This blog is provided by the IPR Organizational Communication Research Center
Listening to employees is critical for a myriad of reasons including employee retention, motivation, inclusion, and commitment. A new study examined the state of listening in U.S. organizations and found several areas in need of improvement. Findings show that female and non-management employees did not perceive that they were being listened to by management in their organizations. In addition, employees identified barriers to listening in their organizations, such as a lack of training in analyzing insights from employee listening.
An online survey of 300 U.S. employees was conducted in July of 2020, in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. The study was sponsored by a grant from the Arthur W. Page Center.
The results showed that both managers and non-management employees perceived that their leaders were not genuine in their interest in listening to employees and that “the organization only listens to what it wants to hear.” Managers need to act on the information gained through listening to employee feedback. Even if it is only an acknowledgment, employees want to know that their input matters – otherwise, they may decline to offer such input in the future.
Particularly concerning was our finding that employees were reluctant to share concerns about a flaw, problem, concern, or brewing issue. This reluctance was likely due to perceptions that management does not listen to “complainers” and that leaders are not genuinely interested in listening to them.
It also appeared that management is unaware of this issue, because they rated their organization’s effectiveness in collecting critiques, concerns, and dissent much more favorably than employees did, demonstrating an area of overconfidence and employee dissatisfaction.
These conditions foster a climate of silence with “two shared beliefs: 1) speaking up about problems in the organization is not worth the effort, and 2) voicing one’s opinions and concerns is dangerous” (Morrison & Milliken, 2000, p.714; Van Dyne et al., 2003). Some employees believed that identifying problems was discouraged in their organizations, leading to a spiral of silence. Operationally, a chilled communication climate can delay early problem identification and solutions through effective issues management. In contrast, employees are more willing to share their concerns when they perceive a low personal risk of isolation and believe that leadership is open to listening and supportive.
Based on these findings, we recommend that leaders prioritize listening to employees (not only customers) and invest in training so that they can do a better job collecting and analyzing the information gained from listening. In addition, they also need to effectively close the feedback loop by communicating to employees that they are listening and how they have implemented changes based on employee feedback. Listening effectively and with genuine empathy or action on follow-through can better the performance of an organization through creating more effective problem solving and employee engagement. These are lofty goals, but they suit both the interests of management and employees.
Marlene S. Neill, Ph.D., APR, Fellow PRSA, is an associate professor and graduate program director at Baylor University and teaches courses in advertising and public relations. Her research interests include public relations management and ethics. Neill worked for almost 12 years in government and nonprofit public relations.
Shannon Bowen, Ph.D., is professor at the University of South Carolina.
Reference:
The study is featured in the December issue of Public Relations Review (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0363811121001168) in the article titled “Employee perceptions of ethical listening in U.S. organizations.”
Additional Resources:
Morrison, E.W., & Milliken, F.J. (2000). Organizational silence: A barrier to change and
development in a pluralistic world. Academy of Management Review, 25(4), 706-725.
Neill, M.S., & Bowen, & S.A. (2021). Employee Perceptions of Ethical Listening in U.S.
Organizations. Public Relations Review, 47 (5). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2021.102123
Neill, M.S., & Bowen, S.A. (2021). Ethical Listening to Employees During a Pandemic:
New Approaches, Barriers & Lessons. Journal of Communication Management, https://doi.org/10.1108/JCOM-09-2020-0103
Van Dyne, L., Ang, S., & Botero, I. C. (2003). Conceptualizing employee silence and
employee voice as multidimensional constructs. Journal of Management Studies, 40(6), 1359–1392.
