Ensuring a Respectful Workplace

by Carol Erdman

Retaining valuable employees has become an essential strategic initiative for competitive employers. Employees expect and deserve a workplace where they are welcomed, treated with respect, and supported in a way that they can fully contribute.

To promote a truly respectful workplace, an organization has to drive this value from the top. Although most executives proclaim that respect, trust and open communication are highly regarded values in their organization, they will admit that their organization does not quite know how to promote those values in a systematic and strategic manner.

Organizations often diagnose that trust, respect and communication are essential issues on the minds of employees. Many companies that have administered employee satisfaction surveys have received similar findings. These employers then grapple with the task of improving respect, trust and communication.

SRA International has taken a proactive approach to maintaining a respectful work place with open communication and trusted relationships. As part of their commitment to these values, SRA delivers a training workshop titled, "Ensuring A Respectful Workplace." This is a highly interactive hands-on, fun course which focuses on the behaviors which SRA values. SRA International, recently named one of the 100 best companies to work for in America, recognizes the importance of employee satisfaction. An article in the June 2000 issue of the Wall Street Journal cited this course as SRA's mechanism for successfully dealing with this growing workplace challenge. Participants of this course often say that mandating this course is a positive example of SRA's commitment to ensuring a respectful workplace.

The half day program is customized for each company's policies, culture, mission and value statements; case studies and examples are developed that mirror the organization.

The program for managers provides examples and definitions so that they can set the expectations, coach employees to meet those expectations and upon evaluation of behavior, both reward positive achievement and correct behaviors which do not meet these core values.
The employee program focuses on the accountability and expected behaviors for each employee who works with the organization.

Send the right message to your employees -- bring this upbeat and highly interactive program to your organization and challenge one and all to think about their behaviors and reactions. Give employees the skills and tools that they can take back to the job in order to change behavior.