Businesses are founded on vision, principles, and practices. Businesses rely on employees. Employees are people, and people need to stay motivated to further the vision, principles, and practices of the business, and quite frankly to turn a profit. Whether the mission of the organization is saving homeless animals, creating widgets, or analyzing market data, all rely on people power to get the job done. Motivated employees are the greatest asset to any business.
Studies indicate that employees who feel a strong connection to an organization's mission are more productive and generally happier in the work environment. This logic does have it's faults however, because a passionate employee may also not be a team player. While it is wonderful that Jane would give her eye teeth to further the mission of the organization, would she do so at all costs, ignoring the needs and expectations of others on the team?
What does the office look like when team members are running in opposite directions, with ineffective communication, bruised egos, and expectations that differ greatly from employee to employee? It translates into decreased productivity, low employee morale, and sometimes an unpopular public image. Employers cannot afford to ignore employee dissatisfaction and toxic work environments.
Most people experience periods when they feel unmotivated on the job. Optimally, the periods are brief. However, if your office is a place where people are often unmotivated or employee morale typically hovers at "low," it becomes near impossible for even the most satisfied employee to find focus, clarity, and to be productive.
Many employers recognize when employee morale is low and do one of two things; either ignore it, or decide to hold a retreat to encourage discussion and re-energize the work force.
Both approaches have serious consequences. While ignoring the employee morale issue seems to be an obvious poor choice, it is handled in this fashion by many employers. It is easy to dismiss poor morale as employees who have personality conflicts or assume that if an employee is dissatisfied, it is their choice to leave the organization. An assumption can be made that the organization would be better off if all who were unstatisfied made a quick exit to the door, but this is flawed thinking. This does not uncover what led to the employee dissatisfaction in the first place; the firm could be losing a very valuable team member; and the dissatisfaction has likely spread to other members of the team. This approach is not a long term solution and does not address the health of the organization.
A retreat, done properly, with outcomes that are put into practice with commitment and follow through may help turn around productivity and morale. Unfortunately it is very typical for an organization to hold a retreat, put the "ugly" issues out on display, acknowledge their existence, then neatly put them back in the box back on the shelf, with no follow through and no action plan in place. This ends up solidifying peoples' negative perception of their work environment and generally bodes ill for the organization.
The solution? Communication. Retreats can be effective tools if executed properly, however the first step should be to acknowledge what the employees already know: "things are tough around here." Take it another step and tell the employees "they are valued" and the employer is aware of the difficulties and is currently working on a plan to change the work environment. Follow up these communications with a plan, be it a retreat, training for employees, or regular staff meetings meant to improve communications between departments or individuals. By acknowledging that difficulties and problems exist, employers improve their credibility with employees. I assure you that you won't be telling people something they don't already know by acknowledging the problems -- there is not one employee that goes uneffected when team members are dissatisfied.
