Utilizing Psychological Safety to Address Impairment in the Workplace
Impairment in the workplace is a complex challenge for organizations, and the pandemic has exacerbated existing concerns related to fitness to work. I spend considerable time working with clients who want to increase frontline capacity to manage impairment in the workplace. Impairment can come from multiple sources including fatigue, psychological illness, and impairing substances. Clients want (and frankly, need) to develop effective ways for their leadership teams to consistently address operational impairment issues. Consistently, human resources are tasked to create an effective approach for frontline leaders to respond competently when impairment risks occur in the workplace, but the challenge arises in developing sustainable methods and practices.
It's no surprise frontline leaders are uncertain about how best to address this complex issue. Let's face it, Leadership teams face several barriers when attempting to address impairment in the workplace. The reality is that Leaders fear failure of doing the wrong thing, and this leads them to feel unequipped and hesitant to act. To complicate matters more, leaders will often try to manage expectations and the perception of their ability to lead teams when it comes to such complicated matters. Leaders are hesitant to reduce production capacity by removing an employee who may not be fit for work and require informed knowledge on best steps for approaching an employee they feel may not be fit for work. Hard-earned trust, personal relationships, and concern for the employee repercussions are additional concerns when dealing with impairment in the workplace.
Impression management is an attempt to influence the perspective that others have of them by regulating and controlling information during interactions. They are in full self-protection mode and constantly making conscious micro assessment risk calculations when choosing to speak up.1 Calculating interpersonal risks occur (not entirely in conscious form) to prevent looking incompetent, ignorant, or wrong. These fear factors prevent the curious dialogue necessary when engaging in "learn how to" behaviours. We need to have realistic expectations of our leaders when we support them to deal with an issue as complex as impairment in the workplace. Being aware of the potential for frontline leaders to experience the fear to speak up or the decision to attempt the preservation of others' perceptions of will lead to an opportunity to create an environment that is safe for taking interpersonal risk.
Implementing traditional training models for frontline leaders can risk creating behavioral changes in leaders who require development of skills related to awareness, insight, and sensitivity to appropriately handle situations in real-time. Providing one dimensional information to leaders about managing impairment in the workplace fails to maximize the leadership development opportunity that the challenge itself presents. Front line leaders often tell me that the impairment training they have received left them feeling inadequate and unable to apply the information in practical scenarios. Typical impairment training environments often allow little to no engagement or opportunity for leaders to ask questions based on their personal experience or concerns.
Creating the conditions for psychological safety required to facilitate open, authentic communication offers an innovative approach. The safe space fosters the sharing of knowledge and ideas about managing impairment in the workplace without fear and silence. We want leaders to feel safe to approach the learning authentically so that they can contribute to a conversation about impairment in the workplace. Psychological safety is a belief that one will not be punished or humiliated for speaking up with ideas, questions, concerns, or mistakes, and that the team is safe for "interpersonal risk-taking."1
In a psychologically safe environment, employees feel safe to address the biases and discrimination they witness – without the fear of professional or social repercussions (Edmondson, 2018, pp. 15-19)2. The application of psychological safety element is vital to the success of my role as a facilitator in the workplace. Rather than simply telling leaders what to do, psychological safety in a team environment allows for practical application of the principles which really makes a difference and influences the outcomes in real-world workplace scenarios. Psychological safety fosters the ability of leaders to engage their curiosity while working through facilitated operational scenarios. Leaders can freely discuss the topic without the risk of judgment or blame. Capacity is developed at the grassroots level which enables them to understand their role in situations.
We need to meet frontline leaders where they are, rather than asking them to meet us where we think they should be. This mindset is critical to creating learning outcomes that are meaningful and empowering in the workplace. Our leaders are not able to learn and grow when they are afraid to speak up, ask questions or voice concerns. They know their teams and operational challenges better than the organization. Affording the opportunity for leaders to apply their operational expertise to develop effective methods and approaches together to impairment is the key to sustained change.
I find it very fulfilling to facilitate a workshop of leaders engaged in collaborative dialogue about the management of impairment. Powerful results are achieved when frontline leaders candidly and freely exchange their fears, concerns, and inadequacies about impairment in the workplace. The end goal of igniting psychological safety in a collaborative setting is to develop trust and respect that will facilitate the development of meaningful, practical, and organic solutions based on the needs of the organization. Success is measured when frontline leaders engage in the behavioral change they have endorsed and ultimately demonstrate in performance.
References
1,2.: Edmondson, A. (2018). The Fearless Organization: Creating Psychological Safety in the Workplace for Learning, Innovation, and Growth. Wiley.
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