It’s commonly understood that very often, people don’t leave their jobs — they leave their managers. While many may cite this as their reason for leaving, there is actually an entire period of time in which an employee may be feeling a growing sense of discord between themselves and their manager, which slowly morphs into a big enough impetus to push them toward a new job.
For example, disengagement — a lack of emotional commitment to the company and the work — may be one of the first warning signs. But caught early enough, a company may be able to salvage that employee’s interest and also assess the effectiveness of its management.
In order to help both managers and employees alike, 13 members of Forbes Human Resources Council open up about how managers can assess the satisfaction, engagement and participation levels of their teams, as well as how to act upon that insight when dissatisfaction is found.
1. Be Prepared To Act On Feedback
Managers need to receive regular feedback and be held accountable for improving their management skills over time. We use a manager effectiveness index to rate managers every year. HR helps with recommended training, coaching, etc. to help them improve. Managers are encouraged to share their feedback with their teams and ask for their specific recommendations for improvement. - Joyce Maroney, Kronos Incorporated
2. Create A Culture Of Honesty
Honest feedback, both ways, will help managers assess and address the engagement of their team members. It also creates opportunities to address any issues early. A dip in performance is often a clue that someone is not happy. Being able to talk honestly about it gives both sides the opportunity to make a change either improving the environment or improving performance. - Karla Reffold, BeecherMadden
3. Hold Candid Conversations
Have a candid conversation with employees to understand how they feel and what they need to perform at their best. When employees report they are dissatisfied with management, keep it on your radar and address it in a timely manner. Meet with the appropriate managers and approach the improvements from a business needs perspective so they don't feel like their employees are conspiring against them. - Tiffany Jensen, Pure Grips
4. Don't Rule With An Iron Fist
The days of "do what I say" and micromanagement are long gone. If you're not displaying any trust in your team, you can kiss them goodbye, or worse, possibly kiss yourself goodbye. Your team was hired for a reason, trust what they can do. If they aren't doing what they were hired to do, then you address that appropriately. If you have to be told this as a leader, it might be too late. - Evan Lassiter, Contino
5. Seek To Understand
Seek to understand before being understood. Really listen to feedback and why someone might feel the way they do rather than jumping into defense. You're on the same team. You asked for feedback; they gave it to you. You're both on offense. Don't go on defense when they're still on offense. Work with your team to implement realistic changes and involve them in doing so. - Lotus Buckner, NCH
6. Hold Regular Check-in Meetings
Managers should have regular check-in meetings (in-person or virtually) with their employees to discuss work plans, strengths, areas for improvement and any other concerns. Managers should have an open-door policy and create a culture where employees feel free to speak their minds without fear of negative consequences. After getting feedback, managers should act to address the issues raised. - Ochuko Dasimaka, Career Heights Consulting, Inc.
7. Use DiSC To Engage Teams
Managers at all levels can struggle to engage and motivate their teams, because every team member has different needs and wants. Styles assessments like DiSC help the whole team understand what enables each person to be happy and productive. People can learn to be more flexible with each other. An unhappy team member might need your guidance about how to put what they learned into practice. - Mikaela Kiner, Reverb
8. Check Your Ego At The Door
There are multiple effective tools, coaching styles, etc. that benchmark and analyze information. Managers may get defensive with negative feedback. Sometimes, the employee feedback is not based on fact. The CEO, HR team and COO must lead by example. When executives participate and take feedback seriously, then managers will trust. This is a genuine assessment for improvement — not a popularity contest. - Patricia Sharkey, Sharkey HR Advisors
9. Utilize Retention Interviews
Management should use retention interviews to gauge how employees feel about their managers, teams, processes and what is and isn’t working. They should also provide an anonymous method for soliciting feedback so employees can respond without fear of retribution. Once responses are compiled, management should look for common complaints among team members to identify problem areas to address first. - John Feldmann, Insperity
10. Be Transparent In Your Relationship
Open, transparent relationships with employees make it easy to ask them if they’re satisfied. Choose a non-threatening question, such as: "Is there something about your job you wish you were doing more of?" React immediately to employees’ feedback by adjusting your behavior in a deliberate way. If this type of interaction is new for you, admit it and tell the person they’ll be seeing more of it. - Michele Markey, SkillPath
11. Ask, Ask And Ask Again
Managers must ask for feedback. Not once or twice, but all of the time. At the end of every one-on-one meeting, ask "What feedback do you have for me?" and "If I could do one thing differently, what would you suggest?" Following up with "I've tried to address your input, how am I doing?" is a nice way to show the input was received and acted upon. - Sara Whitman, Hot Paper Lantern
12. Hold Pulse Surveys
Pulse surveys need to become a thing. There are questions I like to ask at the end of every shift. Having a great sense of how your employees are feeling (happy, fulfilled and providing purpose) when they leave work every day will help you work with the leadership teams in the organization to give real-time feedback and strategically plan effective training modules. - Christine Wzorek, Disruptive Advertising
13. Step Into Their Shoes
Chances are, as a manager, you too once had a manager — perhaps you still do. Remember how it felt to have an advocate guiding you on the path toward success, and if that wasn't the case, remember how disappointing that felt. Reflect on those experiences, replicate the good and correct the bad. A recurring touchpoint is the best practice to stay updated and offer space to voice concerns. - Curtis Grajeda, LevelUP Human Capital Solutions
