The Dangers of Ignoring Employee Feedback

Posted on December 6, 2014 by

It is an untarnished fact of life that people want their voice to be heard! Surveys have revealed to us just how much people want to feel praised, while countless philosophers such as John Dewey have also expressed the innate human need to feel desired and important.

Why should things be any different in the workplace?

Employees are humans just like everyone else and have many opinions about things going on in their workplace. Ignoring this valuable feedback can be deadly for a company, as it may drastically reduce the level of engagement among its employees if changes are not properly implemented in time. Surprisingly enough, many companies that regularly conduct such surveys designed to measure the level of engagement in their workplace, rarely take actions to try and alleviate the problems that have already accumulated. Over time, this can lead to a destroyed morale among the workplace and a rolling avalanche of other problems if not fixed in time.

Why are employee engagement surveys such great tools?

Employee engagement surveys are very helpful in helping workers and supervisors to brainstorm new ideas about how to increase the overall productivity of their workers, leading to better profits and lower expenses. This can only be accomplished when the turnover rates of employees are reduced to an absolute minimum.

Is precisely when many employers like to move these results to the very ends of their “to-do” lists that the turnover rate for important employees in the organization begins to creep up surreptitiously. There is nothing worse for an employee that to put their full concentration and focus into filling out such a survey only to find that nothing has been done in the long run to solve the most probing issues in the company. It is only a matter of time, when such employees find more attractive employment options and greener pastures elsewhere.

One of the keys to solving the problems underlying employee engagement is to have the managers of your HR team engage in a process known as “action” or “impact” planning. The manager chooses specific problems that have arisen in the organization and discusses them directly with his work force. The group then democratically prioritizes the issues and decides as a group what kind of strategies and solutions should be immediately implemented to solve the most probing issues.

Why is constructive feedback so essential? 

Constructive feedback is something that was traditionally attributed to the work of managers, who used such feedback to improve the output of their team. However, today it is becoming more and more commonplace for employees to engage in feedback about their workplace. This is a very important because it allows the entire team to build loyalty and trust among each other, allowing employees motivate and inspire each other in order to live up to their fullest potential. This will inevitably creates a more stimulating and positive environment for everyone to work in, as everyone feels more respected and welcome. The original top-down “i-must-follow-the-leader” approach is simply not sustainable in a time when many employees can quickly move on to other jobs where they feel more appreciated – even if the benefits are less attractive!

How does listening to employee feedback ultimately increase employee engagement?

Erik Erikson, the famous psychoanalyst hailing from Germany once stated the dual concept of generativity vs. stagnation that affects people in their middle ages. Generativity refers to an employee’s desire to make a mark in their organization – to feel highly valued for their work and to make personal contributions that will have a lasting effect. Stagnation is the exact opposite and results in highly disengaged employees who feel that they have nothing to contribute of value. Cultivating the first option must become a priority for managers and leaders who respect the needs of their employees. Most employees indeed want to make a difference in their organization by creating and accomplishing things that will have a lasting impact for the company.

Listening to an employee’s suggestions are the hallmark of a leader with a good sense of business acumen, since some employees may give one incredibly insights into how a company can improve its operations. Many of these unique ideas would simply never be stumbled upon if it weren’t for the use of employee engagement surveys. The benefits of using them go far beyond merely praising your employee’s efforts, and can instead lead to higher morale and better profits for the whole company.

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