According to our recent guest, the pandemic has exacerbated an age-old problem: low employee engagement and productivity. In this episode of Transform Your Workplace, Brandon Laws sits down with Joe Galvin, Chief Research Officer of Vistage. The two discuss how to overcome the latest workplace challenges, engage remote/hybrid employees, and boost productivity.
GUEST AT A GLANCE
A thought leader on small and midsized business strategy, Joe Galvin is the Chief Research Officer for Vistage. Joe has spent his career researching and presenting to business leaders around the world on topics such as customer management, sales performance and strategy, and employee productivity and engagement.
A QUICK GLIMPSE INTO OUR PODCAST
🔊 Podcast: Transform Your Workplace, sponsored by Xenium HR
🎙️ Host: Brandon Laws
📋 In his own words: “The Transform Your Workplace podcast is your go-to source for the latest workplace trends, big ideas, and time-tested methods straight from the mouths of industry experts and respected thought-leaders.”
DEFINING TERMS
Quiet quitting may be a new term, but it’s not a new concept. According to guest Joe Galvin, Chief Research Officer of Vistage, “quiet quitting has been in existence as long as people have worked.” It’s the concept of employees meeting only the accepted standards and not trying to do more.
“I think that Covid forced us all, at some point, to rethink our personal priorities and purpose,” Joe explained. And for a lot of people, that meant rethinking work itself, which is evident in the Great Resignation that today’s workplace has experienced. Pair this revelation of purpose with the hybrid/remote work model that has arisen due to Covid, and we’ve got an epidemic of quiet quitting that is difficult for leadership to rein in.
But all hope isn’t lost. Joe says that “it’s about the manager, the leadership team, and it’s about setting the appropriate expectations.” Leaders must be intentional about engaging their teams, communicating clearly, and keeping standards high if they want to see higher productivity in a post-Covid workplace.
PODCAST EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
Seizing the Day
“Quiet quitting […] opens up a tremendous opportunity to unleash workforce productivity. […] It’s the leadership and the manager’s challenge to set the appropriate levels of standards and expectations, to find the right activities, to put forward the right task, and to measure those outcomes and hold people accountable for it. And you know what? If I can get it done in four hours, but it takes you eight, that’s your problem, not my problem.”
Shifting Times
“In the 1950s, 60s, and 70s even, you had to be at your desk because everything was paper-based, and that’s where the people were. Then, in the 90s, we started getting desktop computers, but we were all hardwired into that system, so we still had to be in the office to access the information, the systems, and the people. Then, we moved to the modern office, but more importantly, we see that everyone’s gone from desktops to laptops, so mobility’s there. We’ve gone from hardwired to wifi, so the connectivity’s there. And now we’ve got the collaboration capabilities that allow us to connect with people. So long story short, this evolution […] is going to create a whole opportunity for companies to thrive and for others to really struggle.”
Keeping Up the Illusion
“I think quiet quitting begins with the individual. Not everyone is a type A. Not everyone wants to go forth and be all they can be. CEOs wonder how they can trust that their people are working well. I guarantee you the people that aren’t working at home are the same people that weren’t working in the office. They just spend a lot more energy creating the illusion of activity.”
Wasting Time
“The single most unproductive act of any workforce is commuting. Commuting is the single biggest waste of time, productivity, and emotional energy there is. You take that away, and it frees people up. And having said that, in this new environment, it’s about creating the right connections and the right environment to allow people to do those tasks, the things that they do individually, their work.”
Holding the Power
“There are still two jobs for every job applicant, and as long as that dynamic stays in place, workers have the power. Should we experience a Great Recession and massive layoffs and all this unemployment, then you know what? Then leaders could say, ‘You must be in the office.’ And you know what? I’ll say, ‘Well, yeah, I need a job, so I’ll be in the office.’ But you tell me to be in the office now? I’ll nod my head, and then I’ll find a job that’s going to align with how I want to work, whether fully remote or hybrid.”
Educating Leaders
“Pause and think about this for a minute. No one’s job changed more as a result of the pandemic than the boss’s. They were used to working with employees in the office where they could see them, talk to them, pat people on the head, and have lunch to do that. Now they’ve got remote employees and managing remote employees and managing those relationships and managing the workflow — it’s an entirely different proposition. […] What are you doing to prepare your leaders to really pull through the productivity gains that are possible in this hybrid environment where we allow people to do individual tasks in isolation?”
A New Perspective on Work
“Again, it’s all about flexibility. It’s recognizing that it’s not about attendance and hours worked, but it’s about the deliverables and the timeliness and quality of those deliverables. And if they’re meeting your expectations, what do you care if I do it in four hours or 12 hours when it comes to hiring?”
LEARN MORE
To read one of Vistage’s recent reports, “Build a Better Boss,” and other leadership resources, go to the Research Center on vistage.com.