The Two-Way Street of Manager-Employee Relationships

Sept. 28, 2010 - PRLog -- Chicago, IL – September 28, 2010 – In marriage, honest, open communication is critical to the relationship’s success.  Such communication is just as important in the workplace relationship between managers and their employees.  Today, more and more organizations are shifting away from a top-down management structure.  Managers are now positioning themselves on the same level as their employees, serving as a resource for them while simultaneously helping them become more Engaged.  As a result, Engaged employees create a more positive experience for their company’s customers, leading to higher customer satisfaction and brand loyalty.

Engaged Employees want their voices to be heard and enjoy contributing ideas that improve a current business practice or solve an existing problem.  According to HR Solutions’ International Normative Database, almost three-quarters (70 percent) of employees believe their supervisor supports employee suggestions that are meant to correct existing problems while nearly 65 percent feel they have an opportunity to participate in decisions made by their supervisor that affect their work environment.  While these scores show that most managers are listening, there is still room for improvement.

For many years, managers have been tasked with monitoring and improving the Engagement levels of their employees; however, for the first time employees are now taking a shared responsibility for their own Engagement.  The Personal Employee Engagement Report (PEER®), which gives employees an opportunity to understand their own level of workplace Engagement (Actively Engaged, Ambivalent, or Actively Disengaged) and provides them with best practice recommendations for improvement, is a coaching tool that builds Engagement and improves supervisory relations, breaking down communication barriers between managers and employees.

“Manager-employee relationships are a two-way street.  Without mutual communication and respect, developing and improving such relationships will be quite difficult,” said Kevin Sheridan, CEO/Chief Consultant at HR Solutions.  “While managers still need to be held accountable for their employees’ Engagement, employees should work in accordance with their leaders to build personal Engagement.”

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HR Solutions’ International Normative Database is comprised of over 3.3 million survey respondents from 2,400 organizations across various industries.

About HR Solutions, Inc.: Noted for its comprehensive research and actionable data, HR Solutions, Inc. is an International Human Capital Management Consulting Firm located in Chicago, IL, specializing in Employee Engagement and Exit Survey design, implementation, and results. For more information, please visit www.hrsolutionsinc.com or call 312-863-6157.