You Never Listen To Me

Nurses in Duluth, Minnesota, may be striking soon.  Earlier this week they voted by a nearly 9 to 1 margin to reject their new labor contract.  Like so many others in this “do more with less” economy, tight staffing levels have taken a toll, and the Minnesota Nurses Association cites “patient safety” as the primary concern prompting the strike.

Employees decide to strike for many reasons.  But at the end of the day, most just want to be heard.  In that regard, they’re not alone.  At Questar we track tens of thousands of employees’ opinions about their workplace.  This research shows that many employees believe no one is listening.

• Only about half (54%) of all employees indicate that their company’s senior management values employees’ ideas and opinions.
• Those on the front lines are least likely to feel heard:  While 77% of management employees agreed with the statement above, just 43% of hourly employees did.
• Among employees belonging to a union, even fewer feel they are heard.  Only about one third of all union employees say their company’s senior management values employees’ ideas and opinions.

Obviously it’s something that many employers struggle with.  Entry level employees – eager to change the world – are often met with less than enthusiasm at their ideas for improvement.  Front line supervisors literally tell employees “Look, it’s not our job to make improvements to the process.  The guys upstairs – they decide what the process is going to be.  We just do what we’re told.”

But some companies are bucking the tide.  Front line employees at Best Buy generate an abundance of business impacting ideas.  Online tools provide forums so that every employee in the company can help solve important business issues and generate innovative solutions to problems.  These ideas from entry-level employees have been credited with increasing sales, decreasing expenses, and reducing shrink in the field.  Best Buy employees are also empowered to help customers – not just in the stores, but around the world.  Have you ever heard of @twelpforce?  Best Buy’s Twitter based help desk is literally powered by thousands of “Blue Shirts” on the floor in Best Buy stores.

Google also goes out of it’s way to gather employee input.  Employees are solicited to help solve business problems through open group sessions called “Fixits.”  Their TGIF forums provide direct access to company executives for thousands of employees.  There’s a great description of these programs in the Business Week article “Involve Your Employees,” Says Google, CEB

We’d love to hear from you.  What innovative strategies do you use to facilitate input, empower and engage employees in solving problems?

Anna Erickson, Ph.D. | Director, Consulting Services

1 Comment so far
Leave a comment