Workplace respect is rewarded by increased staff effort

Workplaces benefit when employees feel that their efforts are being appreciated by their managers.

Respected workers are generally productive workers.

When you ask workers what ­matters most to them, feeling ­respected by superiors often tops the list. In a recent survey by Christine Porath of Georgetown University in the US of nearly 20,000 employees worldwide, ­respondents ranked respect as the most important leadership behaviour. Yet employees report more disrespectful and uncivil behaviour each year.

What accounts for the disconnect? Although employees who aren’t shown respect are acutely aware of its absence, people who feel respected on a regular basis — typically, those in managerial or other high-status roles — don’t think about it much. So ­leaders simply may be unaware of the problem. But research I’ve conducted shows this is only part of the explanation. A bigger issue is that leaders have an incomplete understanding of what constitutes workplace respect.

My research indicates that ­employees value two distinct types of respect. “Owed respect” is accorded equally to all members of a work group or an organisation; it meets the universal need to feel included. It’s signalled by civility and an atmosphere suggesting that every member of the group is inherently valuable. “Earned respect” recognises individual employees who display valued qualities or behaviours. It distinguishes employees who ­exceed expectations and, particularly in knowledge work settings, affirms that each employee has unique strengths and talents. Earned respect meets the need to be valued for doing good work.

One of the subtler challenges in creating a respectful atmosphere is finding the right balance between the two types of respect. Workplaces with lots of owed ­respect but little earned respect can make individual achievement a low priority for employees ­because they perceive that everyone will be treated the same ­regardless of performance. That could be the right mix for settings in which goals need to be accomplished as a team but it risks reducing motivation and accountability.

By contrast, workplaces with low owed respect but high earned ­respect can encourage excessive competition among employees. That may serve a purpose in environments, such as some sales ­forces, where workers have little interdependence or reason to collaborate. But it could hinder people from sharing critical know­ledge about their successes and failures, and it often promotes cutthroat, zero-sum behaviour.

Because people’s jobs are often central to who they are and how they perceive themselves, respectful cues in a professional setting are important signals of social worth. What’s more, respect is an important feedback mechanism and catalyst for growth.

A respectful workplace brings enormous benefits. Employees who say they feel respected are more satisfied with their jobs and more grateful for their companies. They are more resilient, co-operate more with others, perform better and are likelier to take direction from their leaders. Conversely, a lack of respect can inflict real damage. Research shows 80 per cent of employees treated uncivilly spend significant work time ruminating on the bad behaviour and 48 per cent reduce their effort.

In all but the most toxic workplaces, building a respectful organisation does not demand an overhaul of human resources policies or any other formal changes. Rather, what’s needed is ongoing consideration of the subtle but ­important ways in which owed and earned respect can be conveyed. Here are seven small ways leaders and managers can have an out-size impact on workers.

ESTABLISH A BASELINE OF OWED RESPECT

Every employee should feel that their dignity is recognised and respected. This is especially important for lower-level workers. Take a moment to consider whether your professional status is keeping you from perceiving a gap in respect, and note that simple acknowledgment or praise from a leader is often enough to make an employee feel valued.

KNOW HOW TO CONVEY ­RESPECT IN YOUR WORKPLACE

Whether we are leaders or co-workers, we can all shape an environment where colleagues rein­force respectful cues and make social worth a day-to-day reality for one another. Pay attention to norms about how to convey ­respect; they may vary, even from one department to another. Perhaps people in your previous workplace signalled owed respect by exchanging morning pleasantries with colleagues, but those in your new workplace would find that a rude distraction during the critical start to the workday.

RECOGNISE THAT RESPECT HAS RIPPLE EFFECTS

Leadership behaviours are often mimicked throughout an organisation, and just as incivility can spiral, so too can respect. The cascade from the top down is also likely to shape the way employees treat customers, industry partners and members of the community.

CUSTOMISE THE AMOUNT OF EARNED RESPECT YOU CONVEY

Beyond ensuring a baseline of owed respect, leaders can identify and tailor the mix of respect types that will best enable their employees to thrive. Although it’s likely that a higher level of both owed and earned respect is needed, you may have reasons to emphasise one type or the other. Perhaps you’ve set a goal that requires a lot of collaboration and cohesion, warranting greater emphasis on owed respect. Alternatively, if your culture focuses largely on ­individual contributions, you may emphasise earned respect while ensuring that performance standards are transparent.

THINK OF RESPECT AS INFINITE

Respect can be given to one ­employee without short-changing others. This is true of both owed and earned respect: All members of an organisation are entitled to the former, and all employees who meet or surpass performance standards deserve the latter.

SEE RESPECT AS A TIME SAVER

Conveying respect doesn’t neces­sarily come at the expense of critical tasks. Porath calls lack of time a “hollow excuse”, pointing out that respect is largely about how you do what you’re already doing. Porath shows that neglecting respect can be far costlier than ­attending to it. Dealing with the aftermath of disrespectful behaviour, she estimates, consumes seven weeks a year for leaders and executives in Fortune 1000 firms.

KNOW WHEN EFFORTS TO CONVEY RESPECT CAN BACKFIRE

Attempts to demonstrate respect may cause more harm than good if they are inconsistent or hap­hazard. Employees are likely to perceive vague expressions that are not enacted day-to-day as ­manipulative or disingenuous. And if people are particularly ­respectful in some situations but not in others, their words will probably be viewed as insincere.

Finding the right people for the right jobs and co-ordinating day-to-day operations are a manager’s solemn duty. So, too, is building a workplace of respect that allows employees — and, as a result, their companies — to become the best possible versions of themselves.

Kristie Rogers is an assistant professor of management at Marquette University, Wisconsin.

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