I once sat in an executive meeting where the SVP explained that Bob, a junior level executive who reported to her had “gotten away” with challenging her boss, the COO’s, ideas. She shared, “When Bob started to challenge him, I was really afraid for his career, but Joe (the COO) actually seemed okay with it.” She laughed as she said how lucky he was that he wasn’t fired, and how other people hadn’t faired so well in the past. Everyone else laughed along uncomfortably. Bob didn’t smile.I’m still wondering exactly why she shared that story. I think it was an attempt to portray her boss as more reasonable than his reputation allowed. But quite frankly, this one-off story reinforced that an executive really listening to someone a few levels below was not the norm.We all had a feeling that Bob had been sitting in the “ready now” box of the performance potential succession planning forever. He was a confident and humble rock star and we all knew it. His tenacity was highly valued with his immediate boss and amongst his peers, but something was holding him back.Maybe his willingness to speak up was part of the issue. I’m pretty sure everyone in the room left being just a little more cautious of what they said.If you’re keeping score, that’s not a sign of a listening culture.
11 Signs You Have a Listening Culture
My regular readers may have noticed I’m on a bit of a listening culture theme. In addition to how important listening is, there’s a pragmatic reason for the deep dive.After a meeting planner read my post,
What Happens When We Really Listen , she invited me to come work with 15 CEOs/CFOs of large manufacturing companies to talk about how to create a listening culture. I’m calling it,
Do You Hear Them Now: How to Build a Listening Culture . I’m headed out to conference this week, so I’m inviting you to continue to steep in, and weigh in on, what a listening culture looks and feels like. Ideas:
Sign #1: Imagination abounds: People at all levels are thinking about the business and sharing ideas.
Sign #2: Ideas trump titles: A great idea is a great idea, regardless of who thought of it.
Sign #3: Customer feedback is encouraged, not gamed: Employees at all levels are really listening to what customers are saying, not encouraging them to say what they to hear to improve their scorecard.
Sign #4: Feedback creates change: Feedback is taken seriously, and often acted upon.
Sign #5: Everyone is asking good questions: And getting real answers.
Sign #6: No one freaks out when an exec shows up unexpectedly: MBWA is just that (management by walking around), not
OCHTC (oh crap here they come). Sign #7: Meetings are conversations, not readouts: Meetings are used to make decisions and build relationships.
Sign #8: No one is shocked by the employee engagement survey results: Because they’ve been listening, they know what’s working and are already working on the trouble spots.
Sign #9: Hourly workers have regularly planned time to meet and share ideas about improving the business: Time “off-line” improves the business.
Sign #10: Employees feel an obligation to speak up when something feels stupid: Because they know they’ll be heard, they feel and obligation to share.
Sign #11: Personal issues are treated with compassion: Real listening happens when people open their hearts, set aside their biases, and care.
