What Employees Teach Us: 5 Lessons from a Decade of Listening
For almost 10 years, I've talked to employees on behalf of leaders - here are 5 things I've learned:
Voice of the employee is critical - organizations run more effectively when people are consulted, listened to, and included in making the organization great.
Employees appreciate being included - it's not every day that they get to discuss the things that make their work hard, or easy, or enriched - they feel a weight lifted from the chance at introspection.
Employees are skeptical - while their input may be gathered, they wonder whether it will matter - leaders who show that it matters build trust and commitment.
There are always themes - positive and negative, employees shared experience comes through and the fabric of culture starts to appear.
Enlightened leaders know that this matters - they actively seek employee input, engage in continuous listening, communicate what they learn, and leverage learning for change.
Employees are the lifeblood of the organization - through learning their experience, perspective, insights, and worries leaders are better equipped to chart successful paths.
If these past 10 years have taught me anything, it's that every person matters and the more we show they matter, the stronger we are.