Page 10 - Aaron Quartullo of Biltmore Pro Print

The Door Is Always Open
Teamwork
#1 – The Ongoing Denial
The first thing to be done is to con- front the denial from leadership that the problem actually exists. Without that action, any subsequent attempt at honest communication becomes nothing more than an exercise in fu- tility. Their denial is just another man- ifestation of the collective corporate ego in that those at the upper levels of leadership simply refuse to believe that there is anything wrong with how they or any of their peers behave. This is due to that fact that subconsciously many of them feel that being a man- ager/leader/executive automatically gives them free reign to act in what- ever manner they want.
Subsequently, the mindset of those in charge ultimately becomes – “Those problems don’t happen at this compa- ny!” In reality, they happen every day.
– Or Is It?
By Brian Ray
Unfortunately, it is clearly evident in today’s business climate that the majority of managers and executives have lost a significant portion of not only their listening skills, but also their interpersonal relationship skills when it comes to engaging employees.
Ironically, across the corporate world these days many companies have the walls of their respective locations decorated with various positive statements regarding how upstanding their values are, that their employees matter, and that communication is encouraged.
In particular, many companies now claim to have an open door policy when it comes to issue resolution and/or the presentation of ideas. However, in many cases this policy exists on a superficial level only, with the sad truth being that many of these so-called empowering programs are merely an exercise of smoke and mirrors to make the working environment appear better than it actually is.
So, no matter what industry the company happens to be a part of, everyone who has ever worked within the corporate environment can cite multiple examples in which a manager or other leader has been utterly unapproachable due to myriad reasons. These can include the manager’s inflated ego, lack of empathy or even a lack of awareness. So, quite bluntly, if the employees don’t find their managers approachable, then it doesn’t matter how open a company policy claims to be, because it just won’t be utilized by the people it is designed to help.
Remedying this type of situation can be extremely difficult as it requires addressing and correcting the very dynamic that permeates the atmosphere of the workplace involved, requiring a high level of determination and strength of character.
Now let’s take a look at a few of the major components of this issue:
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