Contribution Killers

Effective leaders keep communication open, which in turn ensures that employees stay engaged in their work. Research shows that there are 4 common “Contribution Killers” which slow employee productivity and morale. They Are:

(1) Uneven Expectations – Employees feel betrayed when leaders expect some employees to perform at a given level while they perceive that other employees are not held to the same standard. When this occurs, some employees react by withholding their efforts. Employees perceive that it is the leader’s responsibility to uphold the standards fairly, so when this does not occur, they blame the leader for not doing his or her job.

(2) Incongruent actions – When the boss does or says one thing and then turns around and does or reinforces the opposite, employees are quick to see the inconsistencies. High trust environments are built on consistent and congruent actions. Therefore, when actions and words are too often perceived as inconsistent, trust erodes. This erosion of trust dampens morale and creates negative emotion inconsistent with high productivity.

(3) Wimpy leaders – When leaders are perceived as not taking a stand on issues that require a decision, employees get discouraged. The employees’ perception is that when a decision is clearly the responsibility of the leader, the leader should make the decision. Indecision drains energy and breaks up the positive flow of energy, thus destroying momentum.

(4) No follow through – When the leader takes a stand and doesn’t follow through with the expectation, employees learn that the leader’s words have no meaning. The leader creates a culture where employees know that if they wait long enough, nothing will happen because leaders won’t follow though. This is demoralizing for employees and breaks trust bonds because the words that the leader speaks are not backed by actions.

The most effective leaders know that the contribution killers listed above come with a price. That price includes low morale and a drain of energy. In order for a leader to accomplish something, he or she must be able to muster positive energy toward a goal.

This quick and easy activity will help to uncover which of the contribution killers exist in your organization, giving you a head start in fixing counterproductive workplace energy.

Instructions:

Have each participant in this activity fill out the “Contribution Killers” worksheet below, asking them to think about which of the listed items seem to exist in the organization right now.

Ask the participants to come up with specific examples or items that may be adding to the problem.

Ask the participants to list ways in which the organization could eliminate the contribution killers

At this point break into sub-groups (depending on audience size) and discuss the following:

Why is it important for leaders to be aware of these Contribution Killers?

What damage can these Contribution Killers have on employee morale?

Bring the group back together to report on and summarize results. Make sure that part of your summary discusses that ALL organizations experience these Contribution Killers from time to time. It is when they occur more frequently than not that you experience permanent harm to your company’s culture.Groups are largely forgiving of an occasional problem, but the view of leadership can be damaged when they occur too regularly.

Worksheet:

Four of the most common problems related to contributions and expectations in the workplace are listed below. Which spirit killers do you think may be affecting your workplace? Put a check mark next to those items. Why is it important for leaders to be aware of these four spirit killers? What damage can these four spirit killers have on employee morale?

_____ Expectations that apply only to some

_____ Incongruent actions

_____ Wimpy leaders

_____ No follow through