Rebuilding Employee Morale Essay

Lay bys and die-force declines get to a big impact on both those who meet their bank lines and those who remain. Employees who remain after a spurt-force reduction whitethorn be attained for weeks or months afterwards. They whitethorn feel overwhelmed, have a weighty clock focusing on work, or work done get-go morale. This may be a stressful judgment of conviction for you as well. As a autobus you non only have to make the transitions yourself, and youre also counted on to avail steer your squad by tauts of the changes. As a manager, its authorized to be aw be of what employees be feeling and to offer support in ways that can suspensor your team get through this difficult and ch altogetherenging period. And its important to recognize how the changes affect you as well. Common feelings employees may have nearly(prenominal) employees, or hundreds of employees, may have lost their pedigrees at your company. Whatever the surface of the work-force reduction, its likely that many well-liked muckle who were doing good work depart be leaving the company and that the employees who remain ar sad and are grieving for co-workers who were let go.The remaining employees may also be portentous intimately the security of their own mull overs or how their roles might change. Employees may experience most or all of the by-line emotions, all of which can affect productivity, commitment, and morale Sadness. Anger. Guilt. Fear and anxiety. Many may wonder, Am I the nigh to go? Envy of those who are leaving. Employees may feel that those who were pose off are lament adequate to(p) on to saucy opportunities while they are stuck at the same senior job. Apathy. They may find it hard to concentrate or get stake to work. Loss of combining in the organization. Employees may lose trust in upper managements messages and mission and may not feel that the company cares. Overwhelmed. People may feel overladen and worried about how their wor kload will change. 57114-10082 Rebuilding Employee morale Following a LayoffHelping employees copeA layoff or lay off is a business decision. But before employees who remain can trigger on and begin working productively again, its important to hold with the emotional side of the job cuts and their impact on peoples lives. Hold an initial see with employees staying on your team on the sidereal day of the downsizing announcement. Have an open and honest discussion with them about the job cuts and why they took place and how they will second hold your organization moving forward. Employees need to know why the cuts happened and what the organization is doing to avoid to a greater extent(prenominal) job cuts. slop about the layoffs in terms of job functions and the business. Do not discuss specifics or specific individualistics. Expect this to be a time of deep emotion, confusion, and anxiety for your employees. Hold a jump-start meeting. A work-force reduction can change the way your team functions. In the days following the announcement, plan and hold a jumpstart meeting to get people focused on what matters. At the meeting Review the organizations goals, strategy, and new direction.Enlist your teams support in finding ways to meet those goals. Clarify the reasons for the change. Identify and describe ways that individual employees may have to shift their attention. Explain fully the expected impressions of the teams efforts, linking those results to the overall business goals of the organization. Identify those things the team and individuals are already doing well that support the new direction or business strategy. sidle up what may change. Discuss needs and develop concrete action plans for short- and long periods. Provide training if employees will be asked to take on new work or functions. Give employees continued opportunities to talk about their feelings. push them to voice their fears, questions, complaints, and concerns.Hold m eetings. You can do this both one-on-one with employees and as a company. Have drop-in sessions. These will be serve wellful for employees and for you as a manager. Remember that when people are allowed to express their feelings they are better competent to adjust and kick the bucket on. Continue to have these discussions for as long as they seem productive. Watch that employees dont get stuck or caught up in too much negativity. Use coaching skills to help them receive the change and move on. Be honest with employees and keep lines of communication open. The more honest and straightforward you are, the more apace youll restore trust on your team. During propagation of study change, cultivation is often incomplete. No manager has all the answers. If an employee asks a question about the reorganization that you are not in a position to answer, dont be afraid to say, I dont have the answer to3 Rebuilding Employee team spirit Following a Layoffthat question. If possible, co mmit to finding answers and information within a fixed period of time and close the loop with the employee who asked the question. If relevant, pct the information with everyone on the team. Remind employees that in times of flux even some of the updated information will change but that you will keep them as up to date as you can when this happens. Lead by example. fritter a close look at your own attitudes and behavior and how you are responding to the workplace change. Positive, sincere, and communicative managers who demonstrate strong leadership qualities while acknowledging the difficultness and pain of the layoff are typically able to get their staff back on track during times of adversity and challenge. Offer resources to help employees come down feelings of stress. Make sure members of your team are aware of the resources available to them to help stretch feelings of stress, including the employee assistance program (EAP) or the program that provided this usualation. Recognize that, initially, employees may be so absorbed with the reorganization that they get less work done than usual. During times of major change, especially in the period by rights after the change, its common for people to look out for themselves. Employees may spend increased amounts of time on personal activities like environ calls and Internet use. By keeping employees actively engaged in rehabilitative job-related tasks with a direct value to the business, anxiety can be unploughed in check and employees will be more focused on what matters. Its important to take action to rebuild the team and help employees get back up to speed and move forward.Ways to rebuild trust and moraleIt can take months for employees to adjust to a major organizational change and to new systems and ways of doing things. Its important to keep an eye on employee morale during this transitional period. Here are some ways to rebuild trust and morale on your team during this time Spend extra tim e with your team and with individual employees.In times of stress managers can be tempted to spend more time in their offices away from their anxious employees, but this is just the time your employees need you to be more visible and accessible than usual. Communicate openly and often about company strategies and goals. Share information. Clarify goals. Be honest in your communications. If more change is advent, share as much as youre able to with employees. Its critical to check with upperlevel managers on what messages to communicate to employees. Different messages coming from managers across departments will result in mixed messages and rumors. Encourage employees to share any rumors they hear with you and address each one as quickly as you can.4 Rebuilding Employee Morale Following a Layoff communion about changes within the organization and how these may affect the work and your free radical. Talk about how the work will change as a result of the reorganization. Let everyo ne know that plans or tasks may change and that this is normal during times of transition. If work expectations for the department or individuals have changed, communicate this as presently as possible. Be clear and concise about new job duties and responsibilities. Remember to give frequent updates. This helps employees deal with feelings of uncertainty and confusion. Avoid kvetch about the organization or telling employees your woes. Managers sometimes do this to reduce feelings of guilt they want employees to feel that they are suffering, too. But a manager who complains to employees only loses respect and creates more anxiety among employees. Speak with other managers you trust about your feelings and concerns and to get more ideas of what steps you can take to help rebuild your team.Take very good care of yourself during this time as many managers experience additional stress as they guide their teams through challenging times. Use team-building exercises to renew relation ships and commitments to goals. Work on a group or team project together. You might order pizza or bagels when you do. Offer a seminar on dealing with workplace change. Work hard to be sure everyone understands his or her role on the team and how group efforts contribute to the larger business goals. Be respectful of the people who have been laid off. Avoid comments like He wasnt such a great employee anyway. Focus on the positive attributes of employees who have left. Express atone and make sure your team knows that you wish them well. This will show those who are staying that the organization treats people with respect and dignity. Your employees will assume that if they were to be laid off, you would talk about them the same way you talk about spring employees. Help employees see the opportunities that change can bring. The reorganization may mean that people will have the opportunity to learn new skills or to take on new responsibilities. Recognize and reward good work and c ontinued commitment. Let employees know that you appreciate everyone pulling together to do their part in meeting the companys goals. Its more important than ever at this time to reward employees who are staying for meeting goals and milestones and for steady, dependable effort. Here are some ways to offer rewards through company recognition or incentive programs by giving public recognition at a meeting by sending an email to upper management applauding an employees efforts and spelling out what those efforts were and how they contributed to the companys goals by using bulletin boards to call attention to someones good efforts5 Rebuilding Employee Morale Following a Layoff persist in mind that it takes time for people to let go of old ways, adapt to new ones, and recommit to the organization. The more proactive you are in helping employees through this transition, the more everyone will be able to adjust, move on, renew their enthusiasm, and confirm their commitment to the co mpany.Written with the help of Elizabeth Bakken, B.A., M.A. Ms. Bakken has a award in organizational development and an extensive background in the handle of human resource development and career coaching. She writes a column, CareerWise, on decision maker career issues for the Rochester Business Journal. 2001, 2008 Ceridian Corporation. All rights reserved. 102908