Friends, instead of being my usual Pollyanna, today I’m going to channel my inner Cassandra to give you a highlight of what’s coming up in the world of work. Students of Greek mythologies will remember Cassandra as a priestess who forewarned of disasters and who was fated never to be believed.
Many of you will have spent time in your organisation talking about, and engaging in events like:
- Harmony day
- Mental Health Day
- engagement surveys
- culture events
- diversity, equity and inclusion events
- values like we are kind, we care, we are one team or our people first.
We bring our people together and we say what matters. Question for senior executives and people leaders – do you know what your people are hearing from you in these moments? The answer: they hear that you actually care about them. And that you (management) is interested in what they think.
And as they listen and watch carefully, they start internalising your messages of support and care. And slowly, but surely, every single one of these events/talking points is building up to a nexus, an apex, if you like.
When people have accepted that you care about them, the next step is this.
They will hold you accountable.
So when this apex is reached, you will not be able to make policies and mandates and decisions without:
- Your people calling you out on the incongruity of your messages. You will start seeing this in the candid comments in your Town Halls or All Hands.
- Your people openly challenging some of your decisions. There will be direct challenges to your mandates – in the form of passionate and candid employee feedback in surveys.
- Outright pushback – when employees not only call you out on your questionable decisions, but they start acting against it. You know what I’m talking about. Examples: Presenteeism. Not following return to building mandates. More complaints to HR. Voting with their feet.
So friends, this little green witch foretells a coming of time where there will be active pushback from your people.
Employee power is a thing.
If today, you are seeing harsh and critical messages in your company or team wide events, take note. There is worse to follow.
#management #returntobuilding #waysof working
