual speaks up, your company will suffer.
- moral will be down
- employees will bad talk about where they work
- work will be lost when a boss is gone because of gossip
- employees won’t care if the company succeeds or fails
…etc.