Train Managers to Be Better Employee Advocates

When you look at how to get direct reports to perform better and increase productivity, there are many statistics out there to look to. In general, managers may find that their efforts to get the best results from team members may actually make the problem worse. A lot depends on how you structure work and communicate the expectations for each employee. Organizations as a whole can also create stress, sometimes unintentionally, for their employees through outdated policies and practices.

To help retain employees and increase satisfaction, companies must train their managers to be better employee advocates. You might be surprised, for example, to learn from the Canadian Centre for Management Development that 41 percent of women postponed having a child in the public sector because of work or they simply chose not to have a child at all. This is a statistic that should make us stop and think about how workplace well-being impacts personal well-being.