Halley on her blog points to an article on dysfunctional companies that, while not all encompassing, is potentially a real eye opener for some executive level folks at many companies. The article only goes over 3 signs of a dysfunctional company, none of which speak to the morale of employees in general.
What does it say about corporate America when even the signs of being dysfunctional only concern themselves with CEO's and high ranking executives. It should not be news to anyone that people make up most companies and you can tell a great deal about the health of company by understanding how the employees feel and act in regards to their job and company. My thought is by the time the top level executives realize they are dysfunctional, the rest of the company is a walking zombie at best.
The number of dysfunctional companies seems to have grown in recent years with many famous debacles behind us like Enron, WorldCom, and even good old Fannie Mae. When companies ejected the concept of employee-employer loyalty in the 80's I think they removed a foundational relationship component that helped companies to remain functional. There were certainly problems even with this relationship but I believe more people were looking out for the good of the company as much as for their own good. Today people only look out for themselves because many companies have made it clear they are not looking out for the employees.
1 comment:
Eric, Your post re company dysfunction and a previous post re bullying in schools are related! It is human nature, despite what we would like to think about how evolved we are, to resort to defensive attacks when we feel threatened. Research supports this regression to fight-flight-fright-feeding frenzies (in this case feeding on each other) when people feel pressured or the threat of loss. And research supports that we humans experience this primitive response to change--any change, even the ones we claim to like. So while we pride ourselves on being change-eager creatures, in reality, we dash for the door, hide under our desks, smile and agree to do things when we have no intentio of doing so, or simplly check out in apathetic wax-on-wax-off approaches to our work. Consider this natural response to stress in the school systems. Kids feel pressured, undervalued, denigrated by a school system that treats them as one-size-fits-all. To uphold their own esteem, to save face so to speak, they lash out at others. And, due to the surival of fittest rule that still reigns, they lash out at anyone who seems different or weak--as those were the people who were the ones attacked back when our species was hairier and when anyone who looked different signalled danger and was, therefore, up for attack.
Now consider this in corporate America. In the new era where there is no loyalty or guarantee from the top despite how well you perform or how loyal you might be, it is natural to assume a defensive stance. In today's world, rather than throw barbs, we thow barbed words; instead of running for the door of the cave, we run from taking on extra work; we become hotheaded or we check out in apathy. And all of this affects corporate psyches. While it may be a reflection of the leadership, I agree with you that the temperature of the organization itself is a better indicator of the company's postiioning for success.
Post a Comment