Your employees are a source of knowledge, creativity and innovation. So, it is important you create conditions at your company that empower employees at every level to use their voice.
Harvard Business Review offers the following three steps you can take to encourage your employees to speak up and share their thoughts.
- Prioritize unconditional inclusion. Before employees feel confident to speak up, they first must feel a sense of acceptance. Make it clear that everyone’s voice matters, regardless of their seniority or how they directly affect the company’s bottom line.
- Give people permission to disagree. When everyone automatically agrees with a leader or group, it can keep your team from producing truly innovative ideas. Encourage people at every level to speak up when they disagree rather than simply following a consensus.
- Commend employees who speak up. Leaders cannot always say yes to every idea. But even if you do not adopt an employee’s idea, you can make it clear you hear the employee and appreciate his or her input.
