Dennis Moseley-Williams

I have said before that good teams do not happen by accident. They are carefully developed and nurtured and require a social contract between employer/leader and the employee/team member. It is also true that there is a fine line between a disgruntled employee and willing and engaged team member. The disgruntled employee seeks opportunities to gain power in their work environment while a team member realizes that power lies in fully engaging in the effort required for victory.

In the Experience Economy a disgruntled employee can be a liability to your brand and business by failing to do their job properly and potentially causing the service to your customers to suffer. The key is to prevent your team members from becoming disgruntled employees in the first place. And just how do you do that?

Ask your employees how they’re doing on a regular basis — A simple “Hey, how are you?” can go a long way to showing your employees you care about them. If you never take the time to show interest in the well-being of your employees, they’ll feel like you don’t value them and you aren’t concerned about them. And why would anyone want to work for someone who doesn’t care about them?

Encourage your employees — In too many cases, management takes a negative tone and approach with employees. Rather than encouraging and motivating them, they pick them apart and point out their faults. You need to focus on inspiring your employees. Keep a positive tone and give them encouragement on a regular basis.

Show your employees you trust them — A lack of trust kills the boss-employee relationship. If you want your employees to trust and respect you, you have to return the favor. It truly is a two-way street.

Focus on career development — No one wants to feel like they’re going to be stuck at their current job forever. When employees feel like they’ve reached a dead end, they lose motivation and begin to hate their jobs. You need to take an interest in the development of your employees. Find ways to help them grow within your company.

Keep your employees current on company happenings — It’s important to keep your employees in the loop. Good relationships are built on communication. If your employees feel like they don’t understand the bigger picture, they’re not going to take an interest in doing their very best at their jobs and helping the company succeed. Your employees want to feel like they matter…like they’re really a part of the team. Communicate with them and keep them current on company happenings. That means you actually need to listen to them and use their feedback too.

No leader/employer or employee/team member is perfect. However, in the end result though, as a leader/employer, you can only do so much. At the heart of the matter the employee still needs to make a fundamental decision about their personal desire to be a part of the team. On a sport team when a team member starts behaving and thinking like an employee they get traded. It seems then that being disgruntled is not a right but a choice.