May 06, 2005
Inaction Speaks Louder than Words
I was in a meeting recently with a group of senior managers who were discussing employee loyalty issues particularly as they relate to minority employees. This was particularly important because the organization had difficulty in recruiting minorities and the data showed that minority groups were significantly less happy than non-minority groups.
What struck me about the meeting was the story that one senior manager (let’s call him Joe) told about the interaction he had with one of his managers (let’s call him Dom) about the importance of treating all members of his staff equally. Joe said that Dom was agreeable to concept but said that this would be difficult to do because some of the members of his team were “different” from him. Joe then went on to say that no matter how much you work with some people you are not going to get them to change their attitudes towards treating all employees fairly.
What struck me about this story was not Dom’s perspective on the world. If we are honest with ourselves, we know that Dom was simply telling the truth. And Dom’s truth is not too different from what many people feel. What struck me was that Dom was still working for Joe and still had people management responsibilities.
I wish I had asked Joe why he hadn’t removed Dom from his managerial role. Since I didn’t ask, I can only assume that Joe felt that by raising the issue, his obligation had been met, and given that Dom did not have any other performance issues, there was no reason to move him to a different role.
What I am curious about is the impact that Joe’s inaction had on the minority staff. Were they aware of Dom’s feelings towards them relative to other employees? Did these feelings impact their work assignments? Did they feel left out of the communication loop? Did they feel that the company didn’t value them as much as other employees? Did they feel like equal performance would lead to equal pay and promotion opportunities at this company? Did they feel like they were working on a level playing field?
Employees look at what managers say and the values statements that organization make and compare it to their actions. A picture is worth a thousand words. They also look at what managers and organizations don’t do to judge the sincerity of the organizations words and assess the gap between the stated values of the organization (what the organization says it believes in) and their operating values (what the organization actually values based on what it chooses to reward). The wider the gap is between stated and operating values, the greater the cynicism and distrust in the organization.
Organizations need to make sure their stated values and operating values are aligned. They also need to measure the extent to which people are living these values on a daily basis and hold them accountable for doing so. Making this happen is critical to keeping your entire workforce fully engaged.
Poll Closed
Poll Closed
Posted by Greg Robinson at May 6, 2005 10:33 AM
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The recommendations do not go far enough. I feel Joe needed to help & Train Dom in managing a diverse workforce, communicate specific behavioral expectations going forward and then monitor Joe's performance against the expectations.
Posted by: Jack at May 26, 2005 08:19 AM
Sending Dom to diversity training is a given. But if his attitude doesn't change after the training, then, yes, Joe is the problem and he should be removed from his position if he can't manage his people.
It is my personal opinion that most of the problems in "Corporate America" today are a result of managers unwilling to deal with problem employees and letting them slide. This is not only irresponsible on the manager's part but breeds discontent among other workers.
Posted by: mwiltgen at May 26, 2005 08:42 AM
Given the facts as presented, training would be the proper thing to do, along with followup by the manager to insure that the training stuck.
Posted by: at May 26, 2005 08:47 AM
None
Posted by: Anonymous at May 26, 2005 02:55 PM
I chose Diversity training as it was the best of the four. Diversity training alone does not solve the problem helping the manager learn how to manage in a diverse environment would be the choice to address the issue. However, once given the opportunity for change, accountability has to be the next order of the day. Set clear expectations for Dom and hold him accountable for delivering those expectations.
Posted by: at June 9, 2005 08:43 AM
Joe should be sent for Diversity Training along with Dom. While we all have some kind of prejudice by the time we reach adulthood, it should never impact how we treat people. We also need to do a better job of teaching our children not to judge people by the color of their skin, by their race, religion or country of origin.
Posted by: at June 27, 2005 10:49 AM
It doesn't take Diversity Training to know that we all should be treated equally without prejudice. Joe should not allow Dom to treat staff differently because they are "different" in his eyes. If they can get the job done the same as everyone else then they are no different.
Posted by: Anonymous at June 28, 2005 09:53 AM
The recommendations do not go far enough. I feel Joe needed to help & Train Dom in managing a diverse workforce, communicate specific behavioral expectations going forward and then monitor Joe's performance against the expectations.
Sending Dom to diversity training is a given. But if his attitude doesn't change after the training, then, yes, Joe is the problem and he should be removed from his position if he can't manage his people.
It is my personal opinion that most of the problems in "Corporate America" today are a result of managers unwilling to deal with problem employees and letting them slide. This is not only irresponsible on the manager's part but breeds discontent among other workers.
Given the facts as presented, training would be the proper thing to do, along with followup by the manager to insure that the training stuck.
None
I chose Diversity training as it was the best of the four. Diversity training alone does not solve the problem helping the manager learn how to manage in a diverse environment would be the choice to address the issue. However, once given the opportunity for change, accountability has to be the next order of the day. Set clear expectations for Dom and hold him accountable for delivering those expectations.
Joe should be sent for Diversity Training along with Dom. While we all have some kind of prejudice by the time we reach adulthood, it should never impact how we treat people. We also need to do a better job of teaching our children not to judge people by the color of their skin, by their race, religion or country of origin.
It doesn't take Diversity Training to know that we all should be treated equally without prejudice. Joe should not allow Dom to treat staff differently because they are "different" in his eyes. If they can get the job done the same as everyone else then they are no different.
