Stop Blaming Managers for the Shortcomings of Workers

Stop Blaming Managers for the Shortcomings of Workers
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For a decade, I taught a variety of business and economics courses to MBA students. Central to classes such as entrepreneurship and innovation, international business, public sector economics, strategic management, organizational life, and leadership were, obviously, all kinds of analyses, discussions, debates and research on how to get the most out of your employees.

Throughout these teaching assignments, in terms of the textbooks and other materials used, it struck me how one assumption seemed to prevail, serving as foundational for the entire discussion of managing enterprises and people. That is, it’s overwhelmingly assumed that most, or nearly all, of a company’s employees can be independent, motivated and highly productive parts of the team if they are simply managed in the right way. Get at and supply what your people want and need from the business, establish the right culture and get everyone onboard, be a good leader, learn the tools for properly resolving or heading off conflict, and a kind of management utopia can be achieved.

Of course, the term “management utopia” was never used, but the clear impression given was that if you learn all of the tools of being a good manager, and execute them properly, then your business or department will benefit from having engaged employees.

Sounds nice, doesn’t it? It’s also naïve, and lacking in a sober assessment of human nature.

After all, based on these assumptions and given the results from the just-published edition of Gallup’s “State of the American Workplace,” a clear majority of business owners and managers are not getting the job done in terms of managing their employees. Gallup reported that in 2016 only 33 percent of U.S. employees were “engaged” at work, while 51 percent were “not engaged,” and 16 percent were “actively disengaged.”

Here’s how Gallup defines each category:

• “Engaged: Employees are highly involved in and enthusiastic about their work and workplace. They are psychological ‘owners,’ drive performance and innovation, and move the organization forward.”

• “Not engaged: Employees are psychologically unattached to their work and company. Because their engagement needs are not being fully met, they’re putting time — but not energy or passion — into their work.”

• “Actively disengaged: Employees aren’t just unhappy at work — they are resentful that their needs aren’t being met and are acting out their unhappiness. Every day, these workers potentially undermine what their engaged coworkers accomplish.”

It’s also worth noting that going back to 2000, this annual survey has not varied all that much in its results, with the “engaged” ranging between 26 percent and 33 percent, the “not engaged” between 50 percent and 59 percent, and the “actively disengaged” between 15 percent and 20 percent.

These are pretty powerful numbers. And of course, part of the problem, no doubt, is poor management. But perhaps the larger issue here is not managers coming up short, but – dare I say it? – workers coming up short.

Come on, honestly, are you really all that surprised by these numbers? Given my observations of a wide array of large and small companies, nonprofits and government over the years, I’m not. The truly “engaged” have been the exception, not the rule.

I would bring up these results to MBA students as a kind of cold reality slap. I’d ask a simple question: Do the majority of your co-workers fit the model of engaged, motivated workers, and if they are not engaged, it’s clearly the fault of management; or do a significant number of your co-workers, due to their own inclinations, attitudes and outlook, treat their work as just a paycheck, or perhaps even an annoyance, slacking off and/or goofing off too often, and watching the clock closely?

Quite simply, these Gallup survey results help tell a more realistic story of managing enterprises and people than are often communicated in business classes, and management guides.

So, there are three basic takeaways here. First, business owners and managers absolutely need to find and use the best management techniques and principles to unleash the 33 percent of workers who are motivated, engaged, and productive. These people are the lifeblood of any organization. Second, management must utilize another set of tools to transform some portion of the 51 percent of employees who not engaged at work into engaged employees, while working to at least raise the performance of the rest of this group. And third, owners and managers must work to see if any of the 16 percent of “actively disengaged” workers can be salvaged, and if not, eventually cut them loose so the business and other employees do not suffer due to the potential toxicity of this group.

Of course, getting things right at the start is critical. That is, the hiring process, to the extent possible, needs to identify those who are or will be truly engaged, and those who will not.

Business owners and managers cannot afford to play pretend about the workforce. Unfortunately, at best, less than half of the U.S. workforce fit the mold of the independent, motivated and highly productive individual presented in management classes. The remaining workers are, quite frankly, the tough cases who don’t make for upbeat articles and books about the joys of management.

Ray Keating is an economist and a novelist.  His new thriller is Lionhearts: A Pastor Stephen Grant Novel.  

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