Large organisations have a great advantage – they are faceless. From a managers’ perspective, however good an employer is, no single employee is indispensable. They could disappear tomorrow, be forgotten within in a week and a replacement appointed by the end of the month. From an employee point of view, what they really think of the workplace isn’t something to talk about until they complete an anonymous ‘People Survey’ once a year, which gives an opportunity to give it from both barrels at a safe distance. It also gives the employer an opportunity to interpret the data as they wish, but that’s another article. Any conflict between employees can be resolved through a convenient transfer to a different department, closer supervision from above, or in-house HR getting procedural.
Smaller organisations don’t have this luxury. A staff member leaves, is disgruntled, or badly performing and it visibly hits the bottom line – fast.
Yet I’m constantly told by small business owners and directors, that they spend more time dealing with staff issues than any other aspect of running their company. Why? Generally speaking, it’s because we don’t like confrontation, unwittingly letting things fester until we have real issues on our hands, which we deal with one by one, as opposed to examining root causes.
Are you a disgruntled employee in a small business? You’ll probably mutter under your breath, moan to your colleagues and get away with as little as possible while looking for another job, generally with minimal discretion, making the atmosphere even worse. You’ll likely see things from your own point of view, not appreciating any pressures management is under and the expectations the company has of you. This is your job, you can probably find another one, but if your boss owns the business, don’t forget it’s their livelihood and probably their life savings at stake.
Or perhaps you’re a manager who’s unhappy with a member of staff? You’ll probably not assign them any work that you need done by someone you trust, generally be a bit standoffish, expect nothing, glower at them occasionally and hope they leave. You’ve assumed that because you work hard and know what needs to be done in your business, your employee knows the same and has enough stake in the organisation to give a damn. But have you really set your expectations explicitly?
Human beings are lazy when it comes to communication, generally assuming, rather than checking, they’ve been understood, and as a result getting frustrated when things go wrong, mistaking misunderstandings for laziness, obstinacy or sheer stupidity. Individual incidents will often be addressed, but not what lies behind them.
So how to resolve this? It’s simply about discussing what is actually happening in practice. Until everyone steps back and understands each other’s perceptions, it’s impossible to move forward and see the reality. For example, while a manager thinks he or she has given clear and explicit instructions, their staff member may have an entirely different understanding of what needs to be done, which is a clear recipe for disaster. From the other perspective, an employee may be slow to complete their work as they believe they are diligently checking all the details, but for their organisation, speed of completion may be far more important than absolute accuracy. Neither employer nor employee are doing anything wrong, they are just coming from opposite perspectives.
Discussions to resolve these issues don’t usually happen by themselves. When it’s your business or you job, you do become emotionally attached and it’s sometimes hard to take a step back. This is where independent experts come into play. A short time with an external pair of eyes observing working practices and having candid conversations with employers and employees, can bring to the surface all the small frustrations and difficulties, as well as ways to resolve and prevent them spiralling into something more serious. Remember, regardless of whether you love people, or are the biggest misanthropist on the planet, it’s going to save you a heap of time and a lot of cash.
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