Are You Making Your Employees Choose? I’m OK. You’re OK. Let’s Fix the System
By Michelle Malay Carter on July 21, 2008
The best thing we could do for employees to build engagement is simply get out of their way.? We have lived with conflicts of interest in the system for so long, they have disappeared into the landscape.? We simpy accept them, and no longer question their effects on our employees’ psyche or our business’ effectiveness.
Moving From “Or” Thinking to “And” Thinking
Breakthrough product innovation often evolves from someone asking the question, why make our customers choose?? Why make them choose between quality and price?? Between technological capability and portability?
Every day we make employees choose.? Why?? Why do we make them choose between:
- Making their individual numbers (productivity) and doing the right thing for the company (effectiveness)?
- Having time for their “technical work” and having time for their managerial leadership work?
- Having a bell curve on their direct reports’ performance evaluation score distribution and being honest by reflecting reality?
- Not spending their full budget allotment unnecessarily?and risking not getting what they legitimately need next year?
- Hiring the best candidate without a degree and hiring a mediocre candidate with a degree?
- Offering their full capability and threatening their manager?
- Expecting leadership, context, and resource provision from their managers and being viewed as unresourceful?
- Getting satisfying answers to their questions and being insubordinate by going to the boss’ boss?
- Working within the confines of an?ineffective but authorized system and getting their work done via unauthorized means?
- Taking care of the customer and following a short-sighted policy?
- Expecting that their accountabilities would be paired with corresponding authority and having to bully, manipulate, or schmooze others to get their work done?
- Speaking up and being viewed as a pessimist?
I’m OK.? You’re OK.? Let’s fix the system.? What conflicts of interest have you had to choose from?
Filed Under Corporate Values, Employee Engagement, Managerial Leadership, Organization Design, Requisite Organization, Strategy, Talent Management
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10 Responses to “Are You Making Your Employees Choose? I’m OK. You’re OK. Let’s Fix the System”
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Powerful post Michelle! Your advice to get out of an employee’s way is some of the most honest and useful advice I’ve heard in some time!
I’ve featured your blog in my weekly ‘Fab Five’ collection of blog posts from the past week.
http://www.maximizepossibility.com/employee_retention/2008/07/the-rainmaker-2.html
Be well!
Chris Young
Thank you Chris.
Michelle
I LOVE this post! The next to last item in your list sounds like the usual job description of a software project manager.
According to some archetype psychology I’ve read, the world appears to be abundant with the rules-oriented; people who are naturally inclined to feel more comfortable with having their lives guided by rules and “helping” others by enforcing the rules. Maybe that’s part of the reason why businesses often morph from the creative startup to the moribund corporation.
Hi Robyn,
Thanks for the comment. Yes, the second to the last one, accountability without corresponding authority, causes an incredible amount of organizational dysfunction, especially for staff people.
I can remember being told to “make” the operations managers cooperate with me, a staff regional training manager, when they didn’t report to me and when cooperating with me meant their productivity numbers would take a hit. (see bullet #1)
It’s a wonder we do as well as we do.
Thanks for stopping by.
Regards,
Michelle
I’m ok you’re ok philosophy
This paradign is quite interesting by trying to synergically put employees/subordinates in the right track of organizational activities.Most superordinates/employers are not really embracing this idea in their various companies organizations, thus denying subordinates right of belongingness and actualizing their dreams.All organization leaders should understand the human side of organization and ensure the i’m ok you’re ok.
The concepts of leadership spread wide and has offer the new idea towards organizational group goal achievement not leader goal achievement.The psychosocial aspect of organizational life must be visible If any leader wants to achieve good result. To fustrate subordinates intention is to create disharmony in the system management else becoming problematic.If leaders cannot admit this mistake we shall not only be moving to contemporary management but premodial.Many theories are available to leaders to read and this has come of age.We need to embrace our subordinates ,influence their actions towards achieving desire results.
Leaders should not treat followers in a manner of parent – child in organization. Everyone in the organization is an adult and must be treated as an adult who has motivate to achieve while accomplishing organization goal(Getzel and Guba).Hersey and Blanchard also view that leaders should equate their style according to the maturity levels of their followers.The telling,selling,delegating and participating style/approaches indeed should be adequately utilized until the organization life becomes I’ok you’re ok.
Hi Chima,
Welcome. It appears you have done something on this subject! Thank you for the references and for the comment.
Regards,
Michelle
I filled in every box on my buzzword bingo card after reading the July 25th, 2008 9:02 am post.
[…] of Interest Abound Why do we make our employees choose?? Why must they come home at night feeling like prostitutes?? Day after day, employees contort […]
I?m ok you?re ok philosophy
This paradigm is quite interesting by trying to synergically put employees/subordinates into the right track of organizational activities. Most superordinates/employers are not really embracing this idea in their various companies ,organizations, thus denying subordinates right of belongingness and actualizing their dreams.All organization leaders should understand the human side of organization and ensure the implicit importance of i?m ok you?re ok as people are the centre piece of the organization.
The concept of leadership spread wide and has offer the new idea towards organizational group goal achievement rather than leader goal achievement.The psychosocial aspect of organizational life must be very visible If any leader wants to achieve good result. To fustrate subordinates intention is to create disharmony in the system management else becoming problematic.If leaders cannot admit this common mistake, the best fails and we shall not only be moving to contemporary management but premodial. Many theories are available to leaders to read and this has come of age.We need to embrace our subordinates ,influence their actions towards achieving desirable results.
Leaders should not treat followers in a manner of parent – child in the organization. Everyone in the organization is an adult and must be treated as an adult who has motive to achieve, while accomplishing organization goal(Getzel and Guba).Hersey and Blanchard also view that leaders should equate their leadership style according to the maturity levels of their followers.Indeed, it is a well known fact that often most leaders do not understand that subordinates feeling must be accomodated. To tolerate and ignore certain attitudes exhibited and incorporate the team to accomplish result.
Leaders who often harass and bully their subordinates are not making them feel ok. The leader becomes one that is ok. In this circumstances,subordinates may in turn fustrate such leader who thinks he alone knows all that is good.Leaders must accept the limitations of their subordinates,mindful of their actions and direct their actions towards continuous improvement.Eventually, at this stage I’m ok becomes the slogan as every body is alright with the system . The telling,selling,delegating and participating style/approaches indeed should be adequately utilized until the organization life becomes matured and satisfying to everyone, then I?m ok you?re ok climax is reached with full satisfaction. Here subordinates identify with the organization leading to high morale and increased productivity.
[…] Newsflash: Humans Are Wired to Work!? They Need Not Be Coerced and Bribed Humans are wired to work!? If they are not motivated to work in the job they are currently holding, then that was a poor hiring decision.? If they are thwarted and frustrated when they try to work because they are working within faulty systems, fix the system rather than bribing them to push through the pain and craziness of working within a broken system! […]