Dr. Kathleen Miller Talks Performance Management

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Use the Crisis to Show Commitment and increase Morale

This entry was posted on 1/20/2007 3:27 PM and is filed under Performance Management,Leadership.

How can a company use a weather-related crisis to build employee morale? A couple of days ago, I got a call from a reporter for the San Antonio Express-News. The reporter told me that many companies in the local area were asking employees to take vacation days or days without pay when the companies closed their doors due to severe weather. She asked me whether I thought that this action would impact morale. Of course the actions companies take in this circumstance and others like it will impact morale! The journalists did a good job, in my opinion, of reporting on the issues. If you are interested in the details, read her column entitled "Business shutdown now hitting some workers in the pocketbook." My advice to the companies is to use this opportunity to increase morale by demonstrating commitment to the safety and well-being of employees. What a wonderful way to build loyalty and impact morale positively. Loyal, happy employees will always perform better than disgruntled ones. Company leaders have much to gain from reinforcing how much they value those who work for them and much to lose if they don't handle the crises with care. For concrete examples, read the Talk Back section where people responded to the San Antonio article.

Of course I don't know of all the possible circumstances and constraints at work in the San Antonio situation. Nor will I or should I second-guess all of the issues that had to be addressed by the company leaders in making decisions about how to handle missed days of work due to the storm. However, I do know that crises like this offer the leaders a wonderful opportunity to demonstrate and communicate how much they value their employees. Many of those who responded to the article in the Talk Back section discussed a variety of very positive approaches that companies took to the storm. For example, some let their employees make up the lost time. Others have a number of personal days set aside that employees can use for weather-related and other emergencies. I'm not advocating a one-solution-fits all. I am advocating looking for ways to demonstrate understanding, fairness, and care for employees in times of crisis.