Employee voice and human resource management

 

Figure 1: Voice of the employee

Giving employees the chance to authentically communicate their thoughts, worries, and viewpoints without worrying about the repercussions on their reputations or standing at work is how employee voice is frequently characterized. It follows that input from workers might affect decisions made at work. When a leader has influence, they base their decisions on employee input. A new method of working, adopting concepts and creative work methods, enhancing business culture, or addressing trouble spots might all be considered actions (Wong, 2020).

Employee voice strategy

The best way to encourage your employees to voice their opinions is via an employee voice plan. 'Action' and "strategic" should be distinguished in this context. Running employee surveys when needed is a valuable action, but it is not a strategy in and of itself. A planned and ongoing program of initiatives that support your employees in speaking up for themselves is known as an employee voice strategy (Blink, 2023). 

The following employee voice examples are used to build specific strategies: Everything one creates is built on these two main principles.

• Commitment to a ‘speak up’ culture

Employees just will not bother if they weigh the dangers against the potential benefits of speaking up (whether offering praise or criticism). More workers will participate if you make it rewarding to do so (even if the feedback is unfavorable).

• Commitment to employee-centered leadership

Senior management needs to take the initiative to hear what employees have to say and respond to it. Your employee voice approach will be more successful if senior leaders make a visible commitment to it (Blink, 2023). 

 

The framework of employee voice

Figure 2: The framework of employee voice

This concept separates two types of voice: that of the individual worker and that of the collective represented by unions and other groups. Partnership and shared objectives are examples of bottom-up issue resolution. The opposing agendas of complaints and collective bargaining are on the same axis. But they are not unalterable truths. Although it is challenging to combine conventional collective bargaining with a partnership, organizations have a tendency to pursue similar or divergent goals, and there are different levels of direct and indirect engagement. The values that management has for its workers and their unions are one of the main variables determining the approach to employee voice (Employee relations, 2023).

Employee Voice and Job Satisfaction: An Application of Herzberg's Two-factor Theory

The dual-factor theory, often known as Herzberg's motivation-hygiene theory or the two-factor theory contends that there are two distinct sets of workplace variables that can lead either to job satisfaction or to job unhappiness. These elements that promote job happiness typically have to do with self-actualization and progress. Since then, one of the most frequently utilized theoretical frameworks in studies on job satisfaction has been the two-factor motivation theory. Herzberg claimed that the presence of motivators guaranteed job happiness, while the absence of hygienic aspects led to job discontent. Several methods exist for measuring and testing employee voice in companies. Establishing an initial strategy that is straightforward and invites voice then a setting where staff suggestions and viewpoints are valued. The degree of voice impact is what ultimately determines how an employee's thoughts and judgments turn out. An employee's decision to speak up also depends on how they see the results of their activities, whether they are good or bad. Employees run the risk of speaking out when they believe their acts will not be penalized or reprimanded, in other words. Many employees are reluctant to speak up because they believe the drawbacks will outweigh the benefits (Nickerson, 2023).

How to Listen to Employee Voice at Work?

There are several ways to make the process of listening to employees more effective, some of which are listed below.

• Employee Feedback
• Employee Engagement Surveys
• One on One Meetings with Employees
• Suggestion Box
• Allowing Interested and Well-performing Employees to Participate in High-level Meetings (Vantage Circle , 2023).

The Benefits of Employee Voice at Work

• People who have found their voice can be more focused about their work.
• Effective HR and management processes, many of which depend on, or can be enhanced by, employee voice, can further enhance the capability of employees.
• Employee voice does not just help develop individual employee capability, but also the employees’ engagement, and retention within the organization.
• The organization misses out from a lack of employee voice.
• Employee voice articulates and helps shape an organization’s culture and is a major enabler to cultural change.
• Encouraging employees to talk about what they are experiencing also helps when we want to change that experience, because it involves them in the change.
• Not only individual employees will be less productive if they have not found their voice.
• Enabling people to talk productively internally is a pre-requisite to supporting them to talk in a useful way externally.
• Another aspect of this is that it helps avoid negative commentary externally (Work Stars, 2023).

Conclusion

Giving employees a voice is essential to creating a satisfied, more effective, and engaged staff. Employees must, however, be persuaded that their recommendations are crucial to decision-making. Then, as part of their duty, they will be more open to sharing ideas, worries, and thoughts. As leaders frequently rely on their employees to bring up concerns that could otherwise be ignored, it can be quite problematic if employees do not have a voice in the workplace. When you feel unheard, you just follow instructions without challenging them or volunteering to speak out and make a difference since you do not believe anything will change. This will result in low employee engagement and a negative business culture.

 

References

Blink, 2023. Blink. [Online]
Available at: https://joinblink.com/intelligence/employee-voice/#1-what-is-an-employee-voice-strategy-
[Accessed 01 May 2023].

Employee relations, 2023. Employee voice. [Online]
Available at: https://nscpolteksby.ac.id/ebook/files/Ebook/Business%20Administration/ARMSTRONGS%20HANDBOOK%20OF%20HUMAN%20RESOURCE%20MANAGEMENT%20PRACTICE/56%20-%20Employee%20Voice.pdf
[Accessed 01 May 2023].

Nickerson, C., 2023. Simply Psycology. [Online]
Available at: https://www.simplypsychology.org/herzbergs-two-factor-theory.html
[Accessed 01 May 2023].

Vantage Circle , 2023. Vantage Circle. [Online]
Available at: https://blog.vantagecircle.com/employee-voice/
[Accessed 01 May 2023].

Wong, K., 2020. Achievers. [Online]
Available at: https://www.achievers.com/blog/what-is-employee-voice-and-why-is-it-important/
[Accessed 01 May 2023].

Work Stars, 2023. Work Stars. [Online]
Available at: https://www.workstars.com/recognition-and-engagement-blog/2015/05/12/the-benefits-of-employee-voice-at-work/
[Accessed 01 May 2023].