Adrian Gostick

When it comes to the best places to work for federal employees, workers cite strong leadership and straight answers more often than pay and benefits.

According to a comprehensive study of the federal workforce, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission sits atop the list of best places to work in the government. The number one reason: Because senior management takes the time to listen to the staff.

Overall on the survey, what separates the good from the bad is how well managers share information with subordinates, and the training and opportunities provided to workers. The survey recommends managers communicate, communicate and communicate. In fact, less than of half of federal workers say they receive the information they need from their boss, a number that trails the private sector by a whopping 18 percent points.

Check out the story in The Washington Post.

I was on the radio in Ventura, California, on Monday with Coach Ron Tunick. The Coach has had me on before, and it’s always a good time. But yesterday got particularly interesting. Playing devil’s advocate with my message, the Coach asked his listeners if they would rather work for a great boss who paid them minimum wage, or a miserable, controlling boss who paid them $100 an hour.

I cringed. Coach was setting me up to fail. But something remarkable happened. The majority of listeners chose to work for the great boss at minimum wage. Several mentioned, “It’s not worth my health to work for a terrible manager.”

This result is obviously unscientific, but it got me thinking and overanalyzing. I believe the result came partly because we were on the air in California, where a healthy lifestyle is a concern to a lot of people. It was also a result of the age of the listeners—most people who tune in to a business talk show are older and have been through enough good and bad work experiences to value the better.

But it’s most importantly a lesson to us bosses. Disrespect can not only damage your team, but your employees’ health. Just listen to this: In a study of health care workers, employees working for a boss they disliked had higher blood pressure than those who liked their bosses. Which, according to British scientist George Fieldman, could increase the risk of coronary heart disease by one-sixth and the risk of stroke by one-third.

We say in jest that a bad manager is “killing me.” In reality, they just may be.

In a recession, one of the first things to be cut is advertising. And yet while most ad agencies are laying off employees, public-relations agency Peppercom is relying on the unconventional: stand-up comedy. The agency, which has laid off only three people since the economy took a dive in September, brings in a professional comedian for a few hours at a time to teach employees of all ranks how they can integrate the craft in their everyday jobs—to show that laughter’s good for business, not to mention a way to boost happiness and motivation at work.

“It’s probably the single smartest internal investment we’ve made in the agency,“ said Steve Cody, managing partner of Peppercom. Steve said he saw the impact of the downturn on the worried faces of employees, and that he wanted to bring back what he calls the “F” word—fun—into the workplace.

Ad Age sent a reporter to attend one of these crash courses in comedy. Young account executives and junior account executives honed their craft by developing confidence and poise for public speaking and dealing with clients.

What they’re finding is that when you’re funny, people pay attention. This type of training cultivates real business skills. If you can make people smile, you can not only break the ice before a client meeting, but also read an audience with nonverbal cues, act quickly on your feet and connect with people in a new way.

Melissa Einfrank, an account executive at Peppercom since October 2007, was one of the brave early volunteers. She talked about her irrational fear of birds—and nearly brought down the house.

The back-and-forth of such comedy delivery mirrors client presentations. Are people nodding in approval or checking their BlackBerrys? When presenters rely on devices like PowerPoint, they often forget that they are talking with someone, not at them.

My colleague Scott Christopher (co-author of the Levity Effect) does this kind of work with companies. We posted an article together on bizribbon.com recently about making better presentations. It’s worth a few minutes to check it out.

In cities around the globe, our firm has been hosting roundtables of executives from various industries. The goal is to share ‘people strategies’ that will help us all thrive in this economy. One vice president in Las Vegas asked, “What long-term affect will this economic downturn have on employees that we need to prepare for?”

Another executive in that roundtable offered a profound response that every company should hear. He said, “I’ve been in Vegas for five years, but I came from Michigan. This is my eighth economic downturn, and I’ll tell you what will happen. Employees have the memory of an elephant. If you treat them as though they should be grateful to have a job, as soon as the economy turns your best people will leave. They’ve seen how the company responds during tough times, and they know what to expect if times get tough again. If you continue to treat your employees well during tough times, they’ll stay with you and be extremely loyal. The way you treat your people makes all the difference between success and failure when the economy turns around.”
He later shared this analogy that reinforced appreciation’s importance during tough times. “When I think of appreciation during tough times, the analogy of the old farm family comes to mind. No matter how hard of a year it’s been, and even if the family only has bread and water, when spring comes around they scrimp and save and do whatever is necessary to buy the seed they need to get in the ground to have the chance of a crop in the fall.”
He explained that appreciation is a seed that’s worth sacrificing for, because planting carrot seeds during these tough times will ensure that the company and employees will make it through. He concluded, “Too many companies don’t have a ‘law of harvest’ mindset and are surprised when they find it difficult to retain or engage their employees.”

Each week we get notes from around the world, written by folks who are living the Carrot Principle. Here is a particular poignant story sent from Dr. Todd Hillyard.

“I’m a pediatric dentist who owns a practice in Vancouver, WA. Morale in my office had been waning, in large part because I was discouraged by the lack of attention to detail, processes and systems by my staff. Frustration with those issues leaked into my moods—my staff sure tells me when I’m being a grump! My wife came back from a recent conference and taught me the Carrot Principle after hearing a presentation by the authors. I thought it sounded fluffy and too obvious to really have an impact (admitted skeptic here). More to prove her wrong than anything, I made an effort to thank people more, focus on their positive actions, and compliment them the following day. When I reported to my wife that it didn’t seem to help, she asked what I had praised, why I had thanked, etc. I couldn’t really answer. We spent some time talking about what was important to my employees as individuals (rewards) and, even more time talking about WHAT I should be praising and how. I recognized that by praising—often publicly—specific actions that reinforce the values and behaviors we want in our office it really meant something to them.
“After a single day of this, I had two employees come back and thank me specifically for noticing and tell me how much what I said had meant to them. Other employees are taking note of those actions that elicited praise. Also, we’ve started a game in the office where employees can write compliments about each other when they see specific behaviors that are in line with what we have identified as our top priorities.
“To sum it up, I’m happier, my staff is happier, the kids (patients) are happier and we’re performing better. I like focusing on and looking for the good things. The ugly stuff that was consuming me doesn’t seem as dramatic and I certainly plan to keep it that way!“