Tag Archives: Employee engagement

Planning For Employees’ Return to the Office? Don’t Overlook Differences in Employee Opinions

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Employee trust and appreciation are on the rise.  The COVID pandemic presented leaders a substantial opportunity to put their employees first, to communicate often and with authenticity.  This has paid off in building trust and connection among employees, their managers and leaders.

With companies planning for the return to the office, maintaining these improved connections is paramount.  One aspect of returning to the workplace you may not be thinking about is the span of opinions your employees have about the virus and how they will treat others whose views differ. You can lose your bump in engagement by not reinforcing respect in the office when it comes to employees’ diverse behavior, opinions and actions on the virus and safety guidance.

 

Learn from the media’s mistakes

If you haven’t completely stopped watching and reading the news, you’re aware of the conflict between people who diligently follow the guidance given to protect vulnerable populations and those who resist wearing the protective equipment.  One cause of the conflict is that the directives given by health experts and our state, local and federal governments are inconsistent.

Complicating the guidance given is media headlines that convey an incomplete description.  Recently, a USA Today headline read “New Jersey will require face masks to be worn outdoors, governor says.”  Missing from the headline and first four paragraphs of the article was the critical additional information “if you can’t socially distance.”  Disputes on social media were rampant.  The initial headline and that of many news stations caused fear among those who feel vulnerable contrasted with outrage from the people that don’t believe you need a mask everywhere.

 

Preventing conflict among employees

For business leaders, have you considered how this could play out in your workplace when employees return to the office?  People have very different fears and opinions for many reasons.  Employee conflict around issues of safety and preference can erupt when least expected.  Some employees will be extra cautious by wearing masks when they’re not required and others will want the restrictions lifted as early as possible.  This can cause disagreements and ridicule among employees if not openly addressed.  You want to avoid situations where employees are mocking a colleague for being extra cautious or blaming someone for not caring about others.

 

What you can do to reduce employee disagreements

Employees tend to be on their best behavior in the workplace but there are actions you can take to limit teasing or accusations from eroding the improvements you gained in employee trust and appreciation.

  • Be clear on your mandatory expectations and where there is flexibility.
  • Be upfront with employees on unacceptable behaviors and the consequences.
  • Hold managers accountable for enforcing the expectations as soon as an issue arises.
  • Provide a resource for employees to go to for consistent, accurate information.
  • Let employees know that the health and safety guidelines will be adjusted over time and no changes will be effective until the company notifies them.
  • Reinforce importance of respect in the workplace.
  • Communicate, communicate, communicate.

You want to avoid contention, blaming and ridicule during this very sensitive time.  And you want to enhance the positive culture you’ve gained so your employees like coming to work and building on their and the company’s success.

Improving Communication Strategies for Leaders in COVID and Beyond

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Susan O’Connor joins Kristen Walker of Clearview Consulting to discuss common communication issues that have made it more difficult for companies to connect with their employees during the social isolation and what leaders can do to help their employees get the information they need.  Click on the link below.

Improving Communication Strategies For Leaders in COVID and Beyond

 

 

The Power of Leadership:  Your Employees See You As A Trusted Source Of COVID-19 Information

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If you’re not openly communicating with your employees on the impact of COVID-19 you’re making a mistake.  Frontline managers and business leaders are in a position to build trust, establish a culture of support and show empathy during this pandemic. The benefits of good communication now can payoff for years to come in strong employee engagement and trust.

Employers as trusted sources

Employees are relying on their companies as trusted sources of COVID-19 information according to an annual Edelman Trust Barometer.  The global communications firm surveyed about 10,000 people from 10 countries including the U.S. on virus-related communications March 6-10.1  Employers rose to the top as the most credible source of information employees are receiving, over non-government organizations, the mainstream media, the government and social media.

Many companies took the lead to increase their communication to employees once businesses started shuttering offices and plants—reassuring employees their health and safety were of utmost importance; providing them information, resources and equipment they needed to work from home if possible; and furnishing updates on the business impact of COVID-19.

Return to work communications

Another shift is taking place in the content of communications with planning the return to work (physically), what the new normal for work could be and how to protect employees in the office or plant environment.

The physical workspace will change.  Employers are talking about rotating in-office workers—one week in, one week at home; shortening the work week or the exact opposite–allowing the flexibility to work any of the seven days of the week; retrofitting common use areas like collaboration spaces, restrooms and conference rooms; rethinking building HVAC; reconsidering travel.  Employees are concerned about these changes and want to hear more.

Frontline manager communications is changing

Many companies are reviewing their work from home stance now that it’s been proven that working from home can be done effectively.  In addition to working from home, leaders are realizing the importance of flexibility for their employees’ work priorities, family circumstances and mental health issues.  Many companies are placing more emphasis on communication and interactions between the frontline manager and his/her employees.  Consideration is being given to equip managers with the skills to accept the fluidity, and what may be considered personal nature, of their employees’ circumstances.

Whereas many managers were trained to keep discussions about their employees’ personal lives to a minimum, they are now obligated to ask about their health, family and mental health situations as it relates to their work. This can be uncomfortable for managers whose focus has always been on the work relationship.  Managers’ flexibility will be tested from the ever-changing daily situation of an employee who may have everything under control one day and then be unable to perform their duties the next.  Daily, meaningful touchpoints are necessary.  Long gone are the times of checking in once or twice a week if businesses are to shift work and priorities to accommodate what is taking place in the employee’s life.

Rely on your employees

Employees will tell you what they need given the chance and when they feel you can be trusted.  Feedback mechanisms should be a major component of your communications plan.  Focus groups, short surveys, virtual suggestion boxes, feedback from managers’ conversations should all factor into the direction your communications are taking.  Employees can be your greatest resource to problem solving the issues your business is facing to get back to growth. Involve and listen to employees, customers, suppliers, and others in and outside your industry.

Basically, the way we work will change.  And communicating these changes clearly and in a timely fashion is critical to a smooth-running business and a well informed employee.

3 take aways

Everyone is operating in the unknown right now.

  • It’s the perfect time to talk with employees and other business owners to get solutions.
  • Get on calls, hold virtual meetings, show empathy and compassion, get to know your employees on a deeper level.
  • Listen with your ears, listen with your heart, listen with your eyes.

Engage your employees now and build a bond that is hard to break.

1https://www.edelman.com/research/edelman-trust-covid-19-demonstrates-essential-role-of-private-sector

Business leaders: Are you aware how fragile your employees are right now?

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I’ve been talking with family and colleagues and am alarmed at the number of people working for mid to large organizations who are working harder, longer and with more distractions than ever. What is so concerning to me is that many of the organizations they work for are acknowledging the difficulties being faced and providing some additional time “off” or have lessened their work expectations. However, employees are still trying to work at peak performance while dealing with the havoc wreaked in their personal lives by the pandemic.

The stress of potential failure (whether real or perceived) is taking its toll on employee mental, physical, emotional and spiritual health. Our bodies aren’t built to sustain long periods of excessive stress without breaking down. These high performers, overachievers, workhorses are at risk for major fatigue in the coming months when a new normal emerges and they are expected to swing into the groove.

My question for business leaders is what more can you do to help your workers slow down, pause, take the time they need without worry or additional stress? Helping your employees take this respite now will allow them to come back stronger than ever when you get back to the new normal. They will engage, commit and be your biggest advocates if you take care of them now.

What will you do today, tomorrow and next week for your people?

Your Personal Vision Can Help You Lead The Life You Were Meant to Live

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Many people go a lifetime without being fulfilled because they get caught in their day-to-day responsibilities and don’t examine what is truly important to them.  Imagine getting to the end of a long life and then being disappointed you didn’t do more.  Building a personal vision can be the north star for the life you want to create for yourself.  Now that the country is experiencing a slowdown, you have the opportunity to spend some time thinking about your personal vision and creating the life you want.

 

Oprah’s vision

Some of the most successful people in the world have a vision and let it be the beacon when they make decisions in their life.  Oprah Winfrey had a vision of her work representing a force for good.  She was able to realize her vision through her own show.  Around 1990, Oprah changed the direction of her show to be in line with her vision—to represent a force for good. She wouldn’t accept show concepts that didn’t have that intention.  Once she started down this path, her shows became more meaningful and fulfilling for her.  She was able to fill that vision and move on to a broader one of helping people connect to ideas that inspire and magnify their vision of who they can be. (Now, I don’t know Oprah personally, but she’s been clear this is her guiding principle.)

 

Creating your own personal vision

Let me start out by saying that you will not be creating your personal vision in one day.  It takes time to reflect and think of the possibilities and beyond.  Dare to dream and dream big.  Pushing all other concerns aside, think about what would give you amazing satisfaction and joy as you were achieving it and a tremendous sense of accomplishment once you reached your aspirations.  Think beyond your wildest dreams.

 

Questions to ask yourself

  • What brings me joy?
  • What are my values)?
  • After I leave this world, what aspects of my life do I want people to talk about?
  • What do I wish for this world?
  • What can I contribute?
  • What is unique about me? (Everyone has a uniqueness that makes them special.)
  • In what parts of my life do I need to grow?

 

Begin writing

Consider the above questions and write down your answers.  Ponder them.  Make changes to accurately reflect what is in your heart and what resonates with you.  If you’ve never taken the time to identify your values, read my blog on how to define them.  Values are beliefs and principles most important to us, what motivates us and guides decisions we make.  Don’t rush to define your values.  Take the time to get them right.  You will be using them throughout your life on a day-to-day basis and to help you make major decisions about what feels and is right for you.

Once you feel good about your values and answers to the above questions, start writing your vision statement.  For example, my vision statement is to have all people experience their personal purpose in peace and balance with the ability to learn and reflect knowing that there is a higher being.

Write in the first person about what is most important to you, what you want to be, do and feel.  Make sure you incorporate your values like I did above.  Again, don’t worry about it being perfect. You will fine tune it.  I tweaked my vision to have more of an impact on society when I realized I could do and be more than I was.  Our values and vision evolve over time because of our experiences and opportunities.

 

Use your vision every day

Now that you have your vision, use it to guide how you live your life daily.  In my case, one question I ask daily is how my life can be more peaceful and in better balance.  Consider your vision statement when you’re making decisions on how you will volunteer in your community.  When you get a new job offer, make sure that it sits right with your vision.  Does it enable you to live out what is important?  If not, no matter how much money you may be offered you won’t likely be happy.  Your vision can help you live a happy and fulfilled life.

Most importantly, keep your vision and your values within view every day to remind yourself when you’re off track.

If you have questions you would like me to answer, contact me.

Susan O’Connor is owner of Paradise Workplace Solutions and coaches clients on communication and balancing their personal values and passions with their business goals.

Your Values Fuel Your Best Life

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When in your life has your heart sung from joy?  Can you remember the circumstances?  Likely, your core values were aligned with whatever you were doing at that specific time.  Unfortunately, most people haven’t spent time concentrating on their personal values.  It’s not to say that we aren’t aware of the values (family, religious and societal) we were taught.  Those values can be very different from the core ones we become more aware of when provided the opportunity to examine what is important and why.  Let’s talk about the different values we hold and why.

 

Types of values

The definition Merriam Webster uses to define values is “something (such as a principle or quality) intrinsically desirable”.  To be more precise, values are beliefs or philosophies that are important to how we live and work.  Our values can drive our actions and decisions.

There are three categories of values every person is exposed to—superficial, chosen and core.

  1. Superficial values are those values we think we should live by because someone taught them to us. These are values that we have not challenged. For example, values a parent may have passed on like giving to others is more important than taking care of yourself.  Many people spend most of their lives trying to take care of everyone else and end up disillusioned and unhappy because they thought taking care of others was more of a priority to caring for themselves.
  2. Chosen values are those that we select to uphold as consistently as possible. An example could be a Catholic going to church every Sunday or honoring the Sabbath if you’re Jewish.  You may be disappointed in yourself for not celebrating your faith but you probably won’t be greatly dissatisfied if you miss a week.
  3. Core values are those on which we hold and base our lives. We know we’re living within our core values when we’re happy and satisfied with what we’re doing and the decisions we’ve made. We are dissatisfied, reluctant or embarrassed when we are not living them consistently.  For example, if a person’s core value is teaching and he/she is not in a position to teach, he/she will likely feel disconnected or unhappy unless the need to teach can be fulfilled in other areas of life.

For years, I believed I knew my values.  I was a family person, a hard worker, caring friend.  I believed in being “good” and respectful, taking care of others.  Some of these values ended up being superficial, ones that I took on but didn’t bring me satisfaction.  I felt overwhelmed at times because I was taking care of others and ignoring my needs.  It was when I was dissatisfied that I was not living within the core values important to me.

 

What you can do today to clarify your values

Write down your values as you believe them to be.  Examine why they are important to you.  Are they central to your happiness?

When I took a deep look at my values I realized there were a few that I had not been actively engaging with when I was making decisions.  For many years, I had not been considering my spirituality in my decisions.  This left me feeling adrift as if I didn’t have anything to anchor me.  Once I was able to define what spirituality meant to me I was able to make decisions more easily and quickly.

If you’re not sure where to start in examining your values, Google “Defining Your Values”.  There are many resources available to help you.  Here’s one link from Wikihow that is a good place to start.  https://www.wikihow.com/Define-Your-Personal-Values  Don’t be discouraged by the time it takes to uncover your values.  You will need to spend enough time thinking through where they come from and what purpose they serve you and if they will continue to help you make good decisions.

 

Living a values-based life

I’m much clearer on what I want, what I do and how I’ll go about achieving my goals and making decisions now that I’ve clarified my values.  This past year one of my values came to life through starting Paradise Workplace Solutions.  Learning is critical to my happiness.  But it wasn’t until I was in a situation where I needed to gain knowledge as business owner that I realized the full energy and passion that was driving me to make this business successful. My heart sings every day because I’m working on my business and learning along the way.

Identifying your core values and living them out is what will make your heart sing, your life fulfilled and guide you to your true purpose.

Susan O’Connor is CEO of Paradise Workplace Solutions and coaches clients to connect their personal values and passions to their business goals.

Change Your Life and Relationships By Listening

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Deep down, everyone wants to be heard, acknowledged, accepted and included. Do you know anyone who doesn’t have these universal desires? Being heard helps people, businesses, communities and our world.

When was the last time you felt really heard? Did it feel like you were connecting with someone, that the person cared for you and what you were saying, that they respected you?

Listening has taken a backseat
Listening can save a person’s life, solve a business’s issue and improve communities and the lives of people in them. Truly listening can bridge differences in our world. Listening can be hugely impactful. Yet, many people don’t listen. Why?

• Think we know what you’re going to say
• Don’t value others’ opinions
• Have physical hearing issues
• Are distracted with our own thoughts, worries, fears
• Don’t agree with your point of view
• Would rather talk
• Don’t think you’re interesting
• It’s not easy to do

Some of these may be valid reasons but it doesn’t account for the fact that distracted listening has become the norm in our society.

What is listening?
Listening is more than hearing someone talk. Deep listening is absorbing what the person is saying, watching their face and body language, looking for their heart’s message and connecting with what they are saying even if you don’t agree with a point of view. When was the last time you really, truly listened to someone, to their voice, their message, their heart, their body language? Listening deeply can give you more information than you would expect.

When I was working inside the corporate world, I benefited greatly by developing my listening skills. I watched the person speaking for their body language, I looked for their passion and I observed the reaction of others “listening.” Frequently, I picked up much more about what was going on by fully listening. I believe it was one of my strengths and helped me reach the level of success that was important to me. Good listening is a part of one’s emotional intelligence level.

What you can do right now to become a better listener

• Put away devices and other distractions.
• If your current situation isn’t conducive to actively listening, then plan another time to talk and listen openly.
• Concentrate on what the person is saying.
• Look into the other person’s eyes. It’s hard not to hear what someone is saying when you’re looking into their eyes.
• Don’t assume you know what the other person is going to say.
• Don’t think about what you’re going to say.
• Ask questions.
• Allow some space between the person finishing their thought and you commenting.
• Show engagement with excitement, empathy, agreement.
• Be open minded.

What do you get from listening?

• Personally, you get to know a person and their motives better.
• The speaker may have information that you can use now or in the future.
• You could be saving a life.
• Listening to an employee could help uncover a potential flaw.
• Listening to a customer could provide you with your next big product or a solution to a current one.
• Listening to your family builds understanding and strong connections that can’t be broken. (Most family rifts happen because one or another person doesn’t understand something that did or did not happen.)
• Listening to your own heart’s messages helps make better decisions.

Listening to someone is powerful. It saves families, lives, businesses, cities and countries. I challenge you to spend 15 minutes a day to listen more deeply and thoughtfully with your ears, eyes and heart.

Susan O’Connor is owner of Paradise Workplace Solutions and coaches clients to connect their personal values and passions to their business goals

Stop Controlling Your Employees If You Want To Increase Engagement

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Employee engagement is a popular topic.  The money and attention companies give to engagement may be a superficial band aid that ends up backfiring if they aren’t spending their efforts on employees’ engagement with the work.  Keep in mind, 85% of employees are disengaged according to a Gallup Poll.1

What are leaders trying to accomplish with a focus on employee engagement?  In brutal truth, at the core, business leaders want to improve productivity, so that their businesses are successful.  Yes, most aspire to have a workplace their employees like coming to but ultimately, they’re in business to make money, solve problems or serve people.  They shouldn’t be shamed into acting otherwise.

 

Are you killing productivity?

Many leaders are trying to balance “engagement” with getting the job done.  You can have employees who like each other, celebrate successes and are given rewards but what happens when they get back to their desks?  Do they eagerly engage in their work?  Many disengage as soon as they sit down.  Why?  Because their WORK is not engaging them.

Many company’s cultures have been set up to control when and how a job gets done.  Flex time permits employees some leeway on when to arrive and leave but it’s still controlled.  American businesses are headed in the right direction but how motivating is it to be controlled, held within specific parameters?  What happens to creativity?

 

What can leaders do to improve engagement?

Get a picture in your mind.  Think about the most highly motivating time in your career or business.  What was it about that time that made you want to get up every morning and accomplish your goals?  Who was telling you what to do and how to do it?  How were you rewarded?

I experienced my most engaging times when I worked at companies that were growing and I’ve experienced that same in my own business.  Why?  Because no one had predetermined rules in how to accomplish what needed to be done. I was eager to learn, prove to myself that I could do whatever I set my mind to.  I was able to use my creativity.  My work was acknowledged by others and I was rewarded intrinsically by feeling good about my accomplishments.  None of my engagement had anything to do with receiving monetary rewards or parties in the hallways.

Let’s acknowledge that systems and rules need to be in place for very routine tasks, like expense reports and assembly line work.  However, allowing employees the autonomy to complete their work in a way that allows them to tap into their creativity and self-motivation can be more engaging.

 

Autonomy is motivating

Daniel Pink talks about the four essentials of autonomy in his book Drive published 10 years ago and still holding true today.2  Time, task, technique and team are ways in which autonomy can exist.  Not all people are motivated by each one equally.  The goal is to find out which motivators work best for each employee.

Time—getting results instead of focusing on the time it takes to get work done.  Many companies are now looking at getting results by allowing employees more freedom in when they have to produce results.  Obviously, some jobs are based on time-determined outputs and don’t allow employees freedom from time constraints.

Questions to ask yourself:  What jobs do we have that we can remove time obligations?  What could the benefits be if we tapped into our employees’ creativity in getting results?

 

Task—selecting certain aspects of what we do.  For example, employees see many opportunities for improvement in your business all the time.  Allowing them the independence to work on these opportunities for a portion of their time can be rewarding because there is no roadmap.  They can use their creativity and solve problems on their own.

Questions to ask yourself: How often do my employees see ways to make improvements or come up with new ideas that are getting left behind because we’re controlling the work they do?  What would happen if we experimented with allowing some employees to work on projects they create?

 

Technique—allowing employees to figure out how they will get their work done.  There are some organizations that permit customer service employees to work from home, for example.  They choose how they want to set up their home office and how they will accomplish their goals.  Technically, there is no reason they need to be in a physical call center, all together following rote scripts.  That’s a controlled environment that stifles their creativity.

Questions to ask yourself:  Are we losing by not allowing employees to come up with how to accomplish their tasks?  Can we gain efficiencies and produce more or better products?

 

Team—choosing who you work with on certain projects.  Self-directed improvement projects are a good example in which a person can choose who he/she wants to work with.  Allowing a team to come together by choice can produce great results.

Questions to ask yourself:  Who can I ask in my business to select a project and team to test out this theory?  Am I willing to give up control to see if there is a better, more motivating way to get work done?

 

What can you do today?

If you truly want to engage your employees, start looking at ways in which you can reduce control and compliance and increase autonomy and creativity.  There are many published examples of autonomous workplaces and theories.  Do some reading on motivation and use your business to do some experimenting.  Keep what works and refine what doesn’t.  Be ahead of the curve.  Your high performers will appreciate it.  And your bottom line may see a bump up.

 

1 Building a High-Development Culture Through Your Employee Engagement Strategy, Gallup, Inc. Washington, DC, 2019.

2 Daniel H. Pink, Drive, The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us,  Riverhead Books, New York, 2009.

 

Paradise Workplace Solutions, LLC works with business owners to improve productivity and profitable growth by aligning people strategies to the company’s business plan.

What Motivates You To Go The Extra Mile?

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Motivation can be energizing.  Do you remember a time when you were inspired or you motivated someone?  Do you remember what it felt like?  The thrill of the spark igniting within you, or helping a child, friend or employee help themselves and seeing the ember catch fire.  The energy is contagious.

That same energy is in your organization, namely your people.  You know you’re likely to put in more effort and care when you are motivated and feeling good about what you’re doing.  Your employees are the same.  They will put in extra effort if they are engaged and feel appreciated.

Increase engagement, increase profitability

In a recent global Gallup poll on employee engagement with 82,000 teams, the results showed 21% higher profitability for those organizations in the top quarter compared with those at the bottom.  Shockingly, 85% of employees are disengaged or actively disengaged.1 That’s a lot of people who need motivation and a good deal of profit that never makes it to the table.  Obviously, there’s a great deal of work to be done globally.  Yet, it’s your business we’re focusing on now.

You probably think about motivating your employees with salary, benefits and a nice work environment.  Those incentives are a given in the current labor market.  You need to do more.  The good news is that you can and it doesn’t have to cost you much.

Start motivating your employees today

  • Be authentic when you praise a job well done. Acknowledge good work but don’t dilute your compliments by praising all the time.
  • Find out what motivates your employees individually. People are inspired by many different factors.  Observe and ask what motivates each person.  Then, acknowledge them in the way they prefer.
  • Work with employees who are causing problems or not meeting expectations. Your employees are watching how you handle someone who is not performing.  Don’t ignore or downplay the problem.  Your employees are impacted and want you to step in to handle the situation. Be honest and helpful to the person who is struggling.  Find out what he/she needs to be successful.  If you don’t see improvement after making a good effort to support them, you will likely have to let them go.  Sometimes, an employee doesn’t fit with a company’s culture or have the skills to do the job.  Be supportive and fair so your employees know that you treat everyone fairly.
  • Talk to your employees about their development. What work fuels their passion?  Is there an area they want to explore?  Providing a safe environment for employees to discover new talents can keep them inspired and engaged.  Share in their discovery.  Acknowledge their abilities and support them in strengthening their weaknesses.
  • Hear what your employees are saying. Listening to your employees is the most cost-effective way of acknowledging and engaging them.  And you could learn something you didn’t realize about your business and the people who keep your business running.

Uncover what motivates your employees

Here’s a simple way to get specifics about what motivates your employees.  Ask them! Let them compile a list of options for recognition for a job well done.  Some examples of both monetary and non-monetary items could be

  • Time off work to participate in a community or non-profit event; like Habitat for Humanity
  • Opportunity to take on additional responsibility
  • Breakfast or lunch with a more senior employee or company executive
  • Development class, seminar or conference that is of interest to the employee and the company
  • Time off; an extra vacation day or a few hours on a Friday afternoon
  • Gift card or small cash award
  • Public recognition among peers; like at a department meeting
  • Trophy or award certificate
  • Tickets to a sporting or cultural event of the employee’s choice
  • A small token of appreciation, like a food gift basket, sent to the employee’s home so that his/her loved ones can see the company’s appreciation.

Talking with employees about how they like to be recognized and motivated is an opportunity to communicate about performance, expectations and the value of your employees.  Always connect any recognition with performance and the value an employee brings to the business.  Reinforce the behaviors and skills needed to make your business successful.

Below, share some ways a company has actively engaged you?

1 Building a High-Development Culture Through Your Employee Engagement Strategy, Gallup, Inc. Washington, DC, 2019.

Paradise Workplace Solutions, LLC works with business owners to improve productivity and profitable growth by aligning people strategies to the company’s business plan.

It’s Personal: An Employee In Crisis Can Build Up Or Tear Down Your Company’s Culture

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I didn’t have any intention of writing this article until I woke up this morning. After seeing all the news and reminders about breast cancer month I was compelled to talk about how a health scare created an employee/employer bond that can’t be broken.

It’s time for me to own up. Not many people know that I went through breast cancer and Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma treatment two years ago. Or, maybe it’s more accurate to say that I didn’t talk much about it.

I pride myself on helping others and was surprised by my reaction to the diagnoses. I didn’t let many people help me. I was overwrought with emotions. I put a cocoon around myself and went deep within to deal with the cancers. I told only those who absolutely needed to know and I asked them not to discuss it with me or anyone else unless I brought it up. I realize, without a doubt, that was very difficult for family, friends and co-workers who love and care for me. Yet, everyone respected my wishes.

What does this have to do with company culture? How employees are treated every day is part of your company culture. An employee in crisis can magnify aspects of the culture either good or bad.

Build your culture and help an employee at the same time
I was working for a large corporation at the time and was naturally nervous about what cancer would mean for my life and career. I was worried that I wouldn’t be considered for a promotion or plumb assignment if they thought I couldn’t handle it physically or if my future was uncertain.

Fortunately, I had a manager and employer who respected my wishes and helped me through my treatment. Their handling of my diagnoses also demonstrates the culture they want for the company. They value their employees; plain and simple. Here is how my situation was handled and how helping employees when they’re “down” can help build a culture of mutual admiration.

Six actions to take to help an employee through a crisis

  1. Listen, listen, listen.  This is the single most important action any manager can take during a difficult situation.  Listen for what your employee is saying and not saying.
  2. Ask how you can help.  Find out what they would like you to do or not do.
  3. Respect the employee’s wishes.  If the employee wants support from his/her team, help them get it.  If they want to keep it on the down low, abide by their decision.
  4. Look out for ways you can alleviate their stress.  This can be in the form of easing their workload, setting up a system that will allow your employee to attend to any necessary appointments without having to ask, or providing them with additional resources.
  5. Check in.  Their needs may change from the initial discussion and you want to make sure you’re helping them throughout the process.
  6. Give them time to adjust to their new reality. Continue to view this employee as an active contributor who will come through their situation to be the same or better employee.  Other employees are watching closely to see how you’re handling the situation.

My outcome
I am healthy and free of cancer. I was loyal to my employer and co-workers before my health scare. Their approach to my situation made me double down on my commitment and demonstrated to those closest to me at work how a compassionate manager and employer can make a difference.

Since my treatment, many aspects of my life have changed. I was promoted to a position I always wanted two months after returning from a short medical leave. Six months later, I made some difficult and dramatic changes because I realized that I didn’t want to put off dreams I had for my future. My husband and I moved to Florida from New Jersey and started our own business, Paradise Workplace Solutions.

I made sure before leaving that someone was in place, up to speed on leading my group and that there was a smooth transition. I wanted the company to know that I appreciated everything they did for me and that I had no intention of leaving them in a lurch.

After my leaving the company, the manner in which I was treated remains a part of the culture they are building every day. My commitment to my former manager and employer is still strong. I cheer for my former co-workers and company from the sidelines and advocate for the work they are doing. I am a staunch supporter and make sure I refer only the very best potential employees because I want their culture to be the best it can be. That’s the least I can do for the co-workers, manager and company who helped me through the most difficult time of my life.

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Paradise Workplace Solutions, LLC works with business owners dealing with disappointing business results get on a path to improved productivity and profitable growth by aligning people strategies to the company’s business plan.