How Much Is Employee Apprehension Costing You?

How Much Is Employee Apprehension Costing You?

Does your company confuse allegiance or loyalty with tenure?  If so, there may be a rutted rocky road ahead for your organizations future.  It is well documented in todays’ marketplace that tenured employees, who are replete with obsolescence, can bring productivity to a slow death.

If your employees are filled with apprehension and fear of upsetting the entrenched guys and gals in your organization, you DO have a serious problem within the organizational ranks.

If you management style or management team ranks tenure higher than performance, then sadly, I suggest you reevaluate not only your current management but your talent acquisition and management practices

I’ve said this before but it is well worth saying again, “The only thing worse than an employee who quits and leaves is an employee who quits and stays.”  Length of service and loyalty are not necessarily one in the same.

Take a moment right now and mentally review and picture the following and ask yourself, which team member would I prefer on my team?

A long term employee who resides in his/her self serving corner of the office….but when the real assessment is made, it is obvious he/she is an under performer? These people are exceptionally good at the smoke and mirror game and you should beware because they position themselves with a different mask every day. 

OR an employee who has been there not so long but consistently is willing to go the extra mile, contributes without being prodded, typically meets or exceeds goals and expectations and you always know where you stand with them? 

This subject is truly a value and performance issue and if you allow long term employees to reside in a clouded corporate bubble, then you are retaining them for all the wrong reasons.

TENURE AS WE HAVE KNOWN IT IS NOW ARCHIAC AT BEST:  This isn’t the 40’s or 50’s it is the 21^st Century.  Catch up with the real world.

TENURE THAT DOESN’T REPRESENT THE FUNDAMENTAL TALENT BASE DESTROYS THE BOTTOM LINE: Identifying, developing and rewarding employees is one of the best and safest ways to drive sales and profits.

TENURE THAT PROPAGATES USELESSNESS, OBSOLESCENCE AND MEDIOCRITCY ALSO INHIBITS CHANGE AND GROWTH:  It is critical to get out of your comfort zones and stop saying, “….but it is the way we have always done it.”

With all this said, allow me to reach for the real issue within this subject.  As an owner, executive, manager or team leader, it is critically important that your mindset is predisposed towards performance. 

The final choices become yours, so take ownership and grow or not:

A.    You can reward talent, dependability, initiative, innovation, loyalty, attitude, creativity, work ethic, contribution and leadership (because you take ownership of the concept and instill this in your employees) OR

B.    Maintain a workplace that believes in archaic concepts, mediocrity in performance and believes that because an employee has worked here a long time, we need to continue to “do it that way to keep peace in our business family.”

Now you need to ask yourself one final question…..Just How Much is Employee Apprehension Costing Me?

We Can Help!

Regards,

George F. Mancuso, CPC
President
Client Growth Consultants, Inc.