Showing respect to your employees

Most managers respect the people who work for them. But often, that message doesn’t get through.

Why? Managers unthinkingly commit gaffes that send the wrong message to employees – “you aren’t truly valued as individuals.”

To ensure people know they’re appreciated, try these techniques:

1. Respect privacy
Make sure any discussions about personal or sensitive issues occur in private. Also, depending on your organization’s policy, refrain from or minimize monitoring of employees’ activities and communications.

2. Communicate individually
Blanket, admonitory e-mails or memos may occasionally have to be sent, but try to avoid them wherever possible. They make people feel like part of a balky, disobedient herd.

3. Discipline people, not teams
Sometimes managers issue group reprimands to avoid singling somebody out. But this has the same effect as the mistake in #2.

4. Know them as people
As a manager, you walk a fine line when it comes to workers’ personal lives. Some like to keep their non-work lives out of the workplace. But you should know what’s important to them as people.

5. Treat them like adults
If you micromanage employees’ behavior, it suggests you don’t trust them to do their jobs. Give them more control when you can.

6. Do unto others…
Managers should accord employees the same level of respect and dignity they themselves would like to be shown.

Source: “30 Reasons Employees Hate Their Managers,” by Bruce L. Katcher.