One of my USF executive doctor of business administration students, Dale Crawford, pointed out that managers strive to be organizational climate engineers. While companies can set polices that emphasize the climates they want to create, it is the managers who create the climate through their behavior.
What Is Organizational Climate?
Organizational climate consists of the behaviors that are encouraged versus discouraged in a work setting. Climates are tied to organizational goals and practices. For example, high tech organizations often value innovation and reward employees for experimenting and trying new things. Construction companies place emphasis on workplace safety, enforcing safety protocols and the wearing of safety gear. Even within the same industry, organizations vary in the emphasis they place on climate. One construction company enforces strict safety rules, even to the point of terminating someone who fails to work safely, while another company is lax.
Managers Strive to Be Organizational Climate Engineers
Organizational climate begins with policies, the written rules that guide employee actions. But policies are just words on a page until they are translated into practices. It is the managers that enforce the rules and create the climate. They do so by taking several steps.
- Talk about the climate. The first step is for a manager to tell their direct reports what is expected and why. The reasons for the climate are important to explain so employees understand them. Employees might not agree, but if they understand the rationale for a rule, it is easier to accept it and comply.
- Model the behavior. It is vital that managers follow the rules themselves and set an example. Nothing undermines manager credibility than saying one thing and doing another.
- Correct transgressions. If an employee fails to follow the rules, for example, not wearing a hard hat in a construction zone, the manager should call them in for a discussion. The first time would result in a conversation about why hard hats should be worn. Continued violations would result in increasingly harsh punishment.
- Support encouraged behavior. When employees do what is expected, they should receive appreciation and praise from the manager. For example, to build an innovation climate, people who try new things should be acknowledged, even if what they try is ineffective. Nothing stifles innovation more than someone being punished for trying something that didn’t work.
Managers strive to be organizational climate engineers in how they lead their direct reports. Climates do not build themselves, but are the result of intentional management actions.
Image generated by DALL-E 4.0. Prompt” image of manager leading direct reports”
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