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While incompetence is a trait typically applied to an employee, a workplace culture can also be incompetent. This means that a company’s culture has traits that produce incompetent employees.

Fortunately, leadership can shape and mold company culture more easily than they might the individual employees that belong to it. It begins by identifying areas of concern and determining why they are problematic. And it ends by applying effective, deliberate solutions to address the weaknesses.

This checklist, which talks about seven key indicators of workplace incompetence and how to fix them, is a great starting point.

1. UNJUSTLY CLAIMED CREDIT OR BLAME IS TOLERATED

It is far too easy for some employees to steal the thunder from their coworkers – especially if the latter tends to fly under the radar in any way. Conversely, some workers are quick to assign blame to teammates who do not deserve it.

Whether credit or blame is in question, a company culture that allows these injustices to go unchecked is one that supports them. Make no mistake about it, remaining silent in the face of wrongdoing is a form of supporting it.

Instead, leadership should follow two practices:

  • Come up with a system that clearly differentiates each employee’s contributions, to eliminate any gray areas around credit and blame.
  • Require managers to keep a close eye on their reports to identify toxic patterns of behavior exhibited by one or more of their employees.

Once dishonest behavior is identified, the manager should speak privately with the worker exhibiting it and make it clear that such actions will not be tolerated going forward.

2. EMPLOYEES IN SENIOR ROLES ARE SHOWN FAVORITISM

True leaders lead by example, a characteristic that is equally true of employees in senior roles who value equality for their teammates. Company culture conducive to competence will echo this sentiment of equality.

Favoritism of workers in senior roles can look like anything from expecting them to do less work, to letting them get away with behavior or mistakes that have consequences for employees who are lower in the organization’s hierarchy. Workplaces that allow this to go on often create resentful and overworked employees.

Everyone at your company deserves respect, regardless of where they sit on the corporate ladder. Workload, recognition, and consequences should be equal across the board.

3. GOSSIP REGULARLY SPREADS LIKE WILDFIRE

If leadership does not speak up to employees who spread gossip, and it happens regularly, it can affect company culture in a couple of significant ways.

First, gossiping about coworkers is disrespectful. It degrades them – not only by the negative things that are said but also by talking about them behind their back instead of to their face. Any workplace that allows teammates to disrespect each other, or their managers, is one lacking in professionalism and respect.

Second, when people engage in gossip instead of focusing on their work, their productivity lags. An unproductive workplace is an incompetent one.

Correcting gossip can be tricky, but it can be done. The trick is to strike the right balance between discouraging gossiping without making it seem like leadership frowns on the occasional harmless social interaction. After all, a moderate amount of socializing is good, and even necessary, for team building.

Instruct managers to speak up any time they hear gossip starting. They can simply and calmly tell the perpetrator(s), that this is something you should discuss with him/her face-to-face. Managers should do the same if they find out through the grapevine that employees are gossiping. Pull each person aside individually and make it clear that your organization frowns on gossip.

4. EXPERIENCE IS VALUED ABOVE PUTTING IN THE WORK

When employers post job openings, experience is one of the top priorities on every company’s list. It makes sense, as training can be time-consuming and costly. While experience is essential, putting in the work is equally important.

Think about it: What would happen if you had an organization full of employees who, instead of doing their job, got nothing accomplished all day because they had “already paid their dues.” It sounds like a recipe for disaster, right? However, many companies have workers like this who they let get away with it. This puts the onus on their hardworking employees to pick up the slack in addition to their own work – putting them at risk of getting burnt out and leaving.

Give every single employee, in writing, a list of their responsibilities and what the organization expects them to accomplish. You could make the list digital so that it is dynamic, allowing changes to be made in accordance with their tenure at the company. Management should have regular check-ins with each employee to verify that they are doing the work that is expected of them.

5. ASKING FOR HELP IS DISCOURAGED OR TREATED WITH CONTEMPT

Every employee, even the ones who have been with the organization and/or are highly experienced in the industry/subject matter, will need help occasionally. Whether they have a single question or need guidance on how to execute something, a culture that discourages it does not support competence.

As leadership, you should drive home the notion that “there is no such thing as a dumb question.” Let workers know that management is always happy to help them succeed and that they will not be mocked or penalized for asking for help. Furthermore, express to employees that making fun of anyone who seeks help will not be tolerated.

PRO TIP:  Incompetence can occur simply from a lack of leadership engagement.  When an employee takes on harder projects or projects that fall outside of their wheelhouse but isn’t asking for help, leaders should be checking in. Silence doesn’t necessarily mean things are going well.  In the same respect, employees who aren’t asking questions may not have enough knowledge to know if they have questions or the right questions to ask.  Give prompts to help them better tune in to questions they might be missing.

6. INCENTIVES FAIL TO MOTIVATE EMPLOYEES TO DO THEIR BEST WORK

Appealing incentives give people a compelling reason to do their best work. “Appealing” is the keyword here. Financial rewards such as bonuses and money are not the one-size-fits-all incentive you might assume they are, especially long-term. If the incentives you offer as rewards are not attractive to employees, they will lack motivation to achieve them.

Get creative and offer a variety of incentives. One highly effective type of incentive is a trip covered entirely by the company. These incentive trips work whether you are rewarding an individual employee or a small group of employees. You could send them to a destination in the United States or a far-flung exotic locale in a different country. Either way, these all-expense-paid trips give recipients a lasting positive impression of their employer and they encourage workers to go above and beyond.

Other examples of appealing incentives include:

  • Extra paid time off.
  • Public recognition at an internal or external company event.
  • A luxurious experience like spa treatments or driving a luxury car for a day.
  • A day off work spent at a popular local attraction.

7. LEADERSHIP FIGHTS POSITIVE CHANGES

Of course, stability is necessary for an organization to survive. That said, stability should not equate to being “stuck.” What that means is that leadership should not be opposed to positive changes and innovation that could greatly benefit the company in the long run. In fact, it is fair to say that in today’s world, organizations that resist change will get left behind. And when employees are aware that changes are not welcomed, they are less likely to share great new ideas.

Embrace positive changes. Doing so does not have to be risky when they are executed in the proper way – thoughtfully and with care. You can back up new initiatives and ideas with deep research and smart execution, which minimizes the risk factor and improves the potential to achieve desired outcomes. Encourage employees to come forward with their ideas and follow that up by stressing that you want to see research that illustrates why it could work for your organization.

COMPETENCE IS A CHOICE

As this checklist illustrates, competence is a choice leadership makes when it creates a company culture that is respectful, thoughtful, transparent, responsible, and professional. By incorporating these principles into your workplace culture, you will position employees to succeed, thereby positioning the organization for success, as well.

 

Do you like the idea of setting up a non-cash incentive program? If so, contact Gavel International for more information about our group travel incentive programs.

This article was last updated on November 10, 2023

Jim Bozzelli
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