Do You Have "Managerial Bad Breath?"

A good friend and colleague of mine told me a story last week that captures one of the biggest causes of diminished employee engagement, morale, and loyalty.

I see this cause as the equivalent of “Managerial Bad Breath.”

Here’s what happened…

My friend was asked by a client if she would share with the president of her company the work that she does helping people communicate more effectively. Each time my friend tried to explain what she did and how, the president would interrupt.

After multiple times of this, the lady who invited my friend started laughing.

"What?" asked the president, more than a bit irritated.

She Had No Idea What She Was Doing

To her credit, her direct report had the courage to say: "Joan (not her real name) this is exactly why I invited Dana (not her real name) to talk with you. You keep interrupting her and preventing her from talking. That's just what you do to the rest of us."

To HER credit, the president got over her immediate defensive response and practiced good listening.

If this president's direct report hadn't been brave enough to speak up, the president would have continued to alienate her team, and - just like the person with bad breath - never realize it.

The Cost of This Problem

I've been struck over the years by how many morale and loyalty crushing interactions employees still fume about, but have never told their bosses about (not surprisingly).

Even really good and conscientious bosses do things that diminish employee morale and engagement, but never realize it. When I was a supervisor, I had some of these moments of truth myself.

Fortunately, I had coached my team to be honest with me, so they let me know when I blew it, rather than not telling me and all of us paying a price for my not knowing and their simmering resentment.

Think of your own experience as an employee plus tales of woe you’ve heard from others. What is the cost when managers alienate others?

Just a Few Of The Costs:

1. Diminished employee engagement (i.e. not caring as much about helping their employer succeed)
2. Subtle ways of sabotaging the business – such as not working as hard, letting equipment get damaged (“Hey why should I care?”)
3. Not offering ideas that could help improve processes, etc.
4. Absenteeism
5. Turnover
6. "Payback" law suits

Here are a few resources to check out and share:

1) Here's a great article by Dr. Robert Sutton, author of "The No A*&*hole Rule" which I highly recommend. In this article, he shares some fascinating research on how, even if you're really conscientious, getting into a position of power can have a deleterious affect on your level of empathy, courtesy, etc. I HIGHLY recommend that you share this with others. It's for both:

- really "evolved" managers (and parents) who want to do and be their best

- "old school" or "toxic" managers who need a wake-up call

Are You a Jerk At Work?

http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/greatergood/current_issue/Sutton.html


2) I also have 2 mini-seminar downloads (7-8 minute podcasts) for you that address this issue:

"Power May Bring Immunity From Feedback, But Not Reality"

"How to Make It Safe For People to Speak Honestly and Openly"

If you go to

http://switchpod.com/p15800.html

and scroll down the page, you'll find them.

Both stories are on my new CD:

The Mindful Manager
http://tinyurl.com/3b6sud

And... if you have stories of how you practice being mindful of how you affect people and/or your use of power (or bad examples), I'd love to hear from you.

P.S. If you're a parent, I highly recommend you check out all resources too, as the overarching principles are just as applicable to being a good parent