Workplace of Choice

The President (and we’re not talking about Obama), or other C-level management figures, cannot be everywhere, which means they may have limited face time with employees.  The President can be an intimidating figure, the one who bears the weight of the entire company on his or her shoulders and is seen by most employees only when there is an all staff event. 

In times of economic stress, companies of all sizes know the importance of communication from the top down to ensure employee satisfaction and confidence in the company’s missions.  Often, communication will break down somewhere in the hierarchical process, similar to that of a game of “telephone” in which one message can be repeated differently over the course of several explanations.  Misinformation is heard and then repeated, making for a confused, nervous and often angry group of employees.  Although management encourages employees to ask questions so that information can be corrected or confirmed, more often than not, employees are just too intimidated to raise their hands. 

A wonderful ice breaker for any member of management is to host a lunch.  Simply getting a group of employees together once a month to have solid face time with the President, or other executives, can do wonders for the communication process.  Employees will realize that the President is a normal person too by eating lunch and talking with coworkers about their day.  Provide a themed meal and create a quiz or game show format to go along with it to help break the ice and encourage people to talk. Think about giving out small prizes, but most of all have fun!  The goal is to get employees comfortable with management so that they feel they have a right to speak up with questions and comments.  In turn, management may learn a few things about the people who work for the company and by hearing their concerns and ideas, can relate directly to them.