Giving Thanks 2008 Style
With the economy crashing down around us it may be hard to find a business bright spot to be thankful for. But I found inspiration in some recent news from Iraq.
The headline read “Premier of Iraq is Quietly Firing Fraud Monitors” and the article described how Prime Minister Nuri Kamal Al-Maliki was removing from office officials who were tasked with the job of fighting corruption and improving accountability and transparency in the government bureaucracy. Before you jump to any conclusions, let me say that I’m not thankful these officials are being “retired.”
I am, however, thankful that there are people within organizations who have the courage to standup for what is right, even when it runs contrary to senior management’s point of view.
When an employee raises a concern they deserve to be listened to. Maybe they are chronic complainers, but maybe, just maybe they have a point. If you listen with your heart and really hear what they are saying you can engage them in effective problem solving. But if you ignore them, play the blame game or otherwise shoot the messenger you will disenfranchise them and that can have costly consequences for your organization.
Disenfranchised employees blend into the woodwork. They don’t want to be the bearers of bad news. They say as little as possible. While that may be expedient in the short run, in the long run it’s an attitude that can metastasize across the corporate culture like an aggressive cancer and choke the flow of meaningful information. It means “problems” are dealt with only when they’re too big to hide. As a result, risk management is reactive - not proactive - and more expensive to solve or contain.
So this Thanksgiving give thanks to all the employees who care enough about the organization to stand up instead of shut up and to everyone willing to point out problems and areas for improvement. Better yet, give thanks everyday.