The human mind works like a machine in that it tends to follow patterns; but once this is acknowledged, one can begin to change a behavior. This concept can also be used to influence behaviors in a positive and encouraging way to change the collective culture of a team, noted Wendy Schram, operational excellence improvement specialist for Dow Chemical.
To instill commitment within one’s employees is a management skill every business professional should master, she commented. Some may disagree and feel if an employee complies, stays within set guidelines and boundaries, and performs the job as expected, then the role of the manager is fulfilled. Others feel the only way to achieve superior levels of performance is to go beyond compliance. Only committed employees will self-manage and do what is best for the company when there are no processes or procedures in place, Schram noted.
Compliant employees only do what they are told. They simply go through the motions and do not perform out-of-the-box thinking. “Typically, they’re doing just enough to keep their job,” Schram said. Each leader should make it his or her quest to expect excellence from each employee, and that starts with creating a culture of commitment.
To change performance, an employee needs to possess a certain level of intrinsic motivation about their work, goals and leader. Oftentimes employees lack a clear understanding of how their goals align with the organization’s strategy and business. The direction and objectives must be inspirational and offer real meaning and purpose. Without this commonality, compliance is substituted for engagement.
“A motivated, committed person will soon become unhappy if their boss is someone they do not trust and respect,” Schram explained. “If a leader doesn’t follow through with what has been demanded, then mistrust grows and it becomes impossible to think beyond the ‘survival mode.'”
She noted to sustain culture change, especially in an environment where safety is expected, one needs to speak the future into the culture.
“Your influence on culture is stronger than you believe,” Schram said.
When a leader claims to embrace certain values but acts in a manner at odds with them, then the culture shifts downward and a high turnover rate becomes likely.
“Trust and respect have to be earned, which takes consistency of word and action over time,” Schram said at the Operational Excellence in Refining and Petrochemicals Summit held recently in Houston.
If your initiative is to drive commitment, then state the “why” to accompany the goal so people become engaged and committed. It is not enough to formulate policies and develop regulations. Determine if leaders are aligned with the organization’s culture and are self-motivated to bring the best out of people. If not, the culture will never be committed, only compliant. The emotional quotient of great leaders eclipses the intelligence quotient every time, Schram added. Your people must select you as their leader — an act that’s driven by their passions and interests and how they perceive them to be in sync with your own.
“Obviously, you want the compliant to understand and agree with the rationale behind the policies and regulations to ensure safety, but you need their commitment to do the right thing for the right reasons,” she said.
“If one is truly committed, compliance is rarely an issue.
“With well-placed modeling, a good leader can instill this distinction in others. Schram noted when cultural change is expected to begin in the workplace, each employee falls in a category: innovators (2.5 percent), early adapters (13.5 percent), early majority (34 percent), late majority (34 percent) or laggards (16 percent).
Laggards, she said, will always be present in a professional environment, and nothing can persuade them to change. So don’t place your efforts on that group. Instead, focus on the first half so they can become your cheerleaders. Once you have the commitment of the vast majority, then you will have the compliance of the unpersuaded ones.
“People perform in a certain way because of behaviors, because of the set culture, but there is a tipping point,” Schram said. “When I hear other people saying the words of change, even when I am not there, then I have reached the tipping point of commitment, and culture change will begin.”
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