Page 193 - Build a Culture of Employee Engagement with the Principles

164 Carrots and Sticks Don’t Work

in Long Island and needed transportation downtown to Sloan
Kettering every Tuesday for twenty-four weeks. This meant that
Karen would have to leave work at noon to make the round-trip
to Long Island. Karen presented the situation to her boss, who
without hesitation told her to take care of her mother. He trusted
her to make up the lost hours and never docked her vacation or
personal time. In Karen’s words, “At the most difficult time in
my life, I was blessed to have a kind and thoughtful boss who let
me know that he cared about me as a person and not just as an
employee.”
One would hope that employers would show consideration
in such circumstances simply because it is the right thing to
do. However, from a business perspective such situations cre-
ate unique opportunities to significantly increase an employee’s
level of engagement and subsequent commitment, loyalty, and
discretionary effort. Acts of generosity and consideration are
paid back tenfold by employees. On the other hand, if Karen’s
supervisor had not been so considerate, she would have either
quit or become significantly less engaged. By the way, there is
also a spillover effect on other employees who observe the deci-
sion and imagine being in their team member’s position. Thus,
Karen’s team members had greater respect for their manager and
most likely were more engaged as a result of his decision. Being
inconsiderate toward employees, particularly when it comes to
health and wellness issues, is a terrible business decision.
Of course, being considerate involves many smaller gestures
as well, made on a daily basis. Below is a brief assessment that
will provide you with a sense of how your employees view your
level of consideration. Since this is a particularly difficult driver
to objectively self-assess, I encourage you to ask your employ-
ees, as well as others with whom you work, to provide you with
anonymous feedback around these statements. In the sections