by Stephanie Grover, VPG Contributor
Stephen Shedletzky’s Speak-Up Culture: When Leaders Truly Listen, People Step Up offers a new way to build workplace environments where communication isn’t just encouraged but is, in fact, essential. Shedletzky defines a speak-up culture as an environment where everyone feels safe to speak and that what they say is being valued. This includes ideas, concerns, disagreements, and mistakes. Creating this speak-up culture starts with leadership. A good leader needs to do more than just encourage others to give them feedback; leaders need to show, repeatedly, that they actually listen to what’s being said and respond with meaningful action. It is not enough to listen without action, as doing so is not truly listening.
Shedletzky shows that creating a culture where speaking up is welcomed leads to greater innovation, stronger collaboration, and overall job satisfaction. Employees will actually feel valued, and the trust between everyone will grow stronger. This ends up becoming a self-fueling machine since people are more likely to care for others when they feel that they have been taken care of. A speak-up culture doesn’t just come naturally though. There are many barriers that Shedletzky discusses with examples in his book, such as fear of retaliation or the hierarchical company structure. However, he shows that it is still possible to overcome these challenges through the proper techniques.
It takes work and effort to cultivate a speak-up culture, but it is ultimately worth it. Shedletzky talks about what a company looks like without one, and the reality is dim. Employees hide bad news or negative feedback, even ones that could be lifesaving, for fear of retaliation and punishment. Useful information gets hidden and hoarded for the power that it holds instead of being shared for the benefit of the organization. People end up hiding their authentic selves and sealing away the things that make them innovative. This ultimately creates a scarcity mindset in employees and fuels a toxic work environment. As Shedletzky puts it, when employees don’t feel cared for, they often become careless themselves.
One concept I really liked from Speak-Up Culture is that of “The Culture Equation,” which Shedletzky describes as the clarity of values multiplied by the behavior of people, all to the power of influence. This is represented as (Values x Behavior) Influence. Coming from a STEM background myself, I really liked this mathematical way of looking at company culture. It demonstrates that it is useless to try and excel in one of these components alone. As important as good values are, if your behavior does not stand by those values, you really have nothing. After all, anything multiplied by zero is still zero. This equation also highlights the importance of leaders creating culture by example; the more influence you have, the more impact your values and behavior have. Shedletzky goes on to clarify that influence does not necessarily mean your status in the company. The relationships you have with others, your roles in projects, and your seniority all play a part in building your influence.
I really appreciate how the advice and techniques given in this book don’t only apply to the professional environment. Communication is an important component of every facet of our lives, from the workplace to friendships and romantic relationships as well. Learning how to speak up and create a culture where those around us feel comfortable speaking up is really important in cultivating trust between people and building empathy.
Speak-Up Culture is an essential read for leaders, managers, and anyone interested in building an environment where people feel valued and empowered to share their perspectives. Shedletzky's conversational writing style and his genuine passion for inclusive leadership make this book not only informative but inspiring. He demonstrates that when leaders listen and act on what they hear, they cultivate loyalty, trust, and high-performance teams.
Connect with Stephen (Shed) Shedletzky on LinkedIn and learn more about Speak-Up Culture.
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