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| DESCRIPTION | |
| When it's lacking: - Some employees feel like second-class citizens. - Titles carry considerable weight. - People use win-lose language, as in "us against them." - The norm appears to be "different treatment for different people." - Physical cues of inequality are abundant throughout the organization. Possibilities: special parking spaces for high-ranking employees, dramatically different work areas and working conditions, recognition reserved for certain groups. |
When it's thriving: + People throughout the organization genuinely feel that they're on the same level, regardless of how things look on the org chart. + All employees are considered to be equally important -- and actions at all levels back this up. + At meetings and other gatherings, titles tend to fall away, opening the way to free-flowing dialogue. |
| EXAMPLES |
| At first, Dwayne thought it was just a crazy rumor. No way would management do that!
Then some construction people started walking around...looking...taking notes...blueprints
in hand. And within two months, there it was: a second-story platform circling the
plant floor, so management could keep an eye on operations. "The managers would
stand up there on the walkway, sort of leaning on the railing, just watching us,"
Dwayne says. "We'd be on the floor working our tails off, and they'd be up there
in their ties staring down." A deep resentment took hold, and with the platform
still surrounding the work floor, the ill will gets stronger every day. When William's company launched a quality-improvement initiative, it was not business as usual. "We actually did it the right way!" he laughs. Instead of a management-driven effort -- "the approach we always took in the past" -- a group was assembled to involve people from all areas and levels of the organization. The first few gatherings seemed uncomfortable; never before had employees with such different titles and roles come together in the same place. Yet everyone stuck with it, and in three months the group had become widely known as a shining example of involvement. "At our first meeting, we talked about leaving rank at the door," William recalls. "There's nothing magical you can do to make that happen. It just takes time as folks sort of re-establish their relationships. Now that we've been together as a group for a couple years, I can honestly say that we all view each other as equals." |
| ACTION IDEAS |
| Apply a critical ear to your organization's vocabulary. Do people work "under
me" and "for me"? Do I "oversee" people? Is someone a "subordinate"?
Does the company have "low-level employees"? All these terms scream inequality.
As much as possible, exorcise these verbal demons from your organization -- starting
with your own choice of words, then moving on to the employee manual, policy manual,
and any other printed items. Change the look and feel of your meetings. Scrap the old model where the meeting leader sits at the head of the table. Keep it open and loose -- what about chairs in a circle, with no table? Consider having a neutral facilitator who can gently draw out equal amounts of input from all participants. Conduct a nothing-is-off-limits look at the state of equality in your organization. Take stock of pay, perks, policies -- everything. Where inequities exist, remedy the situation now. Warning #1: Expect to be surprised. A forthright analysis will uncover inequalities at the best of companies. Warning #2: Don't embark on this effort unless you plan to take action based on the findings. |
| Copyright 1998-2002 by Tom Terez and Tom Terez Workplace Solutions, Inc. P.O. Box 21444, Columbus, Ohio USA 43221-0444. Tel. 614-571-9529..mail@BetterWorkplaceNow.com HOME | 10-Minute Briefing | Free Online Tools | Insight and Inspiration | Laugh and Learn | Buzzword Bingo | Kits, Books, and Tools | Keynotes and Services | Meet Tom Terez | Tell a Friend | Bronze Access |
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