It is probably too early in the year for a top 10 list, but this one couldn't wait. If you've been reading me long enough you know I'm equally capable of blasting leaders and employees. Today's target - leaders! The zingers listed below are actual incidents that I either witnessed or was aware of through my network. No names are provides since I wish to protect the stupid. These are sure fire ways to crush employee morale and tank productivity. A few are funny (and serious) and a few are just plain serious. Enjoy!
10. Reduce transparency in decision making instead of increasing it. I'm a big believer in making your actions and decisions as a leader as transparent as possible. That reduces ambiguity and increases confidence in your leadership ability. When things get rough, as is the case now with this horrible recession, your goal is to increase transparency even more.
In several instances I am personally aware of in recent months mid level and senior leaders have taken the opposite approach. They see the rough waters in the economy, they see ugly effects inside their organization (e.g., layoffs), so they hunker down and become more quiet and secretive. It is a natural reaction to a perceived risk - but it is a nightmare in terms of managing employee perceptions. The rule is simple - the rougher the waters the more you must openly explain what you're doing and why. If you allow even a little bit of ambiguity concerning your decision making to grow - it will spread like a wildfire.9. Kill a decent change-related idea and then offer nothing in response. This is among the most insidious responses to change initiatives. I had a front row seat for this one recently. A person or group pushes forward with a change effort to address an area of organizational performance that everyone agrees must improve. Everyone agrees the situation is urgent and the status quo is not acceptable. However, a small group of powerful folks don't like the specific answer the change team offers and/or they don't like certain members of the team and/or they don't like not being on the team. So they throw their political chips on the table and derail the effort. As if that's not bad enough, they follow up by not stepping forward to attempt to positively craft a different solution to the challenge. Instead, they simply go back to throwing peanuts at people from the back row. Strong leadership teams will not allow change to be derailed in this manner, for if it is allowed too often cultures become toxic and no real change is possible.
8. Trimming the staff too much. Yes, times are tough. Yes, there are absolutely positively times you need reduce headcount. However, at least a few times recently I've seen organizations miss the opportunity to think more creatively about their options. More than once I've seen people with one job become people with two and people with two become people with three as the ax continues to fall. Yes, you save money in theory due to the reduction in headcount. But what about the reduction in morale and productivity for those who remain? It can tank in a hurry, along with some of your theoretical savings. My advice, reduce the payroll if needed, but first think creativity about shortened work weeks, pay and hiring freezes, buyouts, pay cuts, or any of the many other creative possibilities that might be more productive in the long-term compared to simple (and sizable) downsizing.
7. Say you will NOT do something, then do it. There is no quicker way to thrown away whatever trust you have built up with the troops than to say what you will not do (or, what you will do) and then do it (or fail to do it). Just ask Bush 1 - you'll recall his famous statement "read my lips..." In these difficult times I have heard many leaders swear they will not cut headcount, promise they will not strip away favored perks, promise they will share the pain right along with everyone else - you name it. But not all of them keep their word. Here's a good idea - don't commit to specifics if you don't have to, commit to ideals. Instead of promising you won't cut headcount (a specific promise), say your goal is to ensure the safety of as many jobs as possible (an ideal you will strive for), though you must openly admit that is not guaranteed. This level of candor will generally be respected, particularly if the leader in question is showing how they are sharing the pain (e.g., pay freeze, pay cut, no bonus).
6. Demeaning someone with lower status. I am ashamed we still have to talk about this one. I recently saw a series of incidents where a valued administrative assistant was harassed (not sexually) by a senior person in the organization. The reason? The upset professional did not feel comfortable picking on anyone with the power to fight back, so he targeted a largely defenseless person. He insulted her for no reason, he gave her tasks that were not appropriate, he threatened to tell unflattering things to her boss about her performance (she served as an admin for several people though only formally reported to one). It came to an end only after people outside of their work unit caught wind of the behavior. The "boss" in question did nothing. The negativity surrounding this gross and infantile abuse of power spread quickly and soured morale. Here is the good news - "no jerk" rules can work - use them!
5. Create and publish rules about cubicle decorations. I can't make this stuff up. It is astounding how much time and energy we spend on things that do not move us one inch closer to the goal line. Shocking really. This one came from a graduate student at a large technology firm. In this organization, the HR policy book had ballooned into a bloated monster with rules dictating every little facet of cube life. You cannot have plants over one foot in height in your cube. You cannot use excessive decorations during Christmas or other recognized holidays - and Christmas lights are expressly forbidden. Food is allowed in your cubicle, though any food with distracting odors should be avoided to ensure other employees are not disturbed. Really? Are you serious? Organizations like this one had better get over the politically correct micro-managing mentality fast or they will very quickly loose the mental capacity to innovate and remain a viable entity.
4. Fail to use a good crisis. This notion has been around for a long time. It's simple, all organizations are in need of change and improvement. When times are good, it is very difficult to mobilize people for change - they don't see the need. When times are tough, like right now, they may concede the need for change, but that does not mean they support it. I mentioned earlier how risk makes many of us become hunkered down and rigid. Nevertheless, when times are tough it is the greatest opportunity to make significant changes. I mean fundamental changes to strategy, structure and personnel. It has to be sold correctly - that's a world to itself, change management - but there is no doubt that the best time is when the sky is falling. What do we actually see? Only a minority of organizations get it, the majority cling to the status quo and miss the opportunity. Keep in mind that, ultimately, your success as a leader is determined by what you do when your back is against the wall, not what you do when the waters are smooth.
3. Punish dress code violators. Yes, it's true, some folks don't exactly know how to dress appropriately for their particular work environment. Fine. But do we need hordes of pages and policies and rules and HR folks walking around policing the place? Apparently a few firms I'm aware of do feel this way. Oops, that lady has open toe sandals! Even though jeans are allowed on casual Friday, that guy has a small tear in his knee - violation! Don't laugh, these are actual examples. Wow. Stop bloating those darn policy manuals. Here is the only question that matters: is morale and/or productivity actually harmed? If you genuinely feel the answer is yes, the appropriate leader should go speak to the offender. A honest chat beats bloated policy books any day.
2. Make hiring decisions based on anything bur merit. This one kills me - and it doesn't just affect hiring decisions. I focus on hiring simply because that is one heck of a big decision. On what basis should we hire someone? Their work experience? Congeniality in the interview process? Well, how about whether or not they went to the right school? Years ago I saw behavior like this in Tennessee (where they bleed Volunteer orange - and yes, I'm a Volunteer). Now I reside in Ohio and apparently the Ohio State / Michigan rivalry is taken quite seriously. So seriously, I'm told by someone in my network, that in one division of a particular organization no Michigan graduate will be hired as long as they can secure the services of an Ohio State graduate instead. Isn't it fascinating how in so many ways we never really left high school?
And the #1 most outrageous and unproductive leadership behavior I have seen so far in 2009 is...
1. Saying no to a good game of employee dodge ball! An acquaintance of mine is an executive at a large well known corporation. For an upcoming retreat she suggested a spirited game of dodge ball. Everyone cheered with glee, remembering fondly the ridiculous times that were had as children playing dodge ball at school. Her mistake was suggesting this publicly - HR soon found out. Dodge ball? That means some people will not feel comfortable. Some people will get hurt. Some people could sue us! One awesome opportunity for team building squashed. This is a simple and wonderful example of how political correctness and our love of (fear of) litigation has stymied honest spontaneous fun at work - and it's not fair! Next time, she confided in me, she would not tell people about it before hand. Instead when everyone shows up for the retreat, she'll just pull out all of the red rubber balls and let the battle commence before HR knows what's going on. That's the innovator's spirit!
Top 10 Most Outrageous And Unproductive Leadership Behaviors I Have Seen So Far This Year