Page 231 - How America's Best Places to Work Inspire Extra Effort in Extraordinary Times

218B RE-ENGAGE

careers that took them through the major functions of the bank, al-
lowing them to gain a perspective they might not otherwise have.
Their internal management practices—both formal and informal—
were getting in the way of what had been a successful leadership model
of exposing their successful leaders to a variety of jobs in different
departments. Their practices, then, were misaligned to the strategic
needs of the bank, something we know winning Best-Places employers
work like crazy to avoid.
The employees’ comments shocked us, but since they had come
from several sources, we felt an obligation to report them. Our inter-
nal sponsor agreed that, yes, this was “a problem that needed to be
addressed.” To this day the problem hasn’t been solved, and, as a re-
sult, the bank has lost many talented employees who aren’t coming
back.
This “problem” seems to have legs, as we found it lurking in a large
call center with whom we’ve also worked. In this case a flock of as-
sistant managers, frustrated by an absence of any career support, regu-
larly leave to work for various competitors. And when they’re hired
back a few years later, they are often under agreement with a search
firm that, in essence, makes the retailer pay a big fee to get its former
people back!
As leaders we must constantly ask ourselves whether our actions
(what we are doing) are in alignment with our beliefs (what we value).
Many organizations we encounter seem to go out of their way to put
obstacles in front of the growth and development of their employees,
often at the expense of what they say they value.
When it comes to job enrichment and development, it’s time to
start walking the talk.