Also sewage (and company culture) always roll downhill. Fought many battles to turn around an apathatic team with the mindset you described perfectly, only to find senior management are locked in their ways, and created the culture, pushing the team to apathy in order to protecti themselves, and survive without burnout.
I've also seen senior management take those anonymous metrics and feedback, that aren't anonymous, and then make plans to remove the vocal people who were encouraged to pluck up the courage and be vocal.
Being open honest has a very high cost both at work and socially. The Black Box Thinking book describes and compares it perfectly between the Aerospace and US Medical industries.
I recognize a lot of what you say. And I think many companies suffer from it. But it doesn't have to be that way. It is like trying to live a healthy life. It requires discipline, resilience and perseverance. There is no free lunch, no easy way. Although there is an easier way. Once you get the hang of it, it will get easier. As long as you can maintain the discipline. And if you are smart, you feed the energy of the eventual success into that discipline. Once you reach a sustainable flow, your chances of reaching great success will absolutely increase. This is also about leadership. If you put in the effort show the results, be an example, hold yourself accountable, people will respect you holding them accountable. What is also very important is core values and how those influence your hiring approach. Make sure you find your companies core values. They are not what the CEO suggests, they are the average positive values shared by every single employee.
I once worked for a company who relentlessly managed their core values. By surveying their employees, what they thought were the core values. By encouraging everybody to act according those values, by asking what was wrong, by communicating improvements. By hiring people that were aligned with those core values. Over time, the company begins to literally breathe those core values. In management meeting quotes would be explicitly matches against core values. Anyway this was the only 3000+ company I ever worked for that exercised this approach diligently and successfully. And it has always been an inspiration. For me as a manager. And I try to live by it. And if the board of my company does not practice their own values, I should not work there. But we do not always have that choice, but it is healthy to always try to have that baseline
Back to the topic at hand: core values, you cannot make that change from one day to the other, you have to build and it start with leadership. But once they are convinced and want to live and work accordingly. It is possible. Never said it was easy, if it were, we'd all do it. Know however that it is precisely that fact that offers you a possibility to stand out. Because not everybody has the discipline, will or proper context to pull it off. But if you manage, it can be highly fulfilling.
I'm glad a colleague sent this one along for me to read. Your framing of complaining as a closed loop and logging as an open ticket is one of the cleaner distinctions I've read on this dynamic.
For me, it's about the neuroscience underneath it. When someone vents in a team meeting, three chemicals light up quickly: dopamine from the validation and recognition in the room, cortisol released as stress exits their system, and oxytocin from the social bonding that comes from sharing frustration. That's a powerful cocktail. Logging a number into a scorecard offers none of that. No reward, no release, no connection. Just an open ticket and "deferred accountability".
So the gap or the problem you're describing is really three-fold: 1) a courage problem; 2) a culture problem, and 3) a design problem. The verbal channel is neurologically rewarding right now. The written channel? Well, that just asks people to delay gratification for an outcome they may not trust will come.
The culture piece you raised near the end is where I think the real work lives, and one in which systems do not create it. Leaders who understand why the meeting feels good can start designing environments where the documentation feels worth it, too.
Apathy breeds apathy.
Also sewage (and company culture) always roll downhill. Fought many battles to turn around an apathatic team with the mindset you described perfectly, only to find senior management are locked in their ways, and created the culture, pushing the team to apathy in order to protecti themselves, and survive without burnout.
I've also seen senior management take those anonymous metrics and feedback, that aren't anonymous, and then make plans to remove the vocal people who were encouraged to pluck up the courage and be vocal.
Being open honest has a very high cost both at work and socially. The Black Box Thinking book describes and compares it perfectly between the Aerospace and US Medical industries.
As I said I am too stubborn to give up
I recognize a lot of what you say. And I think many companies suffer from it. But it doesn't have to be that way. It is like trying to live a healthy life. It requires discipline, resilience and perseverance. There is no free lunch, no easy way. Although there is an easier way. Once you get the hang of it, it will get easier. As long as you can maintain the discipline. And if you are smart, you feed the energy of the eventual success into that discipline. Once you reach a sustainable flow, your chances of reaching great success will absolutely increase. This is also about leadership. If you put in the effort show the results, be an example, hold yourself accountable, people will respect you holding them accountable. What is also very important is core values and how those influence your hiring approach. Make sure you find your companies core values. They are not what the CEO suggests, they are the average positive values shared by every single employee.
I once worked for a company who relentlessly managed their core values. By surveying their employees, what they thought were the core values. By encouraging everybody to act according those values, by asking what was wrong, by communicating improvements. By hiring people that were aligned with those core values. Over time, the company begins to literally breathe those core values. In management meeting quotes would be explicitly matches against core values. Anyway this was the only 3000+ company I ever worked for that exercised this approach diligently and successfully. And it has always been an inspiration. For me as a manager. And I try to live by it. And if the board of my company does not practice their own values, I should not work there. But we do not always have that choice, but it is healthy to always try to have that baseline
Back to the topic at hand: core values, you cannot make that change from one day to the other, you have to build and it start with leadership. But once they are convinced and want to live and work accordingly. It is possible. Never said it was easy, if it were, we'd all do it. Know however that it is precisely that fact that offers you a possibility to stand out. Because not everybody has the discipline, will or proper context to pull it off. But if you manage, it can be highly fulfilling.
Appreciate your thoughts! Will try to do my best
I'm glad a colleague sent this one along for me to read. Your framing of complaining as a closed loop and logging as an open ticket is one of the cleaner distinctions I've read on this dynamic.
For me, it's about the neuroscience underneath it. When someone vents in a team meeting, three chemicals light up quickly: dopamine from the validation and recognition in the room, cortisol released as stress exits their system, and oxytocin from the social bonding that comes from sharing frustration. That's a powerful cocktail. Logging a number into a scorecard offers none of that. No reward, no release, no connection. Just an open ticket and "deferred accountability".
So the gap or the problem you're describing is really three-fold: 1) a courage problem; 2) a culture problem, and 3) a design problem. The verbal channel is neurologically rewarding right now. The written channel? Well, that just asks people to delay gratification for an outcome they may not trust will come.
The culture piece you raised near the end is where I think the real work lives, and one in which systems do not create it. Leaders who understand why the meeting feels good can start designing environments where the documentation feels worth it, too.
Great piece. Genuinely.
Honest feedback causes trouble.