Why Speaking Up at Work is Usually the Last Resort for Desperate Employees

Awards shows are everywhere these days, especially at this time of year.

While I am not a big fan of most of these, the award that does often amuse me is for best newcomer in a field.

Invariably, the winner may be new to most of the audience but has actually been working hard and unnoticed for years to get to this point.

They are not a newcomer at all, just new to a decent sized audience.

In many areas of life, an awful lot goes on before any visible signs take place.

When a book is published or a film released, it is the product of hundreds or thouands of hours of effort, sometimes by a large number of people.

But all most of us see is the end result.

The same is true when people speak up about something that is wrong in the workplace.

For all the talk of making it safe to challenge in large organisations, many employees would likely say that it is harder than ever.

The corporate mantra that we must all repeat that everything is marvellous despite evidence to the contrary grows ever stronger.

While all the time the emperor continues to parade in their birthday suit, patting themselves on the back for how great they are.

If someone does speak up, they are quickly told to stop being so negative and to get back on message.

But what many senior leaders miss is that when somebody does raise an issue or makes a complaint, they are likely at the end of their tether rather than having just come across something wrong.

Corporate life is often so controlled that many of us accept the latest nonsense in the hope that if we say nothing it will quickly go away just like every other initiative has before.

If it does linger and cause us problems, we may tentatively point out that it is making our jobs harder, not easier.

We are normally ignored and told that we do not see the bigger picture.

For someone to properly raise an issue of concern takes a huge amount of courage and resolve.

In short, if somebody is speaking up when they know that it will bring them grief, things must have got really bad!

What is more, for every person that does speak up, there are likely many more who feel exactly the same way but for a variety of reasons do not feel able to speak up themselves.

I know this from personal experience both as a speaker and as someone who has remained silent.

When I do challenge, I am inevitably told by others that I am saying what everybody else is thinking.

While I would welcome a few more people speaking up with me, I really cannot fault them for not doing so given the grief I have endured for challenging in the past.

I have also kept quiet when deeply unhappy and still do regularly.

It is not about just accepting things and getting on with the job.

It is that challenging things in a big organisation is stressful, hard work, and exhausting.

If you have other things going on in your life, such as health challenges or family issues, it may very well be the right decision not to put your head above the parapet at work as well.

But this culture of making it difficult to challenge, and shaming those who do, needs to end.

People speak up because they want things to be better for everybody, and indeed for the organisation as a whole.

Most employees know their jobs far better than even their immediate manager, let alone the senior leaders that they seldom, if ever, meet.

But more than likely these people are also on the front line with the customers on which the business depends.

Their input and insights are vital to the continued success of the organisation.

Rather than telling them to be quiet and get on with the job, which is what usually happens at present however it is dressed up as something different, they should be actively encouraged to suggest improvements.

This is about more than having a staff suggestions box.

It is about actively listening to your people and properly considering what they say.

Not all suggestions will be workable and possible to accept.

In those cases, feed back to the person concerned why this will not work at the moment.

They will feel heard and valued, and perhaps can then have another idea which will be feasible.

This information should be gold dust for senior managers.

But rather than doing all they can to mine it and extract every last drop of wisdom, they play whack a mole and stamp down hard on anyone who speaks up.

It is not only an appalling way to treat people for whom you have a duty of care, it is self-defeating and it is harming the organisation.

People do no raise issues lightly – they have seen what happens to others who do, and they are not fooled by the empty words that it is safe to challenge.

Those with the courage to speak up should be rewarded not punished.

When someone has reached the stage that they can no longer keep quiet despite the risk to themselves, they really should be heard.

I hope that I am wrong, but I cannot see it changing any time soon.