Have you ever stopped to think about how you’re communicating with your employees?
Chances are, you’re thinking that, yes, I talk to my employees every day. What are you talking about – the job, the task at hand, how the family is? What about the communication that’s NOT talked about?
Everything you say, write, do, or DO NOT do, sends a message to your employees, so you should always be thinking, “What message do I want to send?” Every action, verbal or non verbal, directly or indirectly, sends some message.
Let’s look at some examples...
XYZ Company has had employee performance issues with Jack. Jack has received coaching and counseling on a regular basis for the past 5-6 months, but his performance has not improved. All of this has been documented in his employee file. Finally, the time comes to terminate Jack.
At the same time, other employees of XYZ Company have watched a number of employees get fired, and the rumor is that the Director has a ‘hit list’. The employees are always wondering, “Who’s next?”
If XYZ Company now fires Jack, what message do you think management will send to the other employees? Hopefully you can see that the wrong message will be sent – that the rumored ‘hit list’ might be true – even though there may be no direct communication to the rest of the employees.
Take a different situation: Jane is late to work on a regular basis. It is affecting her work performance as well as negatively affecting employee morale. Her supervisors have conversations with her to remind her that she cannot continue to be late, but nothing else happens and Jane continues to be late. What message is her supervisor sending to the other employees? The message is, “It’s ok to be late.” The supervisor is not holding Jane accountable.
So, what do you do? It’s really a matter of thinking before you speak, write, or take action (or inaction). Think about what you are doing or not doing, and the message it may send to other employees. Then ask yourself, “Is this the message I really want to send?”
If the answer is no, or that you’re not sure, explore some alternative actions before taking an action that could be misconceived.
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