Voice matters — Why it matters & why employee voice needs to be managed in Indian Organisations
Human Resources & Organisational Behaviour
Today’s businesses operate in a chaotic and unpredictable environment (Jha, Potnuru, Sareen et al. 2019). The current state of intense global competition and changing work conditions require organisations to encourage employees to be proactive, creative and engaged in their work (Prince & Rao 2020). Employee voice means employees express their thoughts, ideas, and views to their employers (Singh & Vanka 2019).
Have you heard of the #Google Walkout movement that took place in the year 2018? Well, thousands of salaried employees across the globe decided to walk out on Google solely because of the absence of transparency, gender bias and the lack of involvement in decision-making (Singh & Vanka 2019). This was a wake-up call for HR across the world. The walkout made organisations understand that employee voice cannot be avoided (Singh & Vanka 2019). The concept of employee voice is gaining momentum in India. It is the key source for critical business intelligence (Edakkat, Dyaram, Dyaram et al. 2020). But why is a country like India determined to administer employee voice processes even though educated workers are adequately available? This article intends to answer that question. Furthermore, it aims at recognising the influence of leadership in this process along with the consequence of employee silence and burnouts in Indian organisations. It intends on bringing out certain trends and practices in Small and Medium size enterprises (SME’s) governed by diversified workplace patterns, erratic employee relations practices and workplace vagaries that has become quite the eye-catcher (Mishra 2018).
Leaders’ account for employee voice
For decades, the Indian workforce has been subjected to organisational hierarchy seeking financial aid and welfare from their superiors (Edakkat & Dyaram, 2018). In high power distance cultures questioning higher authority or challenging one’s status quo commonly gets one into trouble (Edakkat & Dyaram, 2018). Research has established that leadership and management styles influence subordinate behaviour (Edakkat & Dyaram, 2018). This rigid leadership style might have worked well with generations preceding the Millennials (Jha, Potnuru, Sareen et al. 2019, Edakkat & Dyaram, 2018). Millennials are individualistic and career-oriented. One-third of the world consists of millennials (Jha, Potnuru, Sareen et al. 2019). Millennials in India are no different from their counterparts across the globe. India being the fastest growing economy provokes leader’s to adapt or find themselves missing valuable talent (Jha, Potnuru, Sareen et al. 2019). While voice is self-initiated, managers play a key role in helping employees overcome potential barriers in honestly communicating their opinions (Edakkat, Dyaram, Dyaram et al. 2020). Inexperienced leadership leads to workplace bullying, resulting in a psychological contract violation that silences employees (Rai & Agarwal 2018).
Workplace Bullying
Workplace Bullying is a situation where employees are constantly subjected to negative behaviour at the hands of others at a workplace (Rai & Agarwal 2018). This results in a host of negative behaviours and attitudes, leading to a passive coping strategy for employees in a place of mistreatment (Rai & Agarwal 2018). For example, the result of workplace bullying is silence and feedback avoidance (Rai & Agarwal 2018, Srivastava, Jain & Sullivan 2019). As an organization, you don’t want either. Employees choose silence for various reasons. Scholars have theorized that their voice might have no impact. Speaking would harm others which in turn would hurt their credibility whilst remaining silent would probably give them a competitive advantage (Srivastava, Jain & Sullivan 2019). While silence appears to be common and employees may choose to be silent, silence is generally considered toxic and harmful to an individual (Srivastava, Jain & Sullivan 2019). The Indian socio-cultural framework tends to foster silence among employees in response to workplace issues (Rai & Agarwal 2018, Srivastava, Jain & Sullivan 2019). It’s been happening for years. Cultural norms in India use silence to illustrate loyalty to their superiors (Srivastava, Jain and Sullivan 2019). Hence, Indian employees are less likely to face a negative outcome of silence since silence is perceived as a culturally appropriate response (Srivastava, Jain and Sullivan 2019). How do we create a proactive, creative, energetic & engaged workforce in a country where silence results in better career outcomes?
What SME’s are doing differently?
Small and medium scale enterprises are adversely affected during challenging economic era and recessions. When resources are scarce, competition increases and customers demand quality services now more than ever (Srinivas & Yasmeen 2017). SME’s operate with limited resources and their ability to adapt to new technologies and introduce new products or services allows them to compete successfully in the marketplace (Rasheed, Shahzad & Nadeem 2021). Research shows that SME’s contain a more fertile environment to nurture voice (Rasheed, Shahzad & Nadeem 2021). The simple organizational structure and culture allow employees to have autonomy and allow for an opportunity to influence top management (Srinivas & Yasmeen 2017). Studies also show that highly engaged companies improved 19.2% in operating income over the duration of this study conducted by Srinivas & Yasmeen (2017).
Leaders in SME’s are adopting Transformational Leadership styles encompassing five key characteristics: vision, inspirational communication, supportive leadership, intellectual stimulation, and personal recognition (Rasheed, Shahzad & Nadeem 2021). CEO’s of smaller organizations promote supportive leadership by understanding the vision and motivating their followers through recognition (Rasheed, Shahzad & Nadeem 2021). This is a smart move. The top management has a strong influence over the formation and implementation of voicing strategies to achieve growth and sustainability (Rasheed, Shahzad & Nadeem 2021). Leadership, technological advancements and employee well-being; all of these elements are acknowledged through effective employee engagement and voice channels.
Self Reflection: My personal experience with an SME
I recently joined an organization that provides a platform for Software Developers. Coming from a non-IT background, this was exciting and new for me. I’ve been looking for a good opportunity and a place to work for the past year and a half. This past year has been a struggle for most job seekers. Organizations have had to let go of their staff and their office spaces. This country has undergone many changes over the past year. The pandemic has made life brutal for most. But businesses must go on. So I got an internship with this organization that decided to give me a chance. I was thrilled. Honestly, I had been looking for an opportunity for so long that I would have gladly accepted anything that came my way. I really wanted a good start. By God’s grace, this company has been nothing but supportive. I didn’t know what to expect from Indian organizations. As a startup, they have created a safe environment to share and explore new ideas and hear my concerns.
Over the past month, I have had a structured learning pattern. The best part about working in a small organization is that there is always room for change. There is always something new to learn. I had the opportunity to talk to so many people and learn something every day. I constantly find new ways to assess candidates. Assessing one’s soft skills is not as easy as one perceives it. I find myself wanting to be a better version of myself every day of every week. I spend a lot of my time thinking and analysing my own emotions, actions and feelings. I push myself every day because they help me grow professionally. They value my opinions, my ideas. They hear my concerns. There have been days when I have struggled mentally. I expressed these concerns briefly to my manager the next day. She said if you want someone to talk to, please give me a call. She mentioned how she had been through the same thing and said she’d help in any way she could. She really didn’t have to help. Just offering to hear me out made a difference. I felt safe to communicate my thoughts. This is what good leadership looks like. Support, appreciation and constructive criticism. It’s not that I have never made a mistake. I have. But it was okay. It was okay to make a mistake as long as I learnt from them. I make sure I learn from them and never repeat the same mistake twice. This is my ideal workplace. Employee well being is an essential part of today’s society and this organization is doing a great job by allowing its employees to voice concerns.
References
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Edakkat S S., Dyaram L., Dayaram K., Ayentimi D.T. and Khan N., 2020. Leaders’ accounts on employee voice in the Indian context: an exploratory study. Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources, 58(4), pp.485–503. Edakkat, Dyaram, Dyaram et al. 2020
Hume N K, 2018 “Google employees walkout” by San Francisco examiner 14/2021 https://www.sfexaminer.com/photo-galleries/google-employees-walkout/nggallery/image/181104-sfe-googlewalkoutgallery-002/#picgallery
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Mishra, A., 2018. Identifying Convergence & Divergences in Employment Relations Practices in the Indian SME Sector: in Search of An Integrated Model of Employment Relations. SMS Journal of Entrepreneurship & Innovation, 4(2), pp.13–23.
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Rasheed, M.A., Shahzad, K. and Nadeem, S., 2021. Transformational leadership and employee voice for product and process innovation in SMEs. Innovation & Management Review.
Srinivas, K. and Yasmeen, S., 2017. A study on employee engagement in small and medium enterprises in the digital economy. Millennial workforce — A contemplation. Hyderabad: Zenon Academic Publishing, pp.57–64.
Srivastava, S., Jain, A.K. and Sullivan, S. (2019), “Employee silence and burnout in India: the mediating role of emotional intelligence”, Personnel Review, Vol. 48 №4, pp. 1045–1060. https://doi.org/10.1108/PR-03-2018-0104 Srivastava, Jain and Sullivan 2019
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