Company Culture and Employee Voice

Company Culture and Employee Voice Fostering the Right Culture and Heeding to the Voice of Your Employees An employee’s voice is a powerful element that can influence an organization’s culture. If you have an effective employee voice, you will know what is going on in your organization. Organizations that are open to receiving employee feedback on a regular basis give their employees the opportunity to be heard and to be able ‘speak their mind.’ It is a process of encouraging employee engagement and indirectly involving them in the decision making process. Due to the fear of being misjudged or unappreciated, there are times when individuals hesitate to share their views openly. Trust is essential. Employees will only speak up when they feel safe and when they know their opinions will be valued and acted upon.  Valuing the employee’s voice helps in building their trust. Keeping forums anonymous protects the employee’s identityâ€"helping leaders to focus on the employee’s opinions, rather than whose opinion it is! An important part of 360training.coms culture is open communication. Our employees can voice their ideas, suggestions, and even their opinions on processes, activities or management styles through various avenues, surveys, and platforms. Some of these avenues are: New Employee On-Boarding Experience Survey Employee Satisfaction Surveys Brown Bag Sessions 360 Manager/Supervisor Review Survey Recreational/Employee Engagement Activities Survey Brutal Facts (voicing opinions directly to the CEO anonymously) Exit Interviews However, since communication is a two-way process, it is imperative that the leaders share their feedback to the employees as well. In order to nurture the right organizational culture and incorporate the company’s values, regular feedback is essential and may even lead to improved processes. One of the most striking features of 360training.com’s feedback and communication platform is the frequency of the reviews. Instead of receiving the typical once-a-year evaluation, 360training.com employees are evaluated at the end of each quarter through a ‘stack ranking’ process. This gives them the opportunity to know where they are and to identify the factors affecting their quarterly goals. Is your organization actively promoting employee voice or is it hindering their voice? Have you ever hesitated to share your opinion to your leaders?  Is your organizational culture affected by the employee’s voice?