Organizational culture is often a matter of the small decisions we make not just the large ones

Too often, we overlook the fact that every decision we make that affects others in an organization says something about our culture. Here are two recent examples.

My wife and I were recently in a local TJ Maxx in Manchnessy Park, where my wife loves to hunt for bargains. We found a few but then stood in the checkout line for an interminable amount of time, waiting to pay. Ten people were in the line when I got to the sole cashier. The crazy thing was that the store manager was up in the front, fiddling with cleaning up some items and ignoring the growing line. 

What did this say about the store culture? It clearly said that regardless of the company's value statement, the customer did not come first at this store. The fact that the manager could ignore the customers sent a strong message to those of us who were in the line and the rest of the staff that there was no need to be customer-centric. After all, the leader of this store certainly was not. It was all I could do not to say something as I watched the manager ignore his customers.

My wife works for one of the upscale care facilities here in Rockford, IL. I often get a glimpse at their culture through the stories she brings home. The dining facility has been practicing making food available to the staff, who help the residents eat at no charge or a nominal charge. Every day, the leftovers are thrown away (yes, you heard that right), so if there is food left, the restaurant staff will gift it to the staff who have been helping. 

No longer. Now, it is forbidden to give or receive free food, and the price of food has gone up for staff. And they continue to throw the leftovers away. 

The residents who eat there are aware of the new rules and wonder why the administration would do this when the uneaten food is discarded. The staff are all wondering the same thing. But here is the thing. This decision sends a clear message to the staff that they are not valued by the management. The management obviously wants additional income - by charging the staff more - and the net result is that staff no longer buy the food and cannot receive leftovers at no charge. One staff member was reprimanded for accepting food in front of the diners (residents) and staff who were there. And, of course, the leftovers are thrown away daily!

Every organization should ask this question when making decisions that impact their constituency: "How does this decision or my action reflect the culture we want to build here?" Or, "What message are we sending when we make this decision?"

When the store manager ignores the growing line of customers who want to purchase his products, he sends a message about the store's culture. I don't intend to go back! It was such a blatant statement that I was not valued there that I took note and said I would take my business elsewhere. 

When my wife's employer forbade staff from giving food destined for the trash to employees and then hiked the official price they were to pay, what did that communicate to staff and residents? Both groups walked away with a message about the culture that I don't think the management intended to send, but they sent it because they did not think through the implications of their decision. Those implications were lost on the decision-makers rather than on their constituents. 

Every day, leaders in organizations make decisions that impact their constituents. Unfortunately, they often don't consider those decisions in terms of culture and the message they are sending. Our well-written statements are frequently not reflected in our decisions, and our constituents read our actions far more than they read our finely-tuned value statements. In fact, our written statements about culture and values are meaningless when our actions contradict what those statements actually say.

Ten recognizable elements of healthy organizational culture

Organizational culture is not abstract. If it is healthy, it always includes these ten elements. These elements are easily recognizable when present and equally when absent. As you think about the culture in your organization, which of these do you recognize and which are weak or missing?

High clarity around everything that matters. Clarity is the foundation for all healthy cultures. Clarity around who we are, what we are about, where we are going, how we are going to get there, and what our culture must be to reach our preferred future. Clarifying your preferred future is critical because it is the goal that all strategic efforts of the organization must point towards.

Alignment of all staff around that clarity. Without clarity, you cannot have alignment. Once clarity is determined, staffing, programs, plans, and efforts can be aligned to that clarity. Lack of staff alignment is often a symptom of a lack of clarity because, in the absence of clarity, people make up their own clarity, resulting in competing visions rather than a single vision.

Healthy culture throughout the organization. If there are areas of dishealth in the organization, a Culture Audit can uncover them and allow them to be addressed. This is critical to developing a healthier culture as it is the unspoken “elephants” in any organization that sabotages their efforts to become healthier. You cannot have pockets of dishealth that are unaddressed and be a healthy organization.

Contrarian thinking. This is about helping staff think “outside the box” and understand that conventional wisdom is always conventional but not always wisdom. Organizations that desire to leverage themselves for maximum impact encourage innovative thinking and solutions that challenge the way things have been done before. This counterbalances the pitfall of “If you always do what you always did, you always get what you always got” syndrome. This starts with a culture where any issue can be put on the table except for a personal attack or a hidden agenda.  Learning a “nothing to prove, nothing to lose, and nothing to hide” attitude where egos are set aside for the common good of the organization changes everything.

A passion for people. Healthy organizations care about their people. They create environments where people thrive and not simply survive. They invite their staff in as active participants, eliminate silos, politics, and turf wars, and ensure that people are in a lane consistent with their wiring and gifts and have the tools they need to accomplish their work.

Intentionality and high accountability. Both intentionality and accountability are only possible with high clarity. With clarity and a description of the preferred future, there can be intentionality in moving in the direction of that preferred future. This also allows for accountability because there is clarity around the role that each plays. Healthy organizations are deeply intentional in their work and create cultures of high accountability.

Metrics that matter. What is measured is what gets paid attention to. It is critical to measure everything that is important to an organization and to find the right metrics to do so. Both soft and hard metrics are important when it comes to culture, and both should be tracked. If it is important, it should have metrics attached to it.

Scalable systems. Healthy organizations build healthy systems so that they do not need to reinvent the way they do what they do and can build on and strengthen those healthy systems. While people often get blamed when things go wrong, it is often true that it was not a people problem but a system problem that has not been well through. Proper systems allow an organization to grow and scale, while faulty systems hold them back.

Return on mission and vision. This is what all organizations should be about. We exist to create value for our customers and those who work in the organization. Healthy organizations are able to identify their return on mission as well as their return on investment. This can be a huge motivator for those who work with you.

Sustainability over the long term. The goal is to have an organization that is learning, growing, getting better, and achieving its goals over the long term. This is all possible if the previous nine elements are in place.

 Leadership coaching, governance/board training, staff/culture audits, change management, conflict management, establishing clarity, creating healthy cultures, leadership, and organizational consulting. tjaddington@gmail.com

The Culture Series: Which of these descriptors describes your organization?

 

Does culture matter in an organization? Contrast the elements of good culture against dysfunctional culture below and ask yourself, which kind of culture do I want to be a part of? Then ask yourself how many elements of healthy culture are true of your organization.

Healthy Culture                                                   Dysfunctional Culture

I am appreciated                                           I feel used

I feel listened to                                            My views are dismissed or marginalized

I have a voice                                                I have no voice

I am empowered                                           I am micromanaged

I can engage in candid dialogue                   Candid dialogue has strict limits

Relationships are collegial                           Relationships are often unhealthy  

My boss knows how to apologize                My boss is always right

Company information is transparent           Company information is tightly controlled

My supervisor dialogues with me               My supervisor tells me

My supervisor shows he/she cares              My supervisor has little knowledge of me

I have input into important decisions          I have no voice in important decisions

My supervisor is patient and gracious        My supervisor is unkind and harsh

The company compensates fairly               The company is stingy in compensation

There is virtually no gossip                        The organization is full of gossip

Healthy teams are the norm                       There are a lot of dysfunctions on teams

There is clarity around our mission           There is ambiguity around our mission

We practice our defined values                 Our defined values are often violated

We have alignment on important things  There is little alignment

Conflict is rare and resolved                      Conflict is the norm and unresolved

Ethics and honesty are high                       Ethics and honesty are slippery

What is growing in your organization's culture?

 

Organizational culture and what it looks like is a critical component of any for-profit or not-for-profit enterprise. And you can be sure that your culture is growing either health or dishealth that will impact your organization. In fact, Culture is never neutral. It either contributes to a healthy organization or creates dysfunction and frustration. With culture, there is no neutral ground. 

Everyone who has worked anywhere has stories about culture. Many of them are unhealthy. The question is, why does dysfunctional culture so often get ignored? Why do leaders not deal with unhealthy aspects of their organization's culture?

Because culture sits in the background as an invisible, silent backdrop, we can simply get used to what it is without asking why or noticing its lack of health. We say about difficult people, "They are just like that," rather than asking why we tolerate their behavior. We get used to and content with what is rather than asking what could be. 

We may even have a level of cynicism about people or situations that frustrate us but assume nothing will ever change. We learn to accept substandard behaviors or lack of excellence and follow through. We are not surprised or bothered by unproductive meetings or unkept promises. We are used to what is. 

This is why there are often deep pockets of dysfunction in organizations, sometimes around one unhealthy individual that doesn't get addressed, yet it infects the whole. These pockets of dysfunction are like a petri dish of bacteria that is growing ugly stuff, but we are so used to it that we hardly notice. 

Sometimes, an organization's dysfunctional culture is so obvious that all see it. In other cases, that dysfunction is like a quiet illness permeating the company. Those pockets of dysfunctional culture create dysfunctional organizations which impact every individual, every team, and everything they do. 

Try a small experiment. Ask your coworkers or staff these three questions:

• If you could change three things about your workplace, what would they be?
• If you were in charge, what would you do differently?
• How would you rate the health of our culture on a scale of one to ten, with one being the lowest and ten being the highest? Why did you pick that number? What would make your score higher?

These questions and their answers are all about the culture and practices of your workplace. Some would object that the questions ignore many good things. That is probably true, but it is not the good things that create issues in an organization. Rather, it is the problematic things! If you focus on dealing with dysfunction and dishealth, along with a set of agreed-upon behaviors and attitudes, the culture of your organization will improve significantly over time. The result will be a more engaged workplace. 

Stupid Corporate Policies and Toxic Culture

 

I recently spoke with an individual who worked for a major Home Improvement store in Rockford, IL. He didn't look too happy so I asked him how his day had gone. Terrible he said. "I'm looking for a new job."

Here is what happened. He carries a walkie-talkie on his belt. Using the restroom, the walkie fell off and into the toilet making it inoperative. He was told that $200.00 would be taken out of his paycheck to pay for another. His supervisor told him that he was unable to do anything - it was policy. The store manager said, I don't like to do this but it is policy. 

He immediately went online to look for another job. When I spoke with him that night, he said he had an interview for the following day.

Think about this. The company valued the walkie-talkie more than they valued their employee who had significant experience in the lumber department. Just that day he had helped a customer design a large deck and sold the requisite materials.

The company just lost a valued employee. Consider the cost of finding and training a new individual compared to the cost of a walkie-talkie. 

Other employees and friends will develop an opinion about this company based on how it treats its people. It won't be a positive opinion.

Clearly, the store manager and the individual who supervised this employee are unempowered and were unable to intervene on his behalf. After all, it's corporate policy.

Why would anyone work for a company that values a $200 piece of equipment (damaged accidentally) over a good employee? Not me. I will not give the company my future business - knowing the story.

Organizational culture matters. So do your priorities. And, culture and policies always reflect those priorities. This was a classic case of stupid corporate policies and a toxic culture.

How to kill the passion of your staff

 Why do some ministry staff have a high and contagious level of passion for what they do, and others have low and noncontagious levels of passion?

Indeed, some of it concerns how individuals are wired personally. But, much of it has to do with the ministry environment in which they work - for environments and culture will either fuel or kill passion in those who work in them.

Passion killers are those things that will diminish rather than fuel ministry passion.

There is the passion killer of ambiguous missional purpose. Organizations that do not have a compelling reason for existence that everyone understands and shares will diminish rather than fuel passion for ministry. General ministry purpose yields general ministry efforts with general ministry results. A lack of focus and clear definition of what we are all about will generate little passion. No wonder such a high percentage of churches exist without much excitement or energy around them.

There is the passion killer of control and micromanagement. Good people want to be developed, empowered, and released rather than controlled or micromanaged. Control diminishes passion by devaluing people and saying, "I can't trust you to do your job by yourself." It disempowers, discourages, and diminishes enthusiasm for one's work over time. Leaders who control or micromanage, by definition, kill passion.

There is the passion killer of poor leadership. Leaders set the pace for the missional focus, health, level of energy and commitment, and the synergistic working of a team. Passion begins to diminish when leaders don't provide that kind of directional leadership and cohesion. Poor leadership yields poor followership, and teams rarely rise above their leader's passion, commitment, and example. For passion to remain high, it must start with the team leader.

There is the passion killer of living with the status quo rather than being willing to take a risk for ministry leverage. Organizations that will not take a risk diminish the passion of those who long to do something different to get greater ministry results. When the answer is "no," we don't do that here; passion leads to discouragement! Trying new things always fuels passion, while living safely does not. Safety over innovation kills passion!

There is the passion killer of unresolved conflict and lack of team cohesion. Teams, congregations, and organizations often live with high levels of negative stuff that is not resolved. Everyone knows it is present, but no one dares to face and fix it. Over time, that diminishes the passion of good people whose desire to see something happen for Christ is discouraged by the dis health they are surrounded by.

Then there is the passion killer of leaders who are coasting toward the end of their ministry life, who don't really know where to go anymore but are determined to hang on till the end, leaving staff without direction or real purpose. This is a real problem among pastors who have lost their ability to lead but don't know what to do next and simply hang on. They may be great people, but they are no longer leading, and their lack of leadership diminishes passion among those they should be leading.

There is also the passion killer of leaders who are more about building their own success and legacy than working as a team. These leaders may have narcissistic tendencies, and it is all about them. Their narcissism diminishes passion in others quickly as team members realize they are simply being used rather than part of a cohesive, unified ministry team. It is about the leader and not about the mission. Some very large organizations and churches suffer from this passion killer.

There is the passion killer of politics and turf wars. Politics kills passion because the energy of turf wars takes away from team spirit and common direction and pits groups against one another. It also fuels cynicism as good people wonder why their leaders put up with such silliness. 

Organizational culture and its leadership will either fuel or diminish passion. I would love to hear from readers about passion killers they have observed in their ministries.

The correlation between Emotional Intelligence and organizational culture

 It is a given that the Emotional Intelligence of an organization is the sum of the EQ of its members. In other words, the organization's EQ reflects the general emotional health of its people. When I ask people about the culture of their workplace, they can quickly identify the positive and the negative aspects of their organization. What they often don't realize is that they are describing the EQ of those who work there. 

In effect, the EQ of the organization (which reflects the EQ of the individuals within the organization) creates the organizational culture. There is a direct correlation between EQ and culture. So, if one is going to change the organizational culture, it becomes necessary to grow the EQ of its members. 

For instance, if one has a culture that is rife with gossip, backstabbing, unhealthy competition, conflict, and people taking credit when they should not or blaming others when they are to blame, one has a dysfunctional culture that reflects poor Emotional Intelligence among its members. The core issue is not the culture but the people who make up that culture and their level of emotional health.

The lower the EQ of the staff, the more dysfunctional the organization is. The higher the EQ of staff, the healthier the organizational culture. And the culture almost always reflects an organization's leadership as people take their cues from leaders.

Because we don't often think of organizational culture as related to the EQ of its members, we become frustrated with our inability to deal with issues in our organizational culture. However, by teaching and coaching in EQ, we can directly impact the culture of the organization in healthy ways. 

One issue that is often ignored is this: The EQ of leaders has a disproportionate impact on the organization as they are the ones who set the standard for behavior. They set the tone for how others are treated, how they serve, and how they lead from a place of humility. 

Some behaviors need to be illegal in an organization because they are antithetical to healthy relationships and interactions. As someone has said, Culture is what we create or allow. In creating a healthy culture, we model good EQ. In disallowing unhealthy behavior, we set a standard for what personal and relational health looks like.

It is instructive to look at your own organization and ask what the corporate EQ quotient is. Are you intentionally creating a healthy culture, or are you allowing things that hurt your culture?

All cultures have positive and negative aspects to them. Take a moment and think about the problematic areas of the culture of your team or organization, and armed with that knowledge, do some teaching and coaching in the requisite areas of EQ that are involved in the problematic areas.

For examples of the signs of good and poor EQ, click here.

Ten marks of healthy organizational cultures

What makes for a healthy ministry organization? Having worked in a few and led a few I would suggest that there are some clear markers that we should look for when exploring a ministry job – and which we should work toward if we are in leadership of a ministry organization. Each of these markers – their presence or their absence – will make a difference in the health of the ministry and the satisfaction of those who work there. Of course, there are no perfect ministries. There is, however, a wide variation in the health of ministries. Most overrate their health and underrate their dysfunction.

Marker one: we have great ministry clarity. Clarity on why we exist, what our non-negotiables are (guiding principles), what we need to focus on all the time (central ministry focus) and the culture we want to create are all significantly important. Specific answers to these questions are far better than general answers because the clearer we are, the better we know how to best live within the parameters of the ministry. In answering these questions we actually define the culture and ethos of our organization. Ministry organizations that have significant dysfunction usually have not taken the time to proactively determine their culture and ethos by clarifying these questions and then intentionally living them out.

Marker two: we drive a missional agenda all the time. The missional agenda of our organization is the process of living out our mission, guiding principles, central ministry focus and culture through specific ministry plans and initiatives. It is not just about doing ministry but it is doing ministry that is in alignment with our clarity so that what we do on a day to day basis reflects the convictions and aspirations of our ministry. Thus our ministry plans and strategies are designed to help us achieve the clarity we have defined. Our actions (ministry plan) are consistent with our intentions (our clarity).

Marker three: individuals, teams and leaders are in alignment with our clarity. Alignment does not mean we all do the same things or use the same strategies to achieve our desired ends. It does mean that we are committed to achieving the same ends with the same non-negotiables. Many ministries are really only a gathering of nice people who like the days of the judges in the Old Testament, “do what is right in their own eyes.” Alignment around core principles (marker one) allows us to align all the arrows of the organization in the same direction even though we fulfill different responsibilities or pursue different strategies. Non aligned ministries often live with significant conflict because there is not clarity on what set of tracks to drive down. In an aligned ministry there is significant commitment to the same convictions coupled with flexibility on strategies to fulfill those convictions.

Marker four: we have an open and collegial atmosphere. Strongly hierarchical organizations will not attract the best people today. The best staff members want a place at the table and their voice to be heard. Indeed, the best organizations understand that a plethora of voices speaking into the strategy is far better than any one or two of us. Thus they seek to bring multiple voices to the table, encourage a huge degree of interaction and dialogue to find the best ways to deliver on the missional clarity we have determined. This does not mean that leadership is by committee. It does mean that we are open to the views of others and have a culture of collegial cooperation, interaction and collaboration.

Marker five: we encourage robust dialogue. Robust dialogue is the ability to disagree and state one's convictions as long as there is not a hidden agenda or personal attacks. Many would call this healthy conflict. It is in the conflict of ideas that better ideas emerge than either party had before the robust dialogue. Robust dialogue is not a smokescreen for hidden agendas, personal attacks or cynical attitudes. Healthy organizations call those behaviors for what they are – unhealthy. It is the ability to go at issues that need solving with vigor and conviction with an attitude of humility and care for others.

Marker six: we do our best but don’t pretend to be the best. Great ministries have high standards for clarity, ministry results and having the greatest influence for God’s kingdom as possible. At the same time, great ministries don’t fool themselves that they are the best or have a corner on the ministry world. They are humble about their place among God’s many workers, humble about their need to continue to learn, humble enough to collaborate with other ministries (many are not) and humble about what they don’t do well. Arrogant organizations go it alone while humble organizations go it with others.

Marker seven: we are candid about our success and failures. This follows from a humble attitude. How many times do you hear a ministry talk about its failures or weaknesses? How many ministries overstate their success? Healthy organizations are candid about where they are seeing success and where they are struggling. It is that very candidness that allows them to learn from others or collaborate with others from whom they can learn. Ministries are like people, they have strengths and weaknesses. Humble ministries collaborate with others where they are weak and don’t pretend that everything they do is a success.

Marker eight: we encourage innovation. Trying new things, rethinking old strategies, allowing the freedom to fail (some new things will fail) are signs of health. Ministry tiredness has set in when we are afraid to take a risk, afraid to fail, and settle into what is familiar rather than being willing to step into the unfamiliar. There is something deeply refreshing when people try new strategies and break old rules. Just as Jesus broke many of the traditions of the Pharisees, healthy ministries love the break the old rules as to “how it is done.” They encourage innovation, new ideas and give people freedom to try and even fail. They understand that if you always do what you always did you always get what you always got and they don’t settle for that.

Marker nine: we love to get people into their sweet spot where they are using their gifts and are in their right lane. Healthy ministries don’t fill ministry slots with available people. Rather they find the best people and then design ministry lanes that are consistent with the gifting and wiring of those great staff members. When staff are in the right lane, when they are playing to their strengths rather than their weaknesses, morale and productivity are high.

Marker ten: we empower people and hold them accountable. Empowerment means that we are clear about the results we seek and the convictions of the ministry and then set people free to achieve the missional agenda in line with their creative gifting. The other side of empowerment is accountability for results and living within the convictions of the ministry. Great staff love empowerment and are committed to accountability.

It takes the commitment of everyone to build a healthy ministry. It is not simply the job of leaders – they can help set the ethos but making it happen is the responsibility of every staff member all the time. That commitment pays off with a great place to work, colleagues we trust and appreciate and ministry results that give us energy.

The key to accountability is an open organizational culture

Every leader says they desire a culture of accountability. The proof of their commitment is whether or not they create an open organizational culture. Closed cultures where leaders control information, what can be discussed or are defensive when challenged destroy accountability. Open cultures by definition encourage accountability. 

There is a direct correlation between leaders who create closed cultures and their own ability to violate staff, make questionable decisions, become impervious to input, shut down honest discussion and become domineering in their leadership style. Dysfunctional leaders intuitively or by design can create closed cultures because open cultures allow others to challenge their views or practices. 

Signs of a closed culture:

• There are issues that you know you cannot raise because your leader will become defensive. What this does is shield the leader from criticism or challenge because they keep the discussion from taking place.
• Robust dialogue is discouraged.
• Leadership cannot be challenged.
• Leaders withhold information or share it selectively so that staff never have the full picture of what is going on. The information hub is the leader.
• Often, in a closed culture, those who raise questions or challenge leadership are labeled as dissidents or as uncooperative.
• Financial information is often kept secretive.
• Staff are not empowered to act but need the permission of leadership. 
• There is a high degree of pressure on staff to conform to the party line.

You can see how cultures with the above characteristics shield leaders from accountability. Whenever you limit discussion and dialogue you limit accountability. Closed cultures are unhealthy cultures and usually reflect an unhealthy leader. In contrast to this, consider the signs of an open culture:

• Information is available to all unless by nature it is confidential.
• Finances are transparent.
• Robust dialogue is encouraged: Any issue can be put on the table with the exception of a hidden agenda or a personal attack.
• Leaders are not threatened by questions, ideas, dialogue or differing opinions.
• Key decisions are vetted with stakeholders.
• All staff are treated with dignity and respect. No one gets a pass on treatment of staff that is unprofessional, unkind or disrespectful.
• Staff are encouraged to "think outside the box" in order to better fulfill the mission of the organization.
• Standards of behavior are the same for leaders and staff. 

Open cultures create accountability because questions can be asked, dialogue engaged in and people cannot hide behind a veil of secrecy, control or pressure to keep the party line. The more open the culture the more accountability there is for everyone, not just leaders. Healthy cultures encourage healthy accountability. 

Healthy and accountable cultures are created intentionally. They don't happen by accident.

Three ways that organizational conflict can be a help rather than a hinderance

Typically, we think of conflict as a negative event when it occurs. The truth, however, is that conflict is often a blessing in disguise and being aware of its potential up side can help us leverage it in productive ways. Consider these up sides of conflict.

One: Conflict is often an early warning system that the organizational system needs revamping
Organizations don't just grow, they change. Their environments change, their needs change and the organizational structure that worked at one time no longer works as it did. The reason is simple: What got you to here got you to here. It will not get you to there.

When the old way of doing things has run its course and is no longer working, conflict often occurs. There may be disagreements on strategy, tension between leaders or teams, frustration with work flow and substandard results. All of these, and other manifestations of conflict are warning you that it is time to relook at how you are doing things and what you are doing. In this case, conflict is warning you that things need to change! If you don't ignore the warning sign it can help you move forward. If you ignore it, the conflict will become worse.

Two, conflict may be telling you that greater clarity is needed
When there is not organizational clarity, leaders, teams or individuals step in and provide their own clarity. Inevitably this will result in conflict as competing ideas of who we are and what we are about collide with one another. In this case, the conflict is telling you that you need to clarify your clarity so that alignment is possible and everyone is working toward the same goals.

Ironically, the process of refining your clarity may bring greater conflict as ideas and people vie for their definition. This is good as it is in the clash of ideas that the best ideas are born. But until you come to agreement on who you are and what you are about you will never get alignment and without alignment you will never reach your organizational potential. In this case the conflict is telling you that you don't have adequate alignment and agreement.

Three: Conflict may be telling you that there are individuals who are not operating from a place of healthy EQ (Emotional Intelligence)
Healthy EQ is essential for healthy organizations. People who have unhealthy EQ can be defensive, closed to feedback, create conflict with those around them and are often responsible for relational issues with those around them. When there is a pattern of relational conflict around an individual you are probably dealing with an EQ issues that needs to be resolved.

It is easy to overlook these situations out of fear of conflict. Yet their behaviors are creating conflict already and disempowering those who are impacted by their relational issues. Not to deal with this is to sentence those in proximity to the effects of their behavior. 

When conflict pops up in your organization don't assume it is a bad thing. It is probably telling you something and understanding what it is saying can be valuable to your ongoing success. 

Five factors that can create greater employee satisfaction

Every organization says that people are their greatest asset but not all invest the effort to ensure that their work culture and practices are designed to provide employee satisfaction. In some cases, this is not even a priority which indicates that a stated value is also a neglected value. When this is the case employees become cynical and discouraged rather than loyal and engaged. In fact, the level of employee engagement is directly tied to the investment that is made to ensure that the workplace is healthy.

How do I know this? I have often interviewed numerous individuals on staff in the course of a "cultural audit" of an organization. Usually I am talking to good people who often have significant frustration in their work. What amazes me is that senior management and boards seem to have no idea of the frustrations that are articulated. This includes fortune 500 companies, non-profits, churches and other businesses. There are also plenty of examples of healthy workplaces where the staff are engaged and satisfied. What makes the difference?

While there are many factors that separate loyal and engaged employees from those who are unengaged and rather cynical, let me suggest five factors that can lead to greater employee satisfaction or in their absence, dissatisfaction.

First, there are clear expectations for all staff as to what spells success in their work. Fuzzy expectations lead to a situation where a staff member thinks they are fulfilling their job but the supervisor does not which creates frustration for the staff member and the supervisor. When review time comes around there is not an objective standard by which to evaluate the staff member's work leaving the evaluation to the subjective opinion of the supervisor.

A good question to ask each of your staff members and their supervisors is this: "Are their clear parameters for this job and objective ways to define success?" If the staff member feels that the answer is no, or fuzzy, those parameters and definitions of success need to be revisited. 

Second, each staff member has a supervisor who takes an interest in them, their work, and is committed to helping them succeed. This makes perfect sense if an organization's greatest asset is their people. In fact, if this is not the case, this stated value is not a real value. 

What this means practically is that supervisors need to be trained in how to supervise well so that staff are served well. Too often, supervisors are given responsibility to oversee staff with little or no training as to what the parameters of their job are and how success will be defined for their supervisory role. This lack of training has a huge impact on their staff who count on their supervisors to help them succeed.

A good question to ask in every organization is this: "Can supervisors articulate the parameters of their supervisory role and do they know what factors define success? Have they been trained in their supervisory role?"

Third, staff have what they need to do their job well and a supervisor who will resolve problems they cannot resolve. Few things are more discouraging to staff than to have responsibility for a task without the requisite tools to complete that task with excellence.

In one organization I worked with this frustration was articulated by the individual who was responsible for the use of facilities and reserving meeting rooms or venues for groups that needed them. What she lacked was a usable software program that would have made her job a breeze. Instead she was saddled with an antiquated program that took significantly more time.

She expressed her need to her supervisor numerous times but he resisted purchasing new software in the name of budgetary restraints (it was not really an issue). The staff member finally resigned in frustration which meant that the organization now had to find another individual to fill the responsibility and lost the valuable experience of the individual that left. It is a classic case of staff not having the tools necessary to do the job. And in the end, the organization lost.

A good question to ask every staff member is this: "Do you have the necessary tools to accomplish your job with excellence." You might be surprised by the response. 

Fourth, there is a culture of teamwork and cooperation within the staff that brings synergy and the best thinking and execution for the work at hand. The healthiest organizations have staff who work together to accomplish the mission of the enterprise. There are also work cultures where everyone does their own thing rather than working cooperatively with one another. The one who sets the cultural norm is always the leader or supervisor. 

Teamwork and cooperation does not just happen by accident. It is a culture that is intentionally created by leadership of a team, division or organization. And it is the responsibility of leadership to ensure that it is present and that staff understand the imperative of moving toward a goal together rather than separately. This may take training and dialogue but it should be an expectation of all staff. In healthy organizations you often hear the comment, "I love working with my team because we are committed to helping one another accomplish our goals." Conversely, job satisfaction of staff significantly declines when this is not the case.

A good question to ask staff is this: "Do you perceive that we work together as a team and that there is a cooperative spirit among us?" That might well spur dialogue toward a greater level of teamwork.

Fifth, staff are fairly compensated for their work. Many would wonder why this comes last rather than first. The truth is that for most employees their compensation is not the major factor in their job satisfaction as long as it is fair and equitable. Most people want to work in a healthy organization with people they appreciate over receiving a higher salary in an unhealthy organization where they don't want to come to work.

When doing a cultural audit of an organization I often ask employees if they feel that their compensation is fair and equitable. In healthy organizations the answer is generally yes and in unhealthy organizations the answer is often no - especially in church and non-profit environments.

A word to ministries and non-profits. It matters how we compensate our staff. Our compensation reflects the value we place on them. It is sad to see non-profit employees struggle with their income because in the name of meeting the needs of others we are unwilling to meet the needs of our own staff.

When compensation is fair and equitable, staff feel valued. When not, they often feel used. Non-profits love to keep their expenses low so that they can say that a high percentage of what they raise goes into services to others. But, when they are not fair to the staff who make the services happen it is not a value but rather a focus on their mission at the expense of their greatest assets. 

A good practice is to compare your salary structure to other similar non-profits in your area to determine whether your pay structure needs renovation.

Employee satisfaction is everything to any enterprise. They are the greatest asset because without them the mission will never be accomplished. When staff are happy they are engaged, loyal and willing to do whatever it takes to accomplish the mission. Pay attention to these five areas and you will increase the satisfaction of your staff.