07/ 07/ 2005
by Charles R. McConnell
Keeping the lines of communication open with your employees is vital to your small business.
At a recent supervisory development conference, the need to regularly praise employees came up for discussion. One supervisor, formidable in appearance and tone, said, through a scowl and over tightly folded arms, “My employees know that coming from me, silence is praise.” Unknown to this supervisor, her employees had a special title for her, used only among themselves: The Dragon. It seems The Dragon could be counted on to breathe fire when things went wrong, but otherwise she communicated with employees only when delivering orders or instructions.
Most of those present disagreed with the description of silence as praise. However, one individual provided some support for The Dragon when he claimed that a small number of troublesome employees consumed so much of his time that he never had a chance to pay more than passing attention to the others. He referenced a variation of the Pareto Principle, the age-old “80/20 Rule,” suggesting that 80 percent or more of management problems come from 20 percent or fewer of a department’s employees.
A case for praise
Is there truly a need to provide positive feedback to someone who performs satisfactorily and causes no problems? A long-used list variously titled, “Demands on the Organization” or “What Employees Want,” mentions a dozen conditions that employees seek to fulfill in employment. These include knowledge of the results of their efforts, recognition for good performance and acknowledgment as an individual, not just a servant of the system. In other words, most employees want to know how they fit in and if their performance matches employers’ expectations.
Are there some employees who honestly don’t care whether they receive feedback or not? Sure, but those who don’t care what supervisors think are few and far between. Most people who work for a living want to know where they stand with their immediate boss and with the company. Without this knowledge, many employees are likely to feel uneasy. Consider this: If you never hear anything back from your manager, can you assume that your performance is exceptional, barely adequate or somewhere in between? Lacking routine feedback, employees have no idea where they stand at any given time. In addition, if the manager has never clearly communicated expectations to an employee, he or she will have every reason to feel uneasy about his or her status.
One might argue that employees always have the option to ask. Some employees will do exactly that, asking questions like: “Are these results what you wanted?” or “Is there any way I could have done this better?” But, like those few employees who don’t care how they’re perceived, sincere questioners are a minority. Depending on the manager’s style, many employees won’t ask questions for fear of attracting criticism or appearing unsure of themselves. Some employees will never question a manager or openly express doubts of any kind. In a one-on-one, professional relationship, the manager has the responsibility to take the lead in communication at all times.
An open-door attitude
At one time or another most managers have said something like, “My door is always open.” These words, however, are not enough. The true “open door” is expressed more by attitude than platitude. If the manager’s attitude suggests he or she is always too busy to stop and talk, employees will keep their questions and concerns to themselves or pass them along the grapevine.
Many busy managers tend to focus exclusively on problems and ignore employees who are performing adequately and not breaking rules. However, these employees –– who often comprise the bulk of the staff –– have needs, too. If unattended, these needs can lead to performance deterioration. Employees who are performing satisfactorily and not making waves still need to know that their efforts are appreciated.
Take an extreme example. You have a long-term employee with satisfactory performance. This person is reliable, does an OK job from day to day, has no opportunity for promotion and only a limited chance to make more money. This person chugs along, doing the job. Does this individual need positive feedback? Definitely, and for one important reason: You want this employee to continue being reliable and doing an OK job from every day. Positive feedback is essential to maintaining acceptable performance.
Silence may be golden in some contexts, but this old saying doesn’t apply to either side of a relationship between manager and employee.
