Missing Pieces: 7 Ways to Improve Employee Well‐Being and Organizational Effectiveness

Citation

McVanel‐Viney, S. (2010), "Missing Pieces: 7 Ways to Improve Employee Well‐Being and Organizational Effectiveness", Leadership & Organization Development Journal, Vol. 31 No. 3, pp. 286-287. https://doi.org/10.1108/01437731011039389

At last, a book on organizational effectiveness that is useful, easy‐to‐read, timely, and can be enjoyed by employees, unions, and management collectively. Too often, business books are written for those “at the top” who are expected to bring about change to their organizations and staff; this book explores how individuals at various levels can take a shared approach to enhancing individual and organizational well‐being. As the authors point out, assuming that the overworked leaders of today should be responsible for enhancing the well‐being of their staff and organizations is to ignore evidence that they can in fact be barrier to such initiatives, despite their best intentions and beliefs.

The authors begin with the question: “What is missing from management when employees are unhappy and organizations inefficient?” (p. 1) Their search reveals seven missing pieces: recognition at work, social support, respect at work, work/life balance, appropriate workload, participation in decision making, and role conflict or role ambiguity. Each chapter explores one “missing piece” using simple, logical information on each topic, a diagnostic tool, and ten “simple actions”.

The authors argue that a “healthy business” (p. 10) is one where the well‐being of employees is on the same level as other goals and a key component of its management criteria. The alternative, to ignore employee well‐being factors, is to foster a “toxic” (p. 10) work environment where the mix of conditions (e.g. lack of recognition, lack of participation in decision making, few social supports, role ambiguity) fosters unhealthy outcomes for employees and the organization as a whole.

This book is particularly relevant now. Companies who survived downsizing of the 1990s and the current recession will likely find themselves with employees and managers who feel fatigued, stressed, and lacking key tools for success (that is, if a concerted effort were made to ask employees, observe business operations, or review business indicators of such issues). When we find ourselves on the other side of this recession, our lean staff and management structures may well need to be our focus to ensure growth, adaptability, agility, and prosperity of our companies in the future. This book is also relevant because:

• •

  The authors reinforce the effectiveness of progressive management philosophies that embrace employee engagement, development, and empowerment (e.g. transformational, servant); traditional transactional, authoritative leadership styles negatively impact individual or organizational wellbeing.

• •

  Change takes time, and no organization is the same; diagnostic tools allow organizations to identify which “missing pieces” require the most attention so that quick‐wins reinforce the importance of embedding well‐being into corporate strategy.

• •

  Expectations and needs of those from every generations are implicitly met, from Boomers (“I earned it”), to Gen X (“I need balance”), to Gen Y (“I want my voice heard”); approaches to enhancing well‐being in this book blend the needs of today's diverse workforce.

• •

  Approaches provided support the current focus on talent management; managing attrition trends and attracting skill recruits will require organizations to offer appealing work cultures and practices that separate them from the competition.

• •

  The international context and examples fit with current expectations in business writing, while not “romanticizing” the globalization spin of some business books.

What this book offers in clarity, it lacks in evidence‐based rigor. There is a vast literature and various models illustrating the link between employee well‐being and business outcomes (Human Resources Solutions, 2007; Nedd, 2006; Krueger et al., 2002) having a chapter with such a backdrop would go a long way to making this text a key reference for students and academics, as well as “sceptics” who require more data and context before embarking upon, what the authors recommend, an embedded corporate strategy focused on employee and organizational well‐being. For those of us who know this literature, we need no further illustration of the link, but practical application and guidance, which the key strength of this book. This book is a key reference for human resource professionals, organizational development specialists, management consultants, and middle managers.