By Cord Himelstein | November 25, 2015
The holiday season is a time for togetherness and peace, but in the 9-to-5 workplace it is also crunch time, when businesses close out for the year and try to finish the fourth quarter with a bang. It’s a very different kind of togetherness that isn’t always peaceful. It is also a time when expectations of employees can run high.
In a worst-case scenario, the employee is tasked with doing something completely outside of his or her expertise.
While defying market expectations is generally seen as positive behavior for companies, defying employee expectations is anathema to engagement.
“When we talk about employee engagement, aren’t we talking about increasing the amount of discretionary effort? Don’t we want employees to go above and beyond?” I humbly submit that there is a world of difference between employees showing discretionary effort on their own as opposed to being forced or roped into it.
Discretionary effort is meaningless if the employee is asked to do something outside of their skill set in the first place.
We have to always take into account the employee’s entire experience at work, and it can seem callous to put the pedal to the medal during a time when things are supposedly winding down.
To stay ahead of this, predict questions and have the answers ready – You know what questions generally accompany a request for a wild goose chase, so stay ahead of your employees’ own expectations by thoroughly examining assignments and getting more information before you assign them.
Employees won’t feel as adrift if they have the confidence of knowing you’re on the case with them.
If the work is asking for something outside an employee’s normal job duties, be sure to have a conversation that recognizes that fact, and offer assistance: “I know this is asking a lot, and you are completely the wrong person to bring this to, and I’m sorry about that. But I’m here to help, so let me know if you need anything from me.” Recognize, recognize, recognize – When your employees do come through in the pinch, let them know how much it means not just to the company, but to you personally as well.
Respect vs. Fear
What it comes down to is making sure your employees are undertaking difficult or high-pressure work out of respect as opposed to doing it out of fear – ruling with an iron fist sends completely the wrong message, and during the holiday season, its effect on morale can be catastrophic.
~ for complete article: http://www.eremedia.com/tlnt/how-holiday-expectations-can-drastically-affect-employee-engagement/
