I am a little confused. If someone tells you
something and you believe their words to be true; then would not their actions
flesh out what they say? In order for them to be trustworthy I would say “yes”.
So if actions speak louder than words, it’s easy to see if words are true by
the action. Often times in business you
will here a company make claims to what they feel are their biggest asset. In a
small company most times if not all the time those assets are the employees.
(According to the company)
We are a team. Well that’s what they
say. We need to have open communication and work
together so that we can better position ourselves (the company) in the market
place. I don’t have a problem with that concept. But there is a problem when
the action and the words don’t mesh. I have two metaphors as examples.
First; my father in-law is big in
investing. He tells me all the time what mutual funds are good and which ones
to stay away from. Now I’m not well versed in investing and I (as of yet) do not
invest. But I do listen to the news on financial issues and listen to what they
say. My father in-law also gives good advice. From the way I understand it, if
you invest your money and in return increase with financial gain; that is
considered an asset.
Some synonyms for asset are; benefit, plus
point, advantage, quality and a positive feature. Now one thing investor’s will
say is “you are to protect your assets.”
Reinvest in those assets because they made you money. You should also protect them because
they are the foundation of your investment and are the strength from which it will grow”.
Sounds good right?
At the top of this column it was stated that a company would
say that they feel that their biggest asset are their employees. Yet it seems
at times that they are unwilling to reinvest and protect that asset. Protect by
investing in those assets and then those assets will have a return that will
not only strengthen the company, but with continued investments a company could
be number one in their market.
Second; there are times when a
company will use the team concept. “We’re a team and we need to work together
to be the best and win the race to be number one” That is another concept that
I do not have a problem with until…Let’s look at that metaphor for a moment.
In sports, if the team is doing
badly it’s usually the manager that is the one that takes the brunt of all the
criticism and if there is no improvement after a set time, they are the ones to
suffer the consequences and find themselves out of a job. The player’s position
and salary do not change. So with that scenario if a company says’s “We are a
team” and the company realizes that management made some mistakes, why should
the employee’s be the ones that are affected.
If management did or did not do some
things and the bottom line is affected should not management pay the
consequences? In sports the bottom line is position in their respective
division. If a team fails to make it to the championship in their respective
sport year after year, it would not be long till the ownership makes changes in
the management in hopes of better results. In business if company openly admits
that management made some mistakes and the bottom line suffered, should a
company; (a company that has made the statement that we are a team and we feel
the employees are our biggest asset) expect the employee to take the fall for a
mismanaged decision?
A work force that is determined to help the
company to reach its perspective goal should not suffer by the actions of
management. Yet often times they do. If decisions made hurt the company so bad,
the company may have to shut down. Then the team is fractured and is no more.
The employee is the one that is out of a job and the team no longer exists. In
some cases the employees may take wage and benefit cuts.
In today’s world with global trade
and marketing sometimes those changes may be legitimate and necessary. But if a
company openly admits that management and some of their decisions have affected
the bottom line, the employee should not have to suffer at all. Keep the team
together and reinvest in those assets and make changes that need to be made. If
change has been made give it time to work; if management and players are
together the race will be won and the position of the team will be on top. It
just may take some time. And in that time take nothing away and build on what
is there. In the end all will benefit, and there should be no confusion.
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