Posted on by Larry Litwin

From Dale C. and Harvard — Half of Employees Don’t Feel Respected by Their Bosses. Do Yours?

[To comment: larry at larrylitwin dot com]

This week we tap the Dale Carneigie newsletter.

By Anita Zinsmeister, President of Dale Carnegie®Training of Central & Southern New Jersey 

  • Word count for this issue: 320
  • Approximate time to read: About 1.3 minutes @ 250 words per minute  

According to a study of nearly 20,000 employees by Harvard Business Review and Tony Schwartz, the “respect” a leader shows his or her employees is the #1 item that can and will impact an employee’s commitment and engagement.

 More importantly, no other behavior by a leader had more of an effect on an employee.  In fact, the study pointed out that respect was more important to an employee than:

  • Appreciation

  • Communicating An Inspiring Vision

  • Development

  • Growth

  • Learning

  • Recognition 

                                                                                                                                               Here Are Some Other Key Elements 

The Survey Revealed

 In the study, those employees who received respect from their managers, reported:  

  • 56% better health and well-being

  • 89% greater enjoyment and satisfaction
    with their jobs
  • 92% greater focus and prioritization
  • 55% more engaged

  • 1.72 times more trust and safety

  • 1.26 times more meaning and significance

Above all, those that received respect by their manager were also 1.1 times more likely to stay with their organizations than those that didn’t.

Those that were not respected by their manager reacted in a negative way to their employer.  What’s worse, they were less inspired, and often times they would quit. 

For those employees not respected, 50% intentionally reduced their effort or lowered the quality of output. 

                                                                                                                                                       What Impact Will This Have 

On Your Organization?

 Face it, prospects are less likely to buy from a business that has employees that are passive and non-engaged.  By default, this reduces someone’s brand experience which will result in buyers moving on to another source. 

Executive Summary:  As a leader in your business, make an effort to communicate to your employees that you respect them.  The real value will come from your employee engagement activities and interaction on a DAILY basis. Additionally, we also recommend a reward program for employees who go above their normal workload. 

 [To comment: larry at larrylitwin dot com]