I read last week people don’t leave bad organisations; they leave bad managers.
These last few weeks have been a time of reflection and planning. It is financial year end which always brings about a mild sense of panic for me to make sure the budget at work hit all its required targets that my year end funding reports are all done and the planning and preparation is all in place for the next 12 months. It’s a continuous cycle. But I do none of this alone.
At Bolton Young Persons Housing Scheme there are over 50 staff including sessional bank workers grafting daily to empower and develop young people who are homeless. They are supported by me, a team of managers, an admin team, the cleaners, contractors and trustees and between us we deliver BYPHS every day. We all have our part to play. BYPHS as an employer, not exclusively a charity, works hard to make sure we are legally compliant with fair and transparent pay scales; good terms and conditions and a decent environment to work in. We make sure that people have job descriptions, inductions and relevant and regular training and all the stuff that helps them to help us to help the young people.
In 2014 we applied for and were successfully assessed by Investors IN People and we got a GOLD standard award. Only 7% of companies globally achieve this. The assessor interviewed me and 14 staff at random, looked at some of our systems, recruitment, paperwork etc to verify that staff are valued and included in the development and progress of this organisation. This is something that collectively we are proud of. To be recognised as a top employer is really quite something.
I do external fund raising in order to pay for some little extras for staff that make life that bit more bearable. Annually the costs are low but the impact is high. Twice a year we have a team lunch and as many people as possible attend, once a year we have holistic therapy taster sessions for staff to have a 20 minute massage or reflexology at work. At this year’s lunch three weeks ago I asked those attending to complete a short questionnaire. (There is no such thing as a free lunch!!)
How do you rate working for BYPHS on a scale of 1:10?
(1 = poo – 10 = amazeballs)
• 15 people gave it 10 out of 10.
• 7 people said 9 out of 10.
• 1 person gave it 25+!
What do you dislike about working for BYPHS?
• Nothing.
• Finishing my shift.
I asked whether they had any suggestions to improve things for a) staff and b) young people and there were some very useful ideas. I asked if they could describe their manager in 3 words; every one without exception was positive. What motivates you in your job? Not one person mentioned money or job titles or training. But I know the absence of those things can de-motivate people. I also asked about what they enjoyed about their job. This ranged from working with great colleagues, seeing young people safe, making a difference to watching young people develop and grow in confidence is rewarding. All the answers to this question were about people – either colleagues or young people.
BYPHS have always invested in people. It is the very essence of our work with the homeless. We ignore the labels and other people’s judgements and work directly with people to prevent homelessness. We do this by keeping them safe, equipping them with skills, developing their knowledge, providing a good environment, maximising their income, assisting with education, creating opportunities, establishing boundaries, valuing their personal strengths etc. We have done that for 24 years.
So it is came as no surprise to see that with some effort for example, developing a training budget, reviewing HR processes and implementing monthly 1:1s, appraisals and staff away days we were doing exactly the same things with our staff and colleagues. 28 people sat there in March eating lunch together and talking and mingling with colleagues from other projects they rarely see and it was lovely. The feedback was excellent and the atmosphere was relaxed. People new to the organisation were suspicious and wondered what the catch was since they had never experienced anything like it.
So that set me off on a train of thought …….
If you have to think about how to invest in your staff then already there is something wrong. The basics should be in place. Good management and support, fair wages and terms and conditions, training and clarity of purpose, a decent environment to work in and to be treated with respect. The extras are an added bonus and companies all over the world strive to have that added extra no one else offers like a ball pool at work for staff, free gym memberships, weightwatchers classes in works time, PS3 dens for break time, free chocolate and pop all day every day available, built in Starbucks or Spa facilities with subsidised rates…. I wish (sighing wistfully)
I know three people very close to me right now who detest where they work and who they work for. I think in one case if they could commit murder without prosecution they would give it serious consideration and their boss would be D.E.A.D. Between them they are bullied, belittled, sexually harassed, discriminated against, excluded, yelled at in front of colleagues and customers, training is withheld, they are lied to, there are breaches of contract in what they are expected/instructed to do and there are safeguarding concerns as well as breaches of health and safety. THIS IS NOT ALL AT THE SAME COMPANY!!
I have listened to horror stories of no supervision for 12 months, blatant deliberate exclusions and favouritism of other staff, managers and CEOs stepping well outside of professional and personal boundaries and all I can do is listen. I describe what I might do in those circumstances and what policies and safeguards are available but I respect people are different and everyone situation is different so they are afraid to act. Worried they may lose that job, damage their reputation, make the situation somehow worse or make things worse for other people.
No-one is perfect and I know for sure I am not. But there’s a wall vinyl in my office that says people may forget what you said but they will never forget how you made them feel. One of my friends feels worthless, depressed, and physically sick when getting ready for work, they have lost their confidence, and it affects their social life, sex life and relationships at work. This is not acceptable. The massive corporation for which they work is a giant and they feel helpless. When we examined the chain of command when hypothetically considering the whistle blowing policy we discovered that the next three levels of managers were somehow connected with friendships or related in some way or as my friend said, “What’s the point? They all piss in the same pot!”
It makes me so angry because I can’t fix it, it is not my place. How dare people assume they are better than others and abuse their power at work? At home this would be domestic abuse and that is illegal. If you are a manager, business owner, supervisor you have a responsibility both legally and morally to look after your teams because when you do, my word do they look after you or in my case look after young people. The people who abuse their status have got problems themselves with their own esteem and position because it’s just plain and simple bullying. No one likes bullies. I could speculate all day about what makes them behave that way but why should I bother?
If good people bring out the good in other people what are the bad ones doing? My friend recently said they felt like being at work in the company of the manager felt like the life was being sapped out of him. He works in the private sector. I could not sleep at night if I thought I had or was having that affect on people. There was an article this week in the Guardian talking about one workers experience of being bullied by a charity CEO (It wasn’t me!) and their experiences were terrible. She describes feeling humiliated, crying in the staff toilets, being prescribed anti depressants and accessing counselling. I mean what the actual hell is wrong with people? Micro managing, undermining, belittling, withholding information, discrimination were all in this story. It took 6 years for her to pluck up the courage and leave. At which point she informed the Trustees who sided with the CEO.
I don’t think being a boss means being bossy. I think it means you need to be honest, consistent, transparent, committed and able to put the priorities of your business needs first but balance those of your workforce. Without them you have nothing. Everyone is entitled to be heard and treated with respect at work. But those who manage have a responsibility to safeguard ALL those who work around you. My friend and associate ended her recent blog about Power with this sentence;
“And, if you have a tyrannical leader then dig deep, find your courage and your voice and appropriately challenge. And, if you cannot effect change then take your gifts, skills and talents where they will be valued!”
Karen Openshaw April 2016.
While you are thinking about that or what action to take then make sure you are looking after yourself. I have done many many visits to various prisons and psychiatric/healthcare institutions in my career and they are not pleasant places to be. Not addressing serious issues at work that affect your health and damage your well being will take you to one or the other!
I am happy to say that people at BYPHS continue to give positive feedback in the whole. Who said, “You can’t please all of the people all of the time?” and sometimes people have gripes and we address them if we can. But the focus here are the young people and I think that shows and over rides all else. Bolton Young Persons were shortlisted for Investors in People award recently and the winners will be announced in June 2016. The category ‘excellence in the third sector’ has 4 finalists from a group of 340 applications internationally. So whether we win or not we will be there showing the rest of the world that it doesn’t matter about size or sector – people matter. We have always thought so here at Bolton Young Persons.
“Despite everything I believe that people are really good at heart.” Anne Frank
Love, Maura