A company culture that encourages speaking up allows their employees to share and voice out their opinions, concerns and suggestions constructively on areas that can improve the company.
This nurtures a positive space for gathering ideas and perspectives from the employees, driving the company's continued success and improving overall camaraderie from enhanced employee engagement.
How can you encourage speaking up in your company culture?
Here are 3 key principles you can apply in doing so, using the POP acronym:
- Psychological safety
- Opportunity
- Part to play
1. Psychological safety
Psychological safety is arguably the fundamental core for truly effective speaking up in your company culture to happen.
Make a conscious effort to practice psychological safety, where your employees feel comfortable and secure to share their feedback more openly, even the 'negative' and 'unfavourable' ones without fear of retribution.
With this, an environment of collective trust can be further developed for a more genuine engagement of open communication and dialogue within your company.
2. Opportunity
Many a time, your employees are eager to contribute their perspectives for the betterment of your company. Hence, be proactive and inclusive as you provide them the opportunity to do so.
This can be done in many ways, depending on the situational context. Examples include:
- Opportunity to share feedback during a meeting
- Opportunity to ask questions during a company town hall
- Opportunity to participate in and provide input with an employee survey
Just be mindful to align your employees with the right mindset of respect and being constructive on this, as this opportunity should not be 'abused' to simply complain and voice out unhappiness that don't benefit the company.
3. Part to play
All your employees have a vital part to play for your company to succeed together. Be intentional in helping your employees realise and internalise this.
Only then will your employees care enough to speak up when necessary, knowing it is for the collective good together with the company. You don't want them to be apathetic or indifferent here.
Your employees need to know their input matters, is valued and taken into serious consideration as part of the company decision-making, even if not everything may be agreed upon or implemented.
Concluding remarks
Speaking up ought to be encouraged in your company culture, not just as a source of workplace improvement ideas from your employees, but also strengthening your company's overall employee engagement.
Foster psychological safety for your employees, giving them the opportunity with them recognising they all have a part to play in your "POP" together to great breakthroughs ahead.
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