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June 16, 2003

Keeping Staff Focused and Motivated

School administrators can take a page from business when it comes to working with their teams in tough times.

By Rusty Weston

Managing in a Downturn

Even in times like these, innovation is crucial.

The conventional wisdom is that good management in an economic downturn usually means maintaining staff morale, motivation, and productivity. But the current climate requires going way beyond employee-maintenance issues. Business technology has created a new competitive mandate that induces and requires companies to continue driving forward — to innovate — even during times when most companies might prefer retrenchment.

It's a dual challenge. A greater emphasis on the customer — brought on by more sophisticated customer-touch and customer-management technologies — means chief executives have to exhibit greater leadership capabilities to motivate employees and at the same time keep valuable customers from bolting to the competition. Therefore, savvy executives have to grapple with and recognize the subtle gap that exists between conventional wisdom and new best practices.

That's the idea behind Gap Analysis: to help bridge the gap between idealized best practices, or conventional wisdom, and the practical reality of business technology experiences. Sometimes we find that it's a narrow gap, other times it's a chasm.

Loyalty in the Downturn

Conventional wisdom says that key and loyal employees will help managers circle the wagons when trouble is brewing in the economy or in their industry.

The Gap

Winning employee loyalty in a downturn isn't automatic. While 60 percent of employees are more loyal than ever, two in five managers we surveyed say employees are less loyal than they were before the souring economy. Realize that in many instances employees are scared about the economy and worried about layoffs. It's no secret that loyalty isn't always rewarded-or at least that's how it's perceived.

Clearly, loyalty matters inasmuch as the alternative — disloyalty — leads to both governance issues and an unmotivated workforce. Disloyalty also raises the specter of defections by talented employees that you want to keep. What should you do to forestall this possibility?

• Praise employees early and often.
• Restate and reiterate company or departmental goals.
• Acknowledge that the solution to the downturn isn't always working twice as hard. Among other things, it's working smarter.
• If appropriate, don't hold off on planned promotions. It's more important than ever to demonstrate to employees that despite the economy, innovative, hardworking, and productive workers are still prized by your company.
• Offer lifestyle rewards, such as extra time off and specialized training. Investing in a worker's future is a great way to build loyalty, too.
• Offer a chronically disloyal employee the opportunity to transfer to another assignment.

Dollar Signs?

It's generally assumed that playing it straight with your employees about budgetary issues reinforces your credibility and encourages their buy-in when you need to make changes and tough budget decisions.

The Gap

Here are some factors to consider about managing employee morale:

• Unfortunately, bad budgetary news demotivates workers — even managers — no matter how it's delivered. Why? Everyone, including hourly wage workers, has a stake in the success of the company. Instability breeds discontent.
• Bad news is not only stressful, it's also a distraction — and work distractions have a nagging habit of lowering productivity.
• It's true that honest managers are both more respected and more trusted by their staffs. After all, trust works both ways, so a manager must set a good example. Still, bad news must be conveyed in a positive way, meaning that it should be presented in the context of a turnaround plan. If a goal has not been met, suggest a way in which it might be attained in the future.

Cultural Imperatives

Best-selling author Spencer Johnson contends that few of us like it when somebody "moves our cheese."

The Gap

Who Moved My Cheese? has one of the most simplistic ideas ever to top the list of best-selling business books. The theory is that if humans were mice, we would travel a familiar maze in search of cheese. Our dilemma occurs on the day when someone or something moves the cheese and we must find a new stash of it in unfamiliar turf.

The fact is, a sustained economic downturn has moved the cheese of many workers, especially those who are no longer gainfully employed. Never mind the fromage; the question is, what's happening to your company's corporate culture during this time?

• What Johnson doesn't say in his book is that it's better to be the one moving the cheese than the one having it done to you.
• The challenge managers face is to demonstrate how the recommended change ultimately benefits everyone, not just the company itself.
• Employees who stiffen their resistance to new ideas in the face of an economic downturn risk being identified as part of the problem instead of part of the solution.
• Challenge employees who resist change to develop alternative, innovative business technology solutions. Help them through the maze.

Cultural Confusion

We've heard the mantra time and time again: Everyone is in this mess together. Teamwork is the answer.

The Gap

While our forefathers would not be surprised at the renewed popularity of the phrase "united we stand," they would surely remind us that "divided we fall," too. And for good reason:

A corporate culture is a group ethos built on shared ideals. If not everyone shares or knows these ideals, then the dominant corporate culture becomes a mishmash.

Sometimes these ideals are well articulated; but quite often, it's anyone's guess as to the ties that bind company employees. Is a corporate culture that cracks under economic stress built on the right principles?

A corporate culture can't replace a good business model, but it's fundamental to success.

• Take steps to beef up your corporate culture — including the culture of your IT department.
• Recognize that even good employees become fearful in an economic slide, and do what you can to counsel patience and a "let's fight back" mentality.

The Right Strokes

In an economic downturn, it's vitally important to build team unity and attack business problems as a collaborative unit.

The Gap

It's difficult enough to build and promote a culture of innovation in prosperous times; if you wait for a downturn to start, it's an even more frustrating task. For one thing, you have far fewer tools at your disposal. You can't throw as much money at problems. Morale is unlikely to be rising any faster than staff productivity. And yet, most staffers can't even get a decent pat on the back. What can you do to compensate employees for good ideas?

Forget what your peers are doing: Go hug your most innovative workers and tell them you're damn glad they're on your team. OK, a handshake or some other form of public recognition will do.

The Culture and Productivity Link

An economic slump is bad for productivity. The events of September 11th have further eroded the output and productivity of U.S. workers.

The Gap

The terrorist attacks [editor's note: and now the war in Iraq] have caused widespread economic upheaval, layoffs, and lost revenue. Does anyone disagree that such events rob motivation from all workers, including managers?

Companies in which the culture has strengthened since the onset of the economic downturn are twice as likely to experience an increase in employee productivity as those that are weakened. At worst, they're far less likely to suffer a decrease in productivity — though, as we know, some drop-off is probably inevitable. Even experiencing no change in productivity might be considered a win by some businesses — especially those hit hardest, such as retail, airlines, and hospitality. What can be done?

• Again, strengthen your company culture. What was said historically about the Union applies directly to your team (and, arguably, to our nation), too.
• What are your company's principles? Does every employee have a copy of them? Are they posted on your company's Web site? Such principles foster company-wide pride.

Fine-tuning

Even in the best environment, there's only so much you can expect from your employees.

The Gap

In a very real sense, budget cuts represent disinvestment in existing ideas and initiatives. That sort of pulling back is akin to sounding a retreat in battle; sometimes it's necessary, but no one likes it. The advantage of operational improvements is obvious but important: It's "found money." Great idea, but how do you get there?

• You can either hire an efficiency expert (a consultant, perhaps) or organize internal committees to tackle the problem. Both approaches have merit; doing it internally may not yield the same results, but it will be a lot easier to win buy-in from the company.
• What happens when someone suggests spending money to save money? Always a tough call, but in a down market you must be driven by return on investment, though traditionally, investing will give you an advantage over the competition. If the savings are tangible, generally you can win support. If the benefits are squishy, you might try another idea (or a sabbatical).

Lines of Input

Electronic connections to customers, suppliers, and partners ease collaboration.

The Gap

Collaboration is a conversation that involves an exchange of information such as product requirements or market knowledge. The process is intended to advance the objectives of all participants.

Of course, there's no single one-size-fits-all approach that works for everyone. In some companies, the biggest challenge is getting various departments — or factions — to sit down and work together. Other companies use various alternatives, such as supply chains or exchanges, to reach out to customers, suppliers, or peers for information (or to make sales) that wouldn't otherwise have been obtainable. What are your options?

Where the Buck Stops

Executives lacking in experience should seek the help of a mentor or adviser in the company, or in another company, who will provide a good ear when it's time to vent or simply discuss a proposal. Though your company may already be very customer-centric, we nevertheless urge executives of all experience levels to meet with internal or external customers regularly and track what they're saying about their needs.

Rusty Weston (rweston@cmp.com) is an editor for InformationWeek.

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