Unit 5 Employee RESPECT model

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Overview

It has been discussed in previous units about employee engagement and employee loyalty. You have learned so far that for organizations, it’s critical for leaders to be equipped with the knowledge and skills necessary to promote employee engagement. This unit examines the RESPECT model from both a micro- and macro-perspective. Welcome!

This unit is divided into the following topics:

  1. The RESPECT Model for Individual Employees;
  2. The RESPECT model for leaders;
  3. The Role and function of Stewardship for Employee Engagement.

Learning Outcomes

When you have completed this unit, you should be able to:

  • Reflect critically on the engagement practices and stewardship responsibilities of leaders in relation to their organization’s human resources (people), in terms of both the task and the people factors.
  • Analyze the effectiveness and shortcomings of an organization’s engagement and stewardship practices.
  • Assess the role of the leadership team, the Human Resources Department, and immediate supervisors in creating high employee loyalty.
  • Implement best practices and critical thinking skills in relation to employee engagement and stewardship from the point of view of an operational leader.

Resources

Online resources will be provided throughout this unit.

5.1 The RESPECT Model for Individual Employees

In his book, “Carrots and Sticks Don’t Work”, Dr. Paul Marciano (2010) introduces the reader to his RESPECT Model. Marciano describes The RESPECT Model as an actionable philosophy supported by more than a century of research on employee motivation and performance. It is not a program, but an approach to leadership and corporate governance that appeals to and affects employees’ beliefs, values, and sense of worth.

The Model is rooted in the premise that human relationships – both personal and professional – only “work” within the context of respect. Employee engagement depends upon the extent to which individuals:

  • Respect their organization – its Mission, Vision, values, goals, policies, and actions Employees are proud to say, “I work for this company.”
  • Respect the organization’s leaders, especially their direct supervisor – believing that he/she is competent, ethical, makes good decisions and treats people fairly.
  • Respect their team members – believing that they are competent, cooperative, honest, supportive and willing to pull their own weight.
  • Respect their work – finding it challenging, rewarding, interesting and as having value to both internal and external customers.
  • Feel respected by the organization, supervisor and fellow team members.

Critical Drivers

The RESPECT Model identifies seven critical drivers that influence employees’ internal assessment of respect and subsequent engagement:

Recognition: Employees feel acknowledged and appreciated for their contributions. Supervisors regularly recognize deserving team members and people are rewarded based on their work performance.

Empowerment: Supervisors provide employees with the tools, resources and training to succeed. Employees experience high levels of autonomy and are encouraged to take risks. Supervisors take the initiative to communicate with employees and ensure that they are equipped to succeed not fail.

Supportive Feedback: Supervisors provide employees with timely, specific feedback in a supportive, sincere and constructive manner. Feedback is delivered for the purpose of reinforcement and improvement – never to embarrass or punish.

Partnering: Team members and management collaborate to achieve common goals. Employees view supervisors as advocates for their development and growth. Team members and departments actively communicate and share information with one another.

Expectations: Supervisors ensure that goals, objectives and business priorities are clearly established and communicated. Employees know precisely the standards by which their performance is evaluated and are held accountable for meeting their performance expectations.

Consideration: Supervisors, managers, and team members demonstrate consideration, caring, and thoughtfulness toward one another. Supervisors actively seek to understand employees’ opinions and concerns and are understanding and supportive when employees experience personal problems.

Trust: Supervisors demonstrate trust and confidence in employees’ skills and abilities. Employees trust that their supervisor will “do right” by them. Leaders keep their promises and commitments, and, thus, are trusted by employees.

Critical thinking: As an employee of your organization, do you find it difficult to practice the RESPECT model at work? If so, what are the reasons for your barrier?

Learning Activity: Reflect about The Role and function of Stewardship for Employee Engagement - Questions to Consider

  • After completing the reading, consider the following questions:

5.2 The RESPECT model for leadership

Dr. Marciano (2010) states, “Great leaders create compelling visions and inspire others to give high levels of discretionary effort to support that vision. Powerful leaders are powerful because they invoke strong followership. The single most important factor in a leader’s ability to engage others is the extent to he/she treats followers with RESPECT. Followers who do not feel respected will rarely give more than the minimum necessary effort to meet expectations and collect their paycheck. No leader ever accomplished great things without the support of loyal and dedicated followers – and you only get such support when you treat others with RESPECT!”

For the leader the seven drivers of respect look as follows:

Recognition: Recognizes, acknowledges, and shows appreciation for others’ efforts and contributions

  • Regularly takes the time to let others know that their work is appreciated.
  • Makes sure that others get the credit they deserve.
  • Recognizes and rewards others based on their job performance.
  • Frequently gives “pats on the back” for a job well done.

Empowerment: Provides others with the tools, training, resources, opportunities, and information to be successful Provides information and direction to help others be successful.

  • Actively promotes development opportunities for others.
  • Encourages initiative and independence in others.
  • Makes sure others have the tools, resources, and skills to succeed.

Supportive Feedback: Delivers regular, constructive performance feedback in a positive and supportive manner

  • Regularly provides performance feedback to others.
  • Takes time to coach and mentor others.
  • Gives straightforward, sincere, and honest feedback.
  • Delivers corrective feedback in a constructive, helpful and positive manner.

Partnering: Fosters collaborative working relationships at the individual, team and organizational level

  • Promotes teamwork.
  • Actively reaches out to collaborate with others.
  • Encourages cross-departmental cooperation.
  • Negotiates and compromises with others.

Expectations: Sets clear expectations and holds people accountable

  • Holds others accountable for achieving goals and objectives.
  • Provides clear and consistent direction regarding work priorities.
  • Sets reasonable standards and expectations for others.
  • Clearly communicates goals and objectives.

Consideration: Shows thoughtfulness and consideration toward others

  • Considers impact on others before making decisions.
  • Considerate and thoughtful of others.
  • Actively seeks out and listens to others’ ideas and concerns.
  • Follows-up with others in a timely manner.

Trust: Demonstrates and engenders trust in others.

  • Trusts others to make good decisions.
  • Can be trusted to deal discretely with sensitive information.
  • Deals with people directly instead of talking behind their backs.
  • Keeps promises and commitments.

Overall, the leader demonstrates and practices respect for others by:

  1. Respecting their opinions.
  2. Treating them with respect and dignity.
  3. Treating them fairly and honestly.
  4. Showing respect for their skills, abilities and knowledge.

Learning Activity: Read and Reflect - The Role and function of Stewardship for Employee Engagement

  • Mirvis indicates the following in this book entitled “Corporate Stewardship” – “Stewardship entails a profound understanding and acceptance of the challenges that result from the organization’s interdependence with the societal and ecological contexts in which it operates—and of what it takes to embrace the challenges to be a force for building a viable future. This book dares to ask ‘why’ business leaders should embrace stewardship in the current market where profit reigns supreme. A shift in approach represents fundamental change for the corporate world, and even the most advanced corporations consider themselves to be in the starting block of this transition. The book sets out the practical ways in which corporate stewardship can be achieved through embedding new approaches across the different functions of a business” (p. 1).

Source: Mirvis, P. (2017). Stewardship and human resource management: Achieving sustainable effectiveness - From me to we to all of us. In Corporate Stewardship (pp.134-155). PA: Routledge publisher..

After completing the activity above, consider the following questions:

Learning Activity: Read and Reflect - Assigned article by “Hutama” et al. 

  • Based on the authors, Human resources (HR) have a very important role in an organization. Of course, by processing good human resources can drive the performance of an organization. This research was conducted at PT. XYZ, a company in the telecommunications sector in Indonesia. The purpose of this study is to determine the application of employee engagement, organizational culture conditions and performance at the company. The method used in this study is a quantitative method. This research is descriptive and causal research. The population in this study were employees of the PT. XYZ. Data analysis in this study used descriptive statistical analysis, normality test, multicollinearity test, heteroscedasticity test, and multiple regression analysis. The findings in this study concluded that employee engagement and organizational culture had a positive and significant influence partially on performance. In addition, it can be concluded that employee engagement and organizational culture have a significant simultaneous influence on performance (from the Abstract).

Source: Hutama, J.A.N., Sagala, E.J. (2019). Influence of employee engagement and organizational culture towards employee performance. Journal of Manajemen Bisnis, 9(2), https://doi.org/10.22219/jmb.v9i2.7939.

After completing the activity above, consider the following questions:

Learning Activity: Read and Reflect - Assigned article by “LaGree”

  • Based on the authors, today’s business leaders face an unprecedented challenge of engaging and retaining young workers. They examined two facets of workplace respect to determine how leaders might combat this issue. A model was tested to examine the relationship of respectful engagement, autonomous respect, and occupational resilience on job outcomes. A survey of 1,036 U.S. young workers aged 21 to 34, employed full time, revealed that autonomous respect was a stronger predictor of occupational resilience than respectful engagement. Additionally, there was a significant positive relationship between occupational resilience and job satisfaction, employee loyalty, and job engagement. Finally, the relationship of both respectful engagement and autonomous respect on job outcomes was positively mediated by occupational resilience, further substantiating the positive benefits of respectful communication on employees’ wellbeing and, ultimately, positive long-term business benefits (from the Abstract).

Source: LaGree, D., Houston, B., Duffy, M., Shin, H. (2021). The effect of respect: Respectful communication at work drives resiliency, engagement, and job satisfaction among early career employees. International Journal of Business Communication, 1(21), https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/23294884211016529.

After completing the activity above, consider the following questions:

Summary

Marciano (2010) and the textbooks by Bridger (chapter 2) and Peters (chapter 6) all indicate that there are two fundamental and different approaches to getting respect at the workplace. The first is through the use of fear and intimidation, which often involves control and manipulation. The second approach is through an attitude and actions that value and inspire the followers. They engage the heart and mind of the people (employees) around them. The readings for this Unit focus on the second approach. In addition, the term in leadership uses “transactional leadership” to name the first approach in getting respect at work. In MA in leadership, we use “servant leadership” or “transformational servant leadership” for the second approach. You can test both approaches for respect at work when you have time to do so.

References