"The Little Corporation Who Cried Wolf" Part 1

Recently I was working with a client, Bob, on a problem he was experiencing at work. He’s a VP for a high-tech company who has gone through more re-orgs, mergers, acquisitions and other corporate changes than I could possibly begin to remember. But Bob is quite a guy. In fact he’s managed to survive quite nicely through all of the insanity.

Bob came to a recent session with a big problem. His troops are getting restless (and unmotivated and disgruntled) because they haven’t received their usual yearly performance increase. It was supposed to happen in January. Oops...

It’s true - lots of companies are holding off on raises these days. At least salary freezes are better than layoffs, right? And if this salary freeze stuff is communicated clearly and honestly by company officials, most employees really do understand. They understand what’s going on with our economy. So they get it - times are tough all around. They don’t like it, but they get it.

But Bob’s company made a critical error...they cried wolf. And more than once. You see Bob’s company told employees in January that the raises would come in March. And in March officials claimed the raises were coming in May. And in May...you can guess what happened. May came and left - no raises. But the employees did get another empty promise. Just two more months, guys. But alas, it’s November 1 and still no raises.

These days the company officials have stopped crying wolf. In fact, they aren’t saying anything at all. First make a bunch of empty promises and then clam up. Brilliant strategy.

So what does this stroke of management communication genius mean for Bob? It means that he’s stuck with an apathetic staff who really doesn’t want to work hard for a company run by a bunch of liars.

Bob’s problem is a common one - how do you keep your staff motivated when company officials make such bad decisions? Well, it’s really hard! It takes an incredible amount of dedication and hard work to pull it off. But it can be done. It has to be done. And as a manager it’s up to you to re-energize your staff and create a department where communication, teamwork and fun are seamlessly integrated into daily life.

And it’s so worth it. Not only does doing this impact your success in your own job and the company’s bottom line, it helps you have an impact on other people’s lives. Just think about the difference your employees will feel going from working for a company that they don’t really trust to working for a manager who is creating a fun, productive fulfilling environment. Big difference, huh?

So what’s the plan of attack? Well, it’s a going to be a lot of hard work, so it wouldn’t be a bad idea for you to start off this adventure with a declaration of commitment. I mean there will be times when you just want to throw in the towel and manage your staff like everyone else does. So to ensure that this won’t happen, you must stand firm in your beliefs that your new energized department is worth the effort.

Make this commitment to yourself in whatever way is meaningful for you. Some of you need to simply tell yourself that you are committed to doing this. Others may need to write it down or tell a friend. Whatever the case is, make a formal commitment and you’ll have a better chance of sticking to the program.

Action Step for Success
Are you feeling somewhat un-motivated yourself? Work through any issues you may be personally experiencing that are keeping you from committing to this department re-energization plan. Don’t lose sight of the fact that you control your own attitude. No-one else. So choose to get committed to the plan! You’ll be glad you did!

Now go out there and be a star!!