Debunking the 10 most common myths about employee engagement
Myths and assumptions about leadership and work that are being challenged by contemporary employee engagement practices
From our consulting practice, UK-wide quantitative research and qualitative interviews in institutions at every level from the shop floor to the CEO for John Smythe’s next book, we have unearthed ten myths or assumptions about leadership and people at work which are being challenged by leaders taking calculated risks to engage their people.
1 Myth - In hard times and crises employees expect their leaders to take control and make decisive decisions that will help their institutions: that’s what they are paid to do and anyway leaders will know more of the context and have the experience to act.
Insight: there are increasing examples of institutions ‘turning the hierarchy upside down’ and engaging their people in addressing cost, restructuring and efficiency issues as well as engaging people in more positive topics like service improvement, innovation and brand.
2 Myth - Most people work to live: many people just want to work to live and don’t want to be involved or engaged at work more than they have to.
Insight: in our experience people become used to a ‘parent-child’ style of leadership but when leaders open up decision-making in authentic fashion and govern it well people respond with courage and creativity. Many are bursting with ideas which they assumed were unwelcome because they are not normally asked.
3 Myth - There’s no time to engage people in decisions and change: as the business world speeds up businesses don’t have the luxury of time to engage people.
Insight: leaders are finding that imposed so-called incisive top-down command-and-control decision making often just leads to more failed initiatives & strategies which are easily rejected by a sceptical staff. The immediate decision seems faster but the critical phase of execution often fails. Contrarily, leaders who minimize the top-down aspects of a decision or change and take time to construct a rational invitation to engage their people are rewarded with the latter’s energy and ownership.
4 Myth - Communication is the same as engagement: leaders who communicate effectively assume they are effective at engaging people.
Insight: old-style decide-and-tell or decide-and-sell communication may be appropriate in some instances but - however ‘engaging or charming or entertaining’ the performance - it is not the same as engaging people in the decision-making process. Old-style communication, by definition, casts recipients as spectators receiving carefully articulated decisions made by others. Effective engagement means making judgments about who will add value if engaged and then managing the discourse.
5 Myth - The front line won’t understand strategy etc: front-line staff should be focused on operational matters and won’t have much to contribute to the bigger picture and it distracts them to see beyond their silo.
Insight: this is shocking arrogance and underestimation of people who often reserve their intellectual and creative energy simply because they are not respected and included. Most will be inspired by seeing the business case and options and reasons for choices that have been made by management and consequentially play their part more energetically.
6 Myth - Staff don’t need to know the whole candid picture: knowing the whole picture will scare people or confuse them.
Insight: people invariably read or sense the whole candid picture or, worse, make up an alternative. The trouble with withholding is that as with all deceit it becomes harder to contain and whispers invariably undermine the credibility of management. Once lost few leaders can retrieve trust.
7 Myth - Professional groups (train drivers, medical consultants, air traffic experts etc) are only loyal to their profession or skill: they don’t care who they work for so why bother to engage them in wider company change etc?
Insight: This is a firmly held assumption which often leads to a gradual balkanization of the group concerned: the train drivers, pilots, air traffic controllers etc get left out of the loop because they are considered too tricky. In fact the leader who confronts this assumption will be met with scepticism at first but if he or she persists they will come around and engage.
8 Myth - Our employee satisfaction scores are good – people must be engaged: our people are happy with their lot according to our measures of satisfaction so we must be performing optimally as an organization.
Insight: Employee satisfaction is a measure of the old security-for-loyalty contract between people at work and their employer. Satisfaction scores essentially measure employee satisfaction with aspects of work. They do so as spectators rating their own satisfaction. The trouble is about 35-40% of UK PLC staff are satisfied but are completely disengaged. They are your hostages who represent an underperforming asset. The measure must change to calibrate real engagement.
9 Myth - It's only the Y generation that are so keen on asking why and being more involved: the boomers and other generations are happy to tow the line.
Insight: From our research it is true that Y is more demanding but there is not much in it. All people have given up on the security-for-loyalty contract and will demand an influence or leave or become hostages who can’t afford to leave.
10 Myth - This employee engagement thing may be relevant in the West but does not fit so easily elsewhere: so we can’t apply it as a global company-wide concept.
Insight: Different cultures are interpreting engagement differently but people are people. And - whether it’s Eastern Europe or the far East - demand for personal freedom and influence is rising. The language of leadership and management may need local tailoring but engaging people in their own destiny and day-to-day work is a universal.