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2013-12-21 14:21:20
Ronald Alsop
Gordon Nixon, chief executive officer of Royal Bank of Canada, apologises for
not being more sensitive to employees, whose jobs are being outsourced, and
says they will be offered comparable positions within the bank.
Tim Armstrong, CEO of AOL, acknowledges to his staff that he made a mistake
when he publicly fired an employee during a company conference call and
apologises to the ousted individual.
Gregg Steinhafel, CEO of Target, says he is genuinely sorry that a corporate
political donation upset the retailer s gay and transgender employees.
Some managers said they don t apologise because they don t want to look weak or
incompetent.
To repair damaged relationships with employees, these executives decided to say
two of the toughest words for many bosses to utter: I m sorry. Such mea
culpas seem to be more common these days, partly because of the growing
likelihood of a public uproar on social media when companies slip up.
Whatever the motivating factor, contrition is good for more than just the soul.
Apologies can help restore a manager's credibility after a damaging error, and
they also can inspire greater trust in management at a time when many workers
are feeling disillusioned with employers.
For example, about a third of UK employees characterise trust between them and
senior management as weak, according to a study this year by the Chartered
Institute of Personnel and Development, a human-resources organisation in
London. Similarly, a global study by Forum Corp, a Boston-based consultancy,
found that about one-third of workers trust business leaders less now than in
the past. The managers in the survey were even more pessimistic: 43% said they
believe employees trust bosses less now.
Honesty clearly is the cornerstone of trust, and that includes owning up to
mistakes and apologising. Some respondents to the UK study said they would
admire leaders if only they admitted their mistakes.
Beyond engendering trust, acknowledging an error and making amends can
encourage greater openness throughout an organisation. When leaders admit
mistakes, its shows they re human and vulnerable, and it makes it safe for
others to talk about their mistakes, too, said Dennis Reina, president of the
Reina Trust Building Institute, a consulting firm based in Stowe, Vermont.
How common are apologies from bosses? It depends on whom you ask. Many
employees believe managers don t take responsibility for their screw-ups and
don t express regret. Only 19% of employees said their managers often or always
apologise. But managers have quite different perceptions of their behaviour:
87% said they often or always say they re sorry. But some managers said they
don t apologise because they don t want to look weak or incompetent.
When a leader makes a mistake like lying or taking credit for another employee
s idea and doesn t apologise immediately, it begins to chip away at the trust
the employee feels towards them, said Andrew Graham, CEO of Forum. This is
true even if the employee observes this behaviour in his or her boss and isn t
the direct victim of the incident.
Damaging omission
Failing to apologise can cause more damage than loss of trust. Reina recalled a
client that had an employee who became extremely frustrated when his supervisor
refused to apologise for raking him over the coals in a team meeting. In
retaliation, he disclosed a customer s proprietary information on the internet,
which resulted in litigation and the loss of a $10 million contract, Reina
said.
Most times, people just say I m out of here in such situations, but sometimes
an employee is hurting so badly he wants to get even, he said.
The refusal to fess up to mistakes can poison the relationship between
supervisors and their subordinates to such a degree that it may even contribute
to depression. A study in Denmark found that it isn t a burdensome workload,
but rather feelings of injustice that lead to depression.
An important element of what we call relational justice is when supervisors
treat employees with consideration and truthfulness, said Matias Brodsgaard
Grynderup, a researcher who works in the public health department at the
University of Copenhagen. Consequently, he believes admitting mistakes and
apologising would make the workplace seem more just.
When to hold back
Of course, business leaders shouldn t apologise for every misstep and risk
appearing ineffectual and losing respect. Bosses should focus on apologising
for mistakes in which they were genuinely in the wrong and there was some type
of business consequence, Graham said.
It s also wise to apologise clearly and sincerely but concisely. After taking
responsibility for the mistake and pledging to do better in the future,
managers should move on and avoid dwelling on the issue.
Employers also shouldn t expect apologies to work magic in every situation.
They may not be very beneficial when office relationships were already badly
strained before the mistake occurred.
If the management enjoys high levels of trust from workers, then apologising
is a good idea and more likely to be believed and lead to forgiveness, said
Jin Li, an assistant professor of management and strategy at the Kellogg School
of Management at Northwestern University, who has studied trust issues in the
workplace.
When the existing level of trust is low, apologising will be less effective,
and its benefit is likely to be smaller than the cost of being perceived as
weak and incompetent, he said.