I was asked to contribute some ideas to an article for Forbes magazine on “How to win back a disengaged team”?” The full article, by Sally Percy, is linked below, but the contribution got me thinking. A lot of the management practice in this area, and much of the focus, ends up being about the pivotal role the leader plays - their actions, behaviours, and communication style. That is right, but to tackle disengagement, you need to be less “corporate” and instead to emphasise accessibility, informality and humanity.

Your corporate instincts might be to rely on familiar tools; ramping up formal communications, offering town halls and commitments to change.  Like the errant lover, you might send long missives and make flattering promises but then, within days, act no differently.  The trick is to make the organisation look, sound, and feel tangibly different, and you do that by behaving differently yourself. People cohere around other people, so make leadership more personal and relational.  This is more difficult when teams are disaggregated, often apart, remote, and on various different working patterns, but there are some practical ways you can do this.

Some of this can be signalled by shifts to working protocols, making your visibility and style more pronounced. Be less formal and more accessible in-person.  Don't arrange hybrid meetings - use remote only, or much better: in-person. Avoid doing one-to-ones on Teams or Zoom.  Be clear about your working pattern and make sure others know. Work from open-plan space and have conversations others can hear. Don’t broadcast sweeping cliches at Townhalls but invest time actively listening.  Ask groups for their ideas rather than try to solve the problems alone. Offer more autonomy, not more management and supervision. Be open to the frustration’s others feel but be radically honest with them about what needs to change.  Most importantly, get your best people working together on important things that challenge them.  For the disengaged, the grass may seem greener elsewhere, but if your best people are going to go, make it impossible for them to do that impersonally. You need them to feel that they will be leaving you, and other people whom they value deeply, not just quitting a place, a firm, or a job.  

The Forbes article is linked here.