Look beyond just a pulse check survey to know your teams

Heart is ‘the heart and the brain’ of any organization.

I mean it. It doesn’t matter how great an idea is, or how important the purpose is, if people that are meant to work together for the organization are not happy in the organization, nothing would make sense.

So, to evaluate if the heart is working fine, being able to check the pulse of the organization is a natural ask. But how do we do that?

Google it and you will get a hundred ways of conducting pulse surveys across a hundred different pages. But surveys, really? I am not against the many pulse surveys that we conduct from time to time. On the contrary, I think these pulse surveys let people come up with many unknown variables that we would otherwise miss. But they are definitely, a hundred percent, not enough.?

Regardless, checking the pulse is not always about finding what’s wrong with people. Let me explain. Have you ever run in your life? As a kid, as a grown up? Ever? I am sure you have. What did you do when you found yourself gasping for breath after a while? Most probably, you stopped for a minute, you put your hand on your heart, you took a few deep breaths until you felt normal again, you took a swig of water, and when you were ready again, you ran again.?

The truth is even when you are healthy, you need to keep track of your pulse to keep control of your pace and breath. Checking the organization’s pulse is about finding ways to build a stronger heart, a more healthy team that is prepared to move forward.

So, how do we do that??

Engage with people at an individual level.?

Engage with the new (employees) and the old (employees). Many times, the more tenured employees are taken for granted when it comes to engagement. They are, infact, in a way used to establish belongingness and inspire loyalty among the new ones. But that’s where all hell breaks loose at times. They need attention, appreciation and push to ambition, as much as a new entrant does.?

Be very deliberate about going out and knowing people and be genuinely interested. One of the ways I would practise to know my people was management by walking around. In the evolved virtual work models, I try to randomly catch up with people on Zoom or Whatsapp, over black coffees and green tea. Different people have different ways of doing that. And that’s alright. I would love to know what’s your way of engaging with people at an individual level. Let’s share and learn.

Exhibit vulnerability to inspire vulnerability.

Vulnerability is a very popular term today. It’s usage in theory has been done to death but when it comes to applicability, we can do much more and much better. Leaders, in this case, do not have a choice.

If we don’t show our weaknesses, we won’t be approachable and if people don’t find it easy to open up to us about their concerns and fears, it’s on us.

They need to relate to us and know that it’s ok to feel anxious or scared or worried, that it’s not a weakness to share a weak point. And for them to be able to do that, they need to relate to leaders.

And for that to happen, leaders need to pave the way by sharing their disappointments, their insecurities and asking for answers. If we don’t communicate that, we are in no position to be a leader.?

Create communication forums, open 24*7

No matter how vulnerable you are, there will be some members in your team and there will be some times when people will not feel comfortable opening up to anyone. Provide them with alternatives. Create online forums where they can write and post their concerns anytime of the day.

Identify leaders within the scope of defined leadership?

Some members in your team may not be in managerial roles yet, but they could exhibit strong collaboration and communication skills. Identify and leverage those skills.?

We have talked tons about how to check the pulse of teams/organizations. But we must note that none of the above points are viable or constructive, if organizations have not invested enough on establishing cogent and efficient structures, policies and culture.

There should be structures, policies and culture to follow. If your organization’s structure does not allow/facilitate people to connect, you won’t ever be able to track your organization’s pulse.

Who is responsible for keeping track of the pulse of the organization?

Let me put it this way - who do you deem responsible for maintaining harmony at home? Is it your Dad or Mom or your extended family? There is no one in particular and there is every member for all. It’s the same with any institution. That said, in reference to the context, Mom and Dad, the unsaid leaders of the family are the most accounted for.?

Some view pulse evaluation as the HR team’s responsibility. And that’s why, more often than not, pulse checking is assumed as more of a survey than a way of life in an organization, just like breathing.

It’s every individual’s responsibility to keep track and note of what’s going on around them, especially anyone and everyone whose role requires managing people.