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“Not only does it mean new perspectives, ideas and insight for the wider team, which can improve the organisation, but also employees who feel they can share feedback safely are more likely to be happy in their roles,” researcher Dr Janey Zheng says.
A research study by Durham University Business School revealed that employees who share the same goals as their manager are more likely to contribute their ideas or share concerns and feedback.
The study, involving over 800 employee-supervisor pairs in Chinese firms, examined how alignment on achievement goals and working standards between employees and their managers influenced the likelihood of employees speaking up with ideas, feedback or concerns.
By matching employees' answers with their leaders, the researchers, Dr Janey Zheng, Professor of Leadership, alongside her colleagues, Michele Williams from the University of Iowa, and Christina Wang and Jian Liang, both from Tongji University, identified that employees with similar goals and working standards to their supervisors were much more likely to speak up.
According to the study findings, employees align with their manager's goals when they are informed about them. Therefore, organisations were advised to consider pairing supervisors with employees who share similar goals to ensure a collected team voice.
Interestingly, employees were inclined to speak up regardless of their motivation for achievement or desire to excel, if their supervisor was on the same page. However, if an employee had high motivation for achievement, and a leader did not – or vice versa – then employees were less likely to speak up.
"Employees feeling as though they have a voice is highly important to an organisation," said Dr Zheng.
"Not only does it mean new perspectives, ideas and insight for the wider team, which can improve the organisation, but also employees who feel they can share feedback safely are more likely to be happy in their roles.
"Therefore, aligning the motivations of managers and workers should be a key goal for any organisation."
Here are some other key findings that were revealed in the study:
- Achievement-driven employees are more likely to speak up when they align with their supervisors, enhancing organisational oneness and identification, thereby fueling voice behaviour.
- Employees' discretionary communication of ideas to managers aids in making higher-quality decisions. Employee voice reflects a motivational process involving actively seeking feedback and advocating for changes at work.
- Achieving personal goals fosters feelings of significance, supported by social rewards and a sense of fulfilment from goal striving.
- Strong person-organisation fit generated through positive experiences of pursuing work goals boosts identification with the organisation.
- The psychological merging of self with the organisation mediates the relationship between employee-supervisor alignment in striving for achievement, and employee decision to voice their concerns.
So, what should organisations and managers do to enhance the communication and relationship with their employees? Here are seven ways to consider:
1. Foster alignment: Managers should align their achievement goals with those of employees to encourage open communication and idea sharing.
2. Utilise alternative methods: Use team-building programmes and motivational activities to create motivation congruence when direct matching of goals isn't feasible.
3. Promote based on achievement striving: Consider promoting high achievement-striving employees to roles with more advancement opportunities, enabling them to voice issues to similarly motivated managers.
4. Encourage a proactive voice: Recognise the importance of employee voice in generating innovative solutions and enhancing organisational effectiveness.
5. Mitigate complacency: Ensure both employees and supervisors strive for excellence, innovation, and improvement to avoid creating a culture of complacency.
6. Enhance organisational identification: Develop positive supervisor-employee interactions to boost internal motivation and encourage employee voice.
7. Value diverse work motivations: Acknowledge and support the career goals of employees with different levels of achievement striving, as their contributions are vital for organisational stability.
ALSO READ: Saying “keep up the good work” is what motivates the most employees in the office
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