MANAGEMENT TOOLS - Take a stand against poor people management - ‘Five-a-day’ fundamentals of good management published

CIPD and Acas publish “five-a-day management fundamentals” to help raise UK productivity

11/06/2009

ACAS and the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development (CIPD) are urging business leaders and government to take a stand against poor people management, which the organisations say is too often the cause of bullying, conflict and stress in the workplace and a significant factor in the UK’s productivity gap.

The CIPD and Acas have today published joint guidance on how to be a better boss, and urge government to help address the UK’s people management skills deficit.

CIPD chief executive Jackie Orme and Acas Chief Executive John Taylor are launching the ‘five-a-day’ fundamentals of good management at their joint Resilience through recession conference because of their belief that the country faces a huge challenge to raise the level of people management skills among its 4 million managers if it is to improve the productivity of UK plc.

The ‘five-a-day’ management fundamentals developed from CIPD and Acas research and practical experience of management development are grouped under the following headings:

· Managing work now and in the future;
· Managing the team;
· Managing the individual;
· Managing conflict and difficult situations;
· Managing yourself.

Under each heading, there are practical tips for managers to follow to become a better boss (see below for the full list of “management fundamentals”).

The CIPD and Acas are also publishing a discussion paper Meeting the UK’s people management skills deficit, which sets out the evidence on the importance of good people management, evidence of the poor quality of UK line management in comparison to our international competitors, and recommendations for employers and government.

The paper highlights research showing that while line managers are key to employee engagement they are also the category of staff most likely to be bullies in organisations and are one of the top causes of conflict and work-related stress. It also reveals that employees score their line managers particularly badly on the extent they make clear what is expected of them, provide feedback on their performance, discuss their training and development needs or coach them on the job.

CIPD Chief Executive Jackie Orme said:

“Standards of line management in the UK are all too often poor. If we’re to close the productivity and skills gaps with our international competitors, we need to improve the management capability of our front-line managers.

“Business needs to recognise the potentially costly truth that employees join good organisations, and leave bad line managers. It is the quality of day-to-day line management which will decide whether your employees will stay and put in the extra effort needed for your organisation to emerge fighting fit as the economy recovers. Now is the time for Government to use all its efforts to help drive up the standards of good people management.”

Acas Chief Executive John Taylor said:

“Line management behaviour is central to the degree people learn and develop at work, their wellbeing and resilience and ultimately their commitment and productivity. These people management skills are more critical than ever as the UK's economy emerges from recession and positions itself for the recovery...

...Good line managers are good role models in today’s modern workplace. Managers are key to flexible working practices being embedded effectively and their ability to fully engage with employees and their representatives will be key to ensuring organisational productivity in the future. Line managers increasingly play a vital role in developing and supporting learning at work and they are at the heart of effective stress, conflict and absence management.”

The CIPD and Acas are calling on the Government to allocate a greater proportion of public funding on skills specifically to the development of people management skills among SMEs, which they believe will help make the most of its wider investment in skills.

The two organisations would also like to see more government support for the effective communication and marketing to employers of the business case for developing people management skills, so that employers of all types and sizes are encouraged to invest in this key area of competence in people management.
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Study - 2 of 5 Bosses Don't Keep Word

A Florida State University study shows nearly 2 out of every 5 bosses are dishonest and more than a quarter bad mouth their employees to co-workers.

And those all-too-common poor managers create plenty of problems for companies as well, leading to poor morale, less production and higher turnover.

Coping with abusive supervision: The neutralizing effects of ingratiation and positive affect on negative employee outcomes

Abstract

We conducted a study to test the interactive effects of abusive supervision, ingratiation, and positive affect (PA) on strain (i.e., job tension and emotional exhaustion) and turnover intentions. We hypothesized that employees' use of ingratiation, when coupled with high levels of PA, would neutralize the adverse effects of abusive supervision on each outcome. Conversely, ingratiation tactics were hypothesized to have a detrimental influence on work outcomes in conditions of increased abusive supervision when employees' PA was low. Partial support was found for each hypothesis, with results indicating that low PA individuals who refrained from ingratiation experienced more strain and turnover intentions than other individuals. Implications of these results as well as strengths, limitations, and avenues for future research are discussed.

Keywords: Abusive supervision; Coping; Positive affect; Ingratiation

"They say that employees don't leave their job or company, they leave their boss,'' said Wayne Hochwarter, an associate professor of management in the College of Business at Florida State University, who joined with two doctoral students at the school to survey more than 700 people working in a variety of jobs about how their bosses treat them.

"No abuse should be taken lightly, especially in situations where it becomes a criminal act,'' said Hochwarter.

Employees stuck in an abusive relationship experienced more exhaustion, job tension, nervousness, depressed moods and mistrust, the researchers found. They found that a good working environment is often more important than pay, and that it's no coincidence that poor morale leads to lower production.

"They (employees) were less likely to take on additional tasks, such as working longer or on weekends, and were generally less satisfied with their job,'' the study found. "Also, employees were more likely to leave if involved in an abusive relationship than if dissatisfied with pay.''

Over 700 people were surveyed about the way they're treated at work.

Here's what they found;

• 39% said their supervisor failed to keep promises.
• 37% said their supervisor failed to give credit when due.
• 31% said their supervisor gave them the "silent treatment" in the past year.
• 27% said their supervisor made negative comments about them to other employees or managers.
• 24% said their supervisor invaded their privacy.
• 23% said their supervisor blamed others to cover up mistakes or to minimize embarrassment.

Workers in bad situations should remain optimistic, Hochwarter said. "It is important to stay positive, even when you get irritated or discouraged, because few subordinate-supervisor relationships last forever,'' he said. "You want the next boss to know what you can do for the company.''

And workers should know where to turn if they feel threatened, harassed or discriminated against, whether it is the company's grievance committee or finding formal representation outside the employer.

"Others know who the bullies are at work,'' Hochwarter said. "They likely have a history of mistreating others.''

Hochwarter also recommended some methods to minimize the harm caused by an abusive supervisor.

"The first is to stay visible at work,'' he said. "Hiding can be detrimental to your career, especially when it keeps others in the company from noticing your talent and contributions.''

The study was conducted by mail. Workers surveyed included men and women of various ages and races in the service industry and manufacturing, from companies large and small. The results of the study were released in the Fall 2007 issue of The Leadership Quarterly, a journal read by consultants, managers and executives.

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