I wrote “The Integrity Dividend,” so your mention popped up on my Google Alerts.

You are on the right track, of course. The scent of hypocrisy is a sure-fire damper on engagement. Likewise the perception that management has broken promises, and that those promises are undiscussable for fear of consequences.

It gets tricky when you realize these management failings are usually not due to character deficiency: living by your word, and being seen as doing so, is WAY WAY harder than it might seem. It calls on a discipline and a skill set that demands focused attention.

The full title of the book is “The Integrity Dividend: Leading by the Power of Your Word,” and I have a website at http://integritydividend.com.

Happy to weigh in. I hope I was able to move the conversation forward.

–Tony Simons

There is a great book out there called “The Integrity Dividend” and it addresses how integrity engages employees (and profits). People call this “trust,” but it is really integrity — you say you will do something and then you do it.

People may not agree with what you are doing, but they do agree that you are being honest.

I would love to get behind a corporate mission that did something other than make money for the company. But, I quickly come to my senses.

In a world where executive management will lay you off in a cold-blooded minute — while keeping their lofty bonuses and contractual severance agreements — why would an employee actually trust what management is telling them?

Bailouts, but still huge bonuses. 50,000 people laid off at Citigroup, but management is still saying the company is great.

Until this sort of disconnect between what management says and what they do, employee engagement is elusive at best.

To the detriment of both management and employees.

Employees have been beaten up for taking risks and attempting new initiatives after they have been “empowered” to do so. When the outcome is not successful, blame and shame is offered rather than learning; creating environments where engagement falls apart. Damage control needs to be done to this group – and perhaps first.

The organization and the manager earn it by clearly telling people exactly what’s expected of them and what they should expect from the organization and from the individual manager and then living up to their word.

Trust is such a key. And now we have some interesting research on “honest signals.” I plan to write about this shortly. Good point about the course and energy to engage.

David

No one opens up when they know the messenger is likely to be killed, but when they are truly safe you won’t be able to shut them up.