The interesting thing about the two studies is the fact that now more than perhaps ever before, the American worker is becoming more dissatisfied with their job and whom they work for.  In fact, the Conference Board results are the lowest since the inception of the study in 1987, where 61.1% of the American worker was satisfied with their job.

It’s high time for organizations to take a hard look at how they treat their employees.  And if they aren’t treating them well, it’s also high time to do something about it.

It is amazing to me that organizations don’t see the value of their people.  At a time where company profits are shrinking and costs are rising, the question I ask myself is, “why don’t they see the value?”  Senior managers are paid great money to identify issues within an organization, and for the most part, they are very smart people.  One would think, or assume, that the focus would be on employee satisfaction.

However, based on the two current studies, that is not the philosophy of many US corporations.  In hard times, I firmly believe that you can still grow organically, or through your best asset…your people.  It doesn’t take a lot of time or effort to instill a culture that focuses on employee satisfaction.  What does take time and effort is the ability to recognize the issues at hand and the guts to do something about it.

The long-term effects of employee dissatisfaction are devastating.  Not only will employee moral continue to decline, as will employee retention.  Once the job market starts to open up, these unhappy employees will leave in droves…especially the “stars.”  And where will they go?  They will go to those organizations that have a company culture of excellence, a company that recognizes their most important asset is its people.  It’s high time for organizations to take a hard look at how they treat their employees.  And if they aren’t treating them well, it’s also high time to do something about it.

I want to tell you a little story about shock and awe in the workplace. Technically, the term comes from the military doctrine of using overwhelming power to dominate the enemy, but sometimes in life those who shock are not the ones who awe.

Since few of us have experienced it, working for a company that has a positive culture is foreign to us.  We assume that working for a company where the culture is negative and restrictive is the norm, not the exception.  It’s not until we break those shackles either by changing the company culture we reside in, or by leaving it altogether, that we realize how working in a negative culture affects every aspect of our lives.

Not long ago, I worked for a company that did business throughout the US.  I was the head of two departments and was responsible for over 60 employees.  One day, I had to leave early (4:55 pm) to attend a function for my daughter.  Sneaking out the back door, I made her function on time.  The next morning, I was called into my boss’ office.  My boss informed me, under no uncertain terms, that I would be terminated if I was “caught” leaving early again.  It seems as though the CEO saw me “sneak” out the back door.  Never mind the fact that I typically arrived at work at 7:15 each morning, I was to never leave early again, no matter what the reason.

It is this type of management style that zaps the motivation level out of the most motivated of employees.  When senior management rules with this management style, it is not only toxic for that employee, but for all employees.  We are seeing more and more companies moving away from building a positive culture within their organizations.

Today’s leaders must support and build a culture of trust that creates employee motivation, which in turn, creates employee loyalty.  Programs such as building Great Workplaces, Results-Oriented Work Environments, and Jerk-Free workplaces are great places to start in creating a positive culture.  By the way, I left that company (their loss) and found one that did have a positive people practices culture.

The point I’m trying to make here is that stuff - words, tastes, smells, attitudes, reactions, opinions, even silly songs - get stuck inside our heads. And this is an important thing to know when you are a CEO or executive of a company.  Your people are going to bring with them pre-programmed notions about leaders, culture, policies, people issues, human resource departments, acceptable office behavior, rules of engagement, attitudes, etc.  Some of it is probably good. But I guarantee some of it will be bad – very bad.  You cannot control how Company A treated their people and the impression it left on that new recruit that just walked in the door on Monday. But as the CEO, you can begin to mold positive messages to replace those negative ones by her previous employer.

As a leader, your job will be to begin replacing all those negative messages with positive ones. Although you are not a hypnotist, it’s kind of like helping someone stop the unhealthy habit of smoking or overeating by replacing negative messages with positive ones.  That is why communication is such a critical component of the CEOs position.

Finding the right leaders, creating the right culture and communicating positive messages to combat those nasty pre-programmed ones inside the heads of your people are your most important jobs as the CEO.

Question: What negative, pre-programmed messages about work are inside your head?

photo by Scott Zeier

One of our clients, Road Science, was recently featured in the Wall Street Journal for being a company that promotes a jerk-free and bully-free workplace. Road Science is leading the way in the American workplace by having such policies in place. By promoting a positive work environment for its employee’s, Road Science is continuing in its mission to be a great place to work.

Read the Wall Street Journal article here.

To change an organizational culture from negative to positive, or even from average to excellent, leaders will find the need to walk on the highway of counter-intuitive thinking and living while organizations zoom past you going the opposite direction.

The predictable way is not best for everyone. Our Wall Street business mindset has programmed leaders to win at all cost.  This monetary-based lifestyle is a short-term philosophy that carries a heavy human and societal toll.  Short-term thinking profits few but destroys organizations, employees and families.  Great leaders must think and act in the long-term so that decisions have a higher likelihood of benefiting all stakeholders.  Long-term living is counter-intuitive but the right thing to do.

Here are some counter-intuitive thoughts to consider in the world of positive people practices (P3):

• 8 to 5 is an imaginary time boundary for time-sensitive freaks.
• An employee can be extremely productive away from their cubicle – and here’s a wild thought – even at Starbucks.
• Great human resource department recruits don’t come from other company HR departments.
• The CEO, not HR, creates a great employee culture.
• Human Resources should really care about humans and not treat them like a resource but as people.
• Highly-valued jerk employees are not good for business. In fact, they cost an employer approximately $175,000 per year in lost productivity and turnover.
• Jerk-Free Workplaces attract the best and brightest people.
• Quiet, mild-mannered CEOs make better leaders than their Type A counterparts.
• Great employees are not looking for a nice office or fabulous benefits, but a mission in life.
• Technology should give employees freedom not shackle them to a company’s campus.

Question: What are some counter-intuitive thoughts you have about positive people practices (P3)?

Image Credit: www.yesnomaybe.co.uk

This is a ridiculous question, isn’t it?  The question assumes that if you are pro-employee you are anti-company, or if you are pro-company you are anti-employee.  This is not the world we should be living and working in, however, I have met people with this quirky mindset.

The reality is a pro-employee leader is a pro-company leader.  Take care of the employee and the employee takes care of the customer.  This is a winning formula.  Mistreat the employee and it is very likely the customer will not enjoy a very good experience.  The employee-customer-profit chain is a viable formula.

Make your employees number one, treat them with trust and respect, and the road to customer service excellence will be much smoother.  You can take this advice to the bank.

Image Credit: Technalive.com

My motivation came from working for a demeaning, nasty, certifiable jerk who only cared about himself.  He could be a relatively nice guy one day, but then the next day he was downright mean, bordering on devilish.  His direct reports would get in trouble for no reason. Fear and intimidation were among the limited management skills in his tool chest.  You could make him steaming mad with the most insignificant actions.   Then the two-headed snake would isolate you from all communication and then berate you in public for not knowing what was going on.   He would also yell at you in front of others. It was a living hell.

The greatest amount of anger I feel today is from my stupidity in continuing  to work for this person as long as I did.  I am also angry for not having the guts to quit my job.  I thought I could fix the situation.  I was also angry for allowing myself to be put in a position to work for this tyrant.  When you have a mortgage – I foolishly built a new house at the time – bosses can knowingly take advantage of your financial situation.

After this experience, I vowed to help create great workplaces for multiple employers. I wanted to right some wrongs in a positive way.  As a consultant, I can help make good on this promise and multiply the positives rather than the negatives. If you haven’t noticed, I am also a big fan of Jerk-Free Workplaces, one of the best ways to improve productivity and the happiness quotient in any workplace.

So the next time you see me and wonder, “why is this guy so passionate about building great workplaces?” It’s because I have decided to turn something very bad into something very good.

“Failure is only the opportunity to begin again, only this time more wisely.”

– Henry Ford

Question: Have you learned a valuable lesson from a similar work experience?

The world of work is radically changing right here and right now, and company leaders who refuse to change will be left behind and will no longer be competitive in today’s global economy.

Are you ready for these revolutionary changes? Take a look at the following environmental developments:

Results Only Work Environment (ROWE) – With the advent of new technologies that keep employees plugged-in 24/7, location is becoming far less important. The focus is shifting towards results rather than face time. Employers can save significant office space resources while increasing productivity when they are allowed to escape the cubicle jungles of corporate America. That’s right.

Company’s that move to a ROWE environment see productivity increases as high as forty percent.  ROWE is not a flexible work arrangement with core hours.  Companies who go ROWE give employee’s their lives back while receiving the benefit of better results.  Check out the CultureRX website developed by our friends Cali Ressler and Jody Thompson.

Civil Work Environment – We live in a culture where bad manners and behavior is widely accepted on the streets and neighborhoods across urban America. Drivers on American streets and highways are far less accommodating, and sometimes, just plain rude.  Parents are not properly teaching manners to their children.  Leaders routinely yell at or intimidate their employees. To stop the maddening increase in incivility in the hallways and offices across America, companies are establishing civil work environments free of this harassing  influence and establishing rules of engagement.  Check out The 25 Rules of Considerate Conduct. You may want to institute these rules in your office.

Great Workplace Environment - A great working environment is a strategic business advantage. We don’t have to spend time explaining to clients the reason for creating a work environment based on trust and respect. Leaders have received the message loud and clear  Leaders who do not get this message, however, will not be leaders for very much longer.  Our thanks to the Great Place to Work Institute and theFortune 100 Great Places to Work in America list in helping begin this movement.

Jerk-Free/Bully-Free Workplace Environment – Anybody can have a bad day once in a while and act like a jerk.  Usually they later apologize for their transgressions. Then there are the certified jerks and bullies who act  in a toxic manner most every day.

They terrorize down the organizational ladder while sucking-up the ladder.  It has worked for years but companies are putting the breaks on this behavior and ejecting jerks – even the so-called high-value jerks.  Our thanks to Bob Sutton, “The No-A**hole Rule”, and Gary Namie, Workplace Bullying Institute, for advancing this movement.

Social Networking Environment – It is amazing how afraid human resource and legal departments are afraid of social networking. However, companies that have developed a great workplace initiative have nothing to fear what their employee’s might say on social networking sites.  Libby Sartain, former chief people officer of Southwest Airlines and Yahoo states employees should be a company’s number one advocate in the online community.  It is good to know that not all HR people are drones for bad leaders.  While employers are performing Google searches on prospective employees, employees are also performing Google searches on prospective bosses.  A relatively new site, eBossWatch.com, allows users to rate their boss, good or bad, to help their fellow-employee.  Thanks to our friend Asher Adelman for this service.

Free-Lance Environment – Work is more about what needs to get done rather than the encumbrances of becoming an employee.  People are loyal to their career – not their company. That is why there are increased numbers of former employees calling it quits after a corporate layoff and becoming solo-entrepreneurs surviving on gigs from various sources.  Our thanks to Pamela Slim, Escape from the Cubicle Nation,for writing about this important movement.

There are likely more influences occurring in today’s workplace revolution. But I will stop here for now.

How is your workplace evolving with the times?

Creating a positive, winning company culture, however, takes time, effort and devotion on the part of the organization’s leaders. The easy – or lazy – thing to do is allow your company culture to evolve without a leader’s positive influence. I do not recommend this auto-pilot approach.  A hands-off approach to company culture is like assuming your kitchen will simply clean itself. After a few short days the kitchen will be growing toxic mold and mildew, and will not be a very inviting place to eat and enjoy family conversation.

A hands-off approach to company culture will inevitably lead to the hiring of several jerk employees and/or toxic bosses. Then you have a big problem on your hands.

What is the recipe for a great company culture? Although I can list the basic ingredients of trust, respect, dignity, flexibility, communication, etc., I cannot tell you how to “bake” the culture. Each company develops their own individual personality with time, nurture and care.  Although Southwest Airlines has been tremendously successful with their “fun” corporate culture, simply copying their approach will likely lead to failure for a different company.

The important part is to actively work on the culture of your organization. When employees and customers walk into your lobby, what do you want them to experience?  Answer that question and then begin the process of creating your very own company culture that positively separates you from your competition.

Question: What are your company’s ingredients to a great workplace?

Image Credit: Getty Images from Guardian.co.org