What are your beliefs about people and safety excellence? I have been writing about the influence of relationship on safety performance. Relationships are the foundation of sustainable success in every organization. As individuals we cannot survive without them, neither can our companies. The importance we place on relationships and our willingness to invest in them stems in large part from our beliefs about human nature. If you aspire to next level performance the first area to look at is your own and other leader’s beliefs about what’s possible.
There is historical evidence that people live up to our expectations. When I was in training to be a teacher I learned about experiments where teachers were told that a random group of children had a genius IQ. Those children invariably did much better in their test scores than the children who had not been labeled with a high IQ. All the children were exposed to the same lessons and materials. The only difference was the teacher’s belief about their ability to learn. I learned that we unconsciously treat people differently based on what we believe to be true in a way that could harm or enhance someone’s learning.
Other research shows that managers decide whom to trust and listen to on their team within a very short time, and those judgments seldom change. Once we get on a “pay me no mind list” there is very little chance of getting off that list. The detrimental effect of this bias prevents us from listening to or seeking input from a vast portion of the population, making us vulnerable to untold risk.
One of the most successful experiments based on beliefs about human nature took place in the early 1960’s at a Proctor and Gamble plant in Lima, Ohio. The management team saw the potential for transforming their traditional manufacturing lines into self directed integrated teams that would revolutionize their industry. A couple of years into their experiment the production, quality and safety numbers were so much better than any other P&G plant that they were accused of falsifying their numbers. In fact the operation costs were said to be half of those at other plants. The true costs were even lower, but nobody at the time would believe the real figures.
One of the main inspirations was Douglas McGregor who wrote about Theory X and Theory Y managers. Essentially, McGregor had said that a manager’s beliefs about his people were a key performance driver because they either empowered or limited expectations about what it was possible to accomplish. Theory X managers believe that people dislike work and must therefore be coerced, controlled and directed. Theory Y managers believe that people have the ability and desire to work and contribute, and will do so if they are respected and rewarded.
Theory X managers create relationships that result in low trust and restricted communication because the human need to be included is being violated. No amount of restructuring, training, or programs work in many organizations because management implemented them under Theory X philosophy. This makes sense given the neuroscience evidence I presented in previous posts.
Theory Y assumptions presented a completely different view of human motivation that allowed for the positive bonding that leads to collaboration, trust and open communication. Many times I have witnessed the change in people’s eyes, body language, and attitude when a person in authority or a team member recognizes their value and positive intent. I have seen people who were considered lost causes in other units transfer to a new leader who embraced Theory Y transform into collaborative hard working team members who express gratitude for working in an environment they respects them.
Of course, the beliefs are only the starting place. Today P&G describes their approach as “designing a social system that sparks new ideas and enables critical decisions.” They set up processes and operational procedures to enable the exchange of ideas and information to sustain awareness and vigilance to achieve safety excellence. It is a pleasure to work in a system that values the social and technical aspects equally.
Successful organizations are willing to invest in the extensive training and continuous hard work that it takes to create the relationships that form the collaborative network that translates into extraordinary performance. Nevertheless, this type of excellence cannot exist without an underlying trust in human nature, and a willingness to respect people’s need for relationship.
