A Key Source to Business Success – Part I
Involving Employees in the decision making process
By EMERGE International
Employees don’t want to just show up for work. The fast-pace of the 80’s and the cut-backs of the 90’s have left employees disillusioned, overworked and multi-tasked to extremes. And the 21st century is not proving to be any different. Everything needs to be done yesterday. Leaders and employees alike are expected to do more with less. As a reaction or as a result, the world of work is changing and so are employee expectations:
- Baby boomers are placing more value on work-life balance, leisure time and quality over quantity.
- Generation X’ers are viewing career path as independent of their employers, don’t exhibit as much employer loyalty as their predecessors did and are choosing to opt-out of high-stress, high-demand jobs that impact home life quality.
- Baby Boomlets or Generation Next – are looking for work experiences rather than environments and show a distinct desire to work to live rather than live to work.
In addition skilled labor shortages are expected to rise. What does that mean to us as leaders? As we continue to evolve into the new millennium, we are finding ourselves in a knowledge economy and there is not doubt that people are the profit level. All the other assets of an organization, aside from people are inert. They are passive resources that require human interaction to create value.
There have been many studies conducted to understand what employees require and desire and more often than not it isn’t about the money. It is about the core essentials - employees are looking to be valued, respected and involved in the world they participate in – the world of work. Best practice shows us leaders today are recognizing the importance of involving employees and they have put structured decision-making processes into place that involve all levels of the organization.
Not only is this approach a ‘nice’ thing to do, it is essential for retaining employees and providing the best customer service. How employees feel about their work environment and their leaders unequivocally impacts the experience a customer will have. When employees are involved in decisions they feel a greater sense of commitment. They have had the opportunity to talk them through and feel the outcome is reflective of their own thinking. They feel ownership and better equipped to make good decisions because they are more knowledgeable and informed. Involving employees also encourages innovation, initiative and responsibility.
Another major benefit is employees will be more prone to support and trust the final decision that is made. Giving orders and expecting them to be followed works well during times of war or if the building is on fire. Otherwise, it not only ignores the intelligence and emotions of the employees, we are dishonoring the human spirit. A company may be successful in completing a short-term project using this type of strategy, but this type of dysfunctional organization soon realizes they have lost the allegiance, energy, and talents of its working staff.
When employees feel leadership is controlling the decision making process they will tend to feel decisions are not being made with their best interest in mind and trust levels will be impacted. You will also, undoubtedly, experience high levels of cynicism and skepticism. Employees will spend more time criticizing the decisions that have been made rather than focusing on implementation.
You may also experience high turn over rates, reduction in productivity levels; drop in quality and no true commitment to achieving the strategic goals of the organization. This can be attributed to a number of things:
- The employees are not very clear about how decisions are made;
- They have little understanding of why the organization makes the decisions it makes; and/or
- The employees do not have an opportunity to contribute to the decision making process.
The key message here is involve employees. Is it more work initially? Yes. Does it take more time initially? Yes. Are the results long-lasting? Yes.
When you think of the word involve we invite you to read into the word and to fathom what it really represents
INVOLVE
I gnite employees’ spirit.
N uture their ideas.
V alue their input.
O pen all lines of communication.
L evel with employees, tell the truth always in all ways.
V alidate and acknowledge their concerns. They are real, just like yours!
E ncourage risk taking.
This does not mean as leaders we should delegate all decision-making. It is about shared decision making. Organizations cannot effectively run if all decisions are being made at the top. The key is to have clear boundaries, clear expectations and clear accountabilities.
Take the time to assess your current decision making process to determine where the break-down(s) may be and to determine who ultimately is responsible for making the final decision i.e., senior leadership, middle management, supervisors, team leaders, etc. Once you are clear about your approach, communicate the details to all employees so there is clarity across the board as to how decisions will be made.
One very effective approach is to create a RACI matrix. The RACI is very beneficial since it provides a tremendous amount of clarity. It is used to determine who is Responsible, who is Accountable, who is to be Consulted with and who must be Informed. Often times the lack of clarity not only around what must be accomplished but how and by who is often not very clear. When you can take the guesswork out of your expectations employees can be more focused and will stay on task. The added element to the RACI is to formally recognize that the person who has the A [Accountable] has the authority to make the decision relative to that particular task and/or process.
Also, ask yourself how employees might respond to the following statements – would they agree or disagree?
- I am encouraged to give my opinion. Encouragement is powerful. This sends a strong message to employees that your intent is honorable and you truly desire their input.
- I am given the authority to make decisions. Without this key ingredient employees will not take their role in decision making very seriously. If you are truly committed to employees being involved and actively participating in the decision making process then make sure you are providing them with the requisite level of authority.Decisions I make stand. If employees feel the decisions they make do not stand they will feel ’Why bother’? Take the time to understand why their decisions do not stand. Sometimes there may be good reason. The key is to discern what is actually occurring and communicate back to the employee.
Finally, and more importantly, take the time to meet as a leadership group and determine if you even value involving the employees. If you cannot let go and let flow, if you cannot trust, if you cannot make the necessary behavioral changes to move into a state of shared decision making then don’t do it. Employees will see through your words and your actions and the level of trust and respect for leadership will erode. Share your position with the employees so they too can make a decision.
For more information on how to accelerate Organizational Change and transformation please visit us online at www.emergeinternational.comor contact us via email at info@emergeinternational.com
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Huntington Beach, CA 92648
Phone (480) 595-9874
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