While articles about evolving leadership practices and the changing needs of employees abound, much less has been said about the frontline managers or first level supervisors who bridge the gap between these two groups. Great Place to Work® recognizes the important role frontline leaders play and will shine a spotlight on their workplace experience based on data collected on our proprietary Emprising™ survey platform in this series on Frontline Managers.
“Engage your employees.” “Connect with employees on the shop floor.” “Walk the ground to engage your people, hear from them, understand their challenges and concerns…” We have all heard advice like these in one form or other, recognize its importance and acted on it. Especially through the Covid pandemic where leaders are expected to be more visible and engaging, there are clear quantitative and anecdotal accounts of leaders being more accessible to employees and caring for their well-being. Amongst our Great Place to Work-Certified™ community, we have seen leaders step up to the challenge, demonstrate compassion, reach out to employees in a variety of ways, and show authentic care and support these past two years.
The Covid pandemic has added pressure on a group of individuals – frontline managers or first line supervisors. Otherwise known as the sandwich group, our data shows that their workplace experience tends to be the weakest, even before the pandemic struck. Sandwiched between senior leaders and staff, this group of individuals has had to juggle between achieving targets amidst resource constraints, operational issues, and people matters.
They are the individuals whose daily interactions, decisions and behaviors make the difference between an employee having a great day at work, or… A Really Bad Day. They are expected to motivate their teams, bolster morale, and drive employee contributions in line with the company’s strategy. They are responsible for cascading workplace culture initiatives, live out corporate values (or not), and are the linchpin for the success or failure of policies, programs and initiatives being implemented. Yet, they tend to fall into the blind spot in many companies, and struggle with a very different workplace experience from what top management perceives.
Based on our analysis of data and engagements with leaders in our Culture Coaching1 sessions, we identified three key experience gaps between senior executives (the CEO/President and the C-suite executives who report to the CEO) and frontline managers.
1. Clarity in Communications
More senior executives than frontline managers tend to believe that their expectations have been made clear, and that questions asked are effectively addressed. Less positive experiences in these areas are felt more acutely by frontline managers. They are expected to cascade directions from senior leaders down to their team members, be able to defend the decisions made, and respond to questions and challenges from the ground. Unsurprisingly, when this information is not clear to them in the first instance, information gets lost in translation as it moves down the hierarchy – a case of the broken telephone. Oftentimes, without effective communication platforms and a psychologically safe workplace environment, many employees will not be comfortable raising questions or sharing their concerns at ‘All Hands’ meetings or townhalls; it is usually left to frontline managers to deal with their questions and concerns afterward.
2. Consistency of words and actions
Another common experience gap between senior executives and frontline managers is in the consistency between what they see and hear. Working with clients, we find that what tends to be perceived as inconsistency between what has been said and the final decision/action taken is attributable to a gap in communication flow. Oftentimes, frontline managers are not involved in policy decisions or told the rationale behind changes made along the way. This becomes a barrier when they subsequently need to update their team members on changes from what was previously shared by top management, or explain the thinking behind decisions made.
3. Perception of equity
One of the biggest experience gaps between executives and frontline managers is their perception of being fairly rewarded for their contributions. The perception of being fairly paid for their work and receiving a fair share of the profits impacts an individual’s experience of financial wellness, and this is one of the key aspects of overall employee well-being at work2. Often, frontline managers experience the same dissatisfaction around pay and bonuses as many of their team members, but as leaders of their teams, they are expected to represent the company professionally. However, team members can usually sense their frustration and this has a detrimental impact on the rest of the team.
Happily, this is not happening in every company. Data from our Trust Index™ survey comprising 60 core statements showed that among companies on the 2021 Singapore Best Workplaces™ list (“SG Best”), the experience gap of 4% between senior executives and frontline managers is much smaller, as compared with the 13% gap for other organizations (“SG Rest”)3.
SG Best companies have successfully built a culture of trust, enabled employees to maximize their potential, and demonstrated exemplary leadership effectiveness with a purpose-driven, people-first mindset. And importantly, they have done this across all levels in the organization to create a great place to work For All™. Unsurprisingly, 89% of frontline managers in SG Best say that they want to work there for a long time, compared with 75% among SG Rest.
This article is the first in a series spotlighting the workplace experience of frontline managers. In the next article, we will feature practices Great Place to Work-Certified™ companies have introduced to support and enable their frontline managers to lead their teams effectively and thrive at the workplace.
Keen to learn how your frontline managers are experiencing your workplace?
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1. After reviewing results from Trust Index© employee survey, a Great Place to Work® culture consultant works with the client to understand and interpret the survey results, quantify linkages to the strategy and performance, identify high-impact focus areas, and make suitable recommendations, drawing on insights from Best Workplaces™.
2. Researchers at Great Place to Work and Johns Hopkins University partnered on study that reveals key insights in promoting employee well-being. Click here to download the report on Employee Well-Being in the New Workplace.
3. This refers to other companies, including Great Place to Work-Certified™ companies, that participated in this year’s survey. Not all Certified companies appear on the 2021 Best Workplaces list.
