Many managers think that low employee morale is a problem, or even worse they think it’s their problem. That’s NOT just wrong thinking, it is wrong leadership. Low morale is not a problem, it’s a gift; and a gift that should be shared amongst the entire team.
Low morale may actually be the greatest gift any manager can receive. Why? Because it identifies the real team players. Do you want staff that points out problems with an honest attempt to improve the organization? No you do not. Do you want someone that will tell you of an impending failure so it can be prevented? Of course you don’t. Do you want a scapegoat for when something goes seriously wrong? YES, yes you do! Low employee morale to the rescue.
The causes of low morale are many, all of them in the heads of employees and rarely if ever are the causes real or justified. Before delving into the causes of low morale it is important to note that low morale among your employees is not your problem. However, if your morale is low your employees are obviously to blame and raising it should become their top priority. If they are incapable of increasing your morale, you can always decrease theirs. As they saying goes, a rising tide lifts all boats, but a lowering tide leaves the manager’s yacht safely moored in dry dock while everyone else is washed out to sea. Carefully placed hints of layoffs, furlows, train-your-replacement lunch-n-learn meetings, and busywork will have you watching the tide of morale recede into the distance.
Who has the lowest morale in your department? Many managers wrongly assume the person that complains the loudest has the lowest morale. Nothing could be further from the truth, they actually still care. Sure, the constant whining can be a drag on your well being as a manager, but realize it is a reminder you still have control over their lives and they know it. No, the employee with the lowest morale is the person that used to complain and now says nothing. They’ve given up because nothing they’ve said or done has lead to change. Which leads to your greatest managerial headache; if they have given up you no longer have power over them. You must reach out to them and earnestly confess you’ve managed to convince upper management that the employee’s concerns are valid. Tell them it will take time, but you are working to design and implement changes. Think back to a relatively minor complaint they might have raised and explain how solutions are being researched. Ask them leading questions that show how things are already improving. Do what it takes to rekindle their pollyanna-ish belief that you and everyone above you cares how they feel.
One popular way to handle low morale is to send out a survey. It’s an opportunity for employees to vent their frustrations, report issues and feel like they are making a difference. Never send out a survey without plans to follow up. Skilled managers use a two pronged approach, a group meeting (which also serves to grow TMT) combined with one-on-one sessions. Be clear, while you must follow up on the survey, you don’t actually need to do anything about the results. Low morale is all in the mind. Specifically, the minds or your employees. Employee morale is determined solely by what they think you are doing for them, not what you are actually doing for them. So rather than waste time, effort and money needlessly attempting to fix any morale causing issues it is much more efficient to simply say they are being fixed.
If, after taking surveys and polls, conducting group meetings and one-on-one sessions, gathering data and sending emails detailing how all the uncovered issues are being addressed an employee still has low morale you know who gets the lowest ranking. They are clearly a bad apple spoiling the whole bunch. You should try to bring them around if for no other reason than to keep them from escalating concerns above you in the management chain. One way is to tell them they almost got a higher, or possibly even the highest ranking, but that upper management feels they don’t understand what is already being done to address any concerns. (Note: the experienced manager will never admit to ranking an employee low. See the article on ranking and reviews for more information). Inform them that with only a few small changes, they could be ranked at the top. This is the classic carrot and stick method: beating them with a stick while showing them the carrot you never intend to give them. That is frequently all that is required to get the troublemakers in line.
The end result of all this is your employees will believe you care and morale will improve. And if it doesn’t they will understand that they, not you, are the problem. Or at worst, they will understand that it’s the executives causing the issues and that you are doing all you can to help them. Conversely, upper management will see you are doing all you can to improve morale while also cutting costs and sparing them from dealing with actual workers. At the very least, the horrible whiny people that work for you will shut the hell up. It’s wins all around!
And those wins mean it’s time you embrace low morale for the gift it is.