PEOPLE matters – Comments welcome!
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Terri Morrissey and Dr Richard Plenty consider the importance of creating a work culture where employees feel safe and confident that their opinions will be valued and respected.
How many of us have felt we had something important to say at work but failed to do so?
Speaking up can be hard to do. It is all very well asking people to say what they think and give their opinions in organisations where trust exists and where the culture encourages feedback, ideas generation and differences of viewpoints, but not every workplace has this type of culture.
Unfortunately, too many people still work in what psychologists call a toxic culture, where the ‘dark side of leadership’ prevails. Typically, leaders in a toxic culture pursue at all costs over-ambitious, unrealistic, and non-negotiable targets set from the top – and in the process end up treating their employees in a demeaning and irrational manner.
They don’t have the time to listen to concerns and become overbearing, dominating and unreasonable, exhibiting behaviours which are controlling, hubristic, manipulative, and lacking empathy.
At its worst, this dark side is typified by leadership which can be viewed as aggressive, narcissistic, psychopathic, and even Machiavellian. Is it surprising that people find it hard to speak out, give honest feedback or contribute ideas that might have the potential to anger or provoke such bosses?
People are likely to experience stress or feel micromanaged in such cultures. The organisation may experience high turnover rates or high levels of absenteeism due to stress related illnesses.
Organisations which place too high a value on status and position power can also inhibit people from speaking up. The late Dutch social psychologist Geert Hofstede called these, high ‘power distance’ cultures, where those without power tend to defer to those who have it.
This can have important implications for safety. A study by Enomoto & Geisler (2017) found that there was a significant correlation between high power distance cultures and plane crashes. In a review of performance in 68 different countries between 1970 and 2012, they found that where junior pilots had difficulty contradicting senior pilots there was a significant increase in the chance of an accident.
The study concludes by saying that ‘it is only when the entire crew are working together as equals (that) the chances of success are greatest’.
If people are fearful of speaking out even in these kinds of life or death situations, imagine how this plays out in ‘day to day’ organisational life in an over-hierarchical culture?
People will not give their opinions nor share important information if this does not concur with the prevailing view and mindset. Vital data on accidents, quality lapses, and systems defects, for example, may not be communicated out of fear of the consequences to the messenger. Sub optimal organisation performance and employee disengagement are the results.
So how can we encourage people to speak out – and be heard – given the practical realities of organisations and their leaders?
Our experience has been that while this is one of the most challenging areas to effect change, successful interventions can have an enormous impact on motivation, morale and performance.
The aim should be to create a culture where employees feel valued, their opinions respected, and where they have the skills and courage to contribute their views.
Developing people at all levels in communication skills, teaching them how best to plan and frame their interventions, and building their confidence to speak out, is important. Strong HR Departments can also play their part in calling out dysfunctional behaviours and carrying out regular benchmarked employee surveys to monitor organisation culture and engagement.
But, ultimately, this is an area where top leadership needs to play the key role and have the courage to make it clear that speaking out is to be encouraged and dysfunctional leadership will not be tolerated.
Psychological safety is just as important as physical safety.
Arrivals and Departures
Hag Jae Lee is the new CEO of Incheon International Airport and has wasted no time in outlining his vision to create a series of smart logistics clusters around the South Korean gateway.
Manchester Airports Group (MAG) has announced the appointment of Ken O’Toole as its next Group CEO. He will succeed Charlie Cornish, who has led the business for the last 13 years, on October 1, 2023. O’Toole is currently deputy CEO of the airport group.
Jost Lammers is set to stay on as CEO of Munich Airport until the end of 2029 after agreeing a five-year extension to his contract at the German gateway, which was set to expire at the end of 2024.
At the request of the Supervisory Board, Ruud Sondag will remain interim CEO of the Royal Schiphol Group until March 1, 2024, at the latest. The Supervisory Board is making progress in the recruitment procedure for a definitive successor.
Greenville-Spartanburg Airport in South Carolina has welcomed Thomas Brooks as its new vice president and chief financial officer and Gloucestershire Airport in the UK has unveiled Jason Ivey as its new airport director.
About the authors
Terri Morrissey and Dr Richard Plenty run ACI’s Human Resources training. They received a Presidential Citation from the American Psychological Association in June 2022 for their leadership in advancing global psychology. Contact them at info@thisis.eu