7 deadly sins OF EMPLOYEE COMMUNICATION
Managers who make these mistakes set their teams up for failure
For modern businesses, employee engagement is key.
High engagement leads to reduced turnover, higher productivity and increased profitability. But the latest research from Gallup shows that less than 30 percent of employees are engaged at work. Management is one of the top reasons cited for lack of engagement in the workplace, accounting for 70 percent of the variance between high and low engagement scores.
Of the factors that contribute to manager-led engagement, communication tops the list. If you can’t communicate effectively with your employees, you can say goodbye to engagement, productivity and retention.
Are you making any of the following deadly communication sins? Be honest — and then take action to be better. SIN #1: Focusing on weaknesses
Whether you’re conducting annual reviews or discussing progress in regularly scheduled one-on-ones, focusing on an employee’s weaknesses and failures can tank your engagement.
According to Gallup, of employees who strongly agree that their manager focuses on their strengths, 67 percent are engaged at work. Among those that strongly disagree, 71 percent report that they are actively disengaged.
Ratings systems, performance reviews and goals handed down from upper management can encourage a focus on employee weaknesses. SIN #2: Disregarding professional development
Millennials, who are predicted to make up 75 percent of the workforce by 2020, are often considered the least loyal generation of employees. But a 2016 survey conducted by Deloitte found that millennials who are satisfied with their professional development opportunities are twice as likely to stay with a company.
A common mistake managers make is focusing all of their communications with employees on their current roles. You’ll motivate employees more if you show them you understand their aspirations and work with them to develop a plan of action for meeting those goals. SIN #3: Being unapproachable
There are several reasons why employees may find their managers unapproachable: Some react negatively to employee complaints or concerns, some do not allocate enough time to one-onones and some take too long to respond to employee questions or emails.
Employees may feel their manager is too busy for them or fear retribution for admitting a mistake and attempt to hide problems or resolve them without consulting with management.
Schedule regular team meetings and one-on-one sessions with employees, encourage honest communication during these sessions, and avoid canceling scheduled meetings. Encourage employees to drop by when they need to talk with you.
Being uninvolved Some managers see their role as an escalation point — someone to resolve situations only when employees are no longer able to handle them.
The problem with this “available when needed” approach is that it leaves managers out of the loop on the day-today issues employees face. Employees begin to feel as though managers are incapable of resolving issues, or they feel as though managers don’t want to be bothered.
With regular discussion of and participation in employee’s roles, managers are better suited to resolve problems when they arise. In turn, employees will be more likely to seek the advice of managers, who can then offer tips and suggestions to employees to prevent problems before they occur. SIN #5: Being too involved
Perhaps worse than managers who are uninvolved are those who are too involved. Micromanagers demoralize employees by questioning all their decisions, excessively scrutinizing all their work and demanding detailed summaries of completed tasks.
Often, micromanagement is the result of one of two things: The manager is struggling with finding his or her own role as the leader of a team, or the manager is skeptical of the team’s ability to work effectively. For those in the former category, leadership courses can be effective. For the rest, allowing employees to make mistakes and learn from them can be an effective coaching technique.
Exhibiting pessimism In a study of leadership effectiveness in Forbes, pessimistic managers were rated in the 19th percentile for effectiveness, while optimistic leaders were rated in the 89th percentile. Optimistic managers inspire progress, while pessimistic leaders plague employee morale.
While it may be tempting to commiserate with employees when they bring frustrating issues to the table, try to focus instead on brainstorming potential solutions. Employees will appreciate the extra attention, and they’ll be motivated to take the same approach to problem solving in the future. SIN #7: Using passive-aggressive communication
Passive-aggressive behavior is destructive to effective communication. Passive-aggressive managers hide feedback in humor, provide conflicting direction and place blame on employees, leaving them confused and disengaged.
Managers who struggle with assertiveness or who don’t feel equipped to provide criticism may benefit from taking emotional intelligence courses. Better yet, consider emotional intelligence training for your entire team to improve overall communications.
What matters when it comes to employee engagement isn’t perfection, but identifying your faults and taking clear, consistent action to improve them that’ll boost overall office morale. Sujan Patel is the author of “100 Days of Growth” and the co-founder of Web Profits.