Perception at Work

 

One of my most interesting experiences of rolling out performance management systems for organizations and one of the key learning from those times was the role of perception. To cite a classic example here, the success of performance management system largely depended on how the organization viewed it. Some organization viewed it as a chore, a tick mark; others were more enamoured by it. They needed it to enhance the glamour quotient, to showcase that they had HR processes in place, yet others used it as a defence mechanism to justify their actions. With changing times some also viewed it as a means to develop employees but it wasn’t until recently that the role of performance management is seen as that of a strategic enabler.

The result and implementation of the process relied heavily upon how it was perceived. This is a universal phenomenon. It is an interesting journey to reminisce.  Go back to your first day on your first job. Your thought process starts well before you enter your office. It is based on your previous experience, the information about the organization, the expectation from the new firm, and the people you are going to meet. You walk in on the first day and are met with hostility and anger. You immediately start to dissect what is wrong with your approach; you question your choice of clothes, your words or even your role at that time.

What kind of perception is at work here? This is called fundamental attribution error. You at your end are attributing it yourself whereas; it is something that happened that day. What you perceive as hostility is simple indifference, but since it is not as per your expectation of a warm welcome, you feel vulnerable.

Another classic example is the communication gap leading to performance bias. I have often in my experience seen different types of employees. One who work and don’t communicate, second who don’t work and only communicate, third who both work and communicate and fourth who neither work nor communicate and still manage to exist in the organization. Personally, I feel the third category is by far the most productive for the organization as they know and can work with the brasses to enhance their position. However, the most mystical category is the one which knows how to exist. They are the ones who work around perceptions finding their ways into the support structures of managers. This can be referred to as Ingroup bias, where chosen few are beyond reproach.

Recruitment, Retention, Layoffs, everything is laced with aftereffects of perception. A famous recruitment question is to tell me something about yourself. I remember being part of a panel when this question was asked. I often wondered what is it that we are expecting to infer from this question. As a panellist, I wasn’t trained in that. I learned on the job. Agreed that sometimes we need different perceptions but at others, it does defeat the purpose. Stereotypes often used to present themselves with questions when a woman was asked a question about marriage and family planning and people were laughed at for their communication skills vis-à-vis for a technical profile.

But the situation isn’t as grim as it may seem. As I mentioned perceptions that hinder us also make us stronger. An organization needs to channelize employee perception. Employees need to feel a part; they need to belong and heard. If the organization is giving them opportunities to do that then they feel important. The vulnerability, insecurity and anxiety in employees around workplace slowly convert into confidence, buoyancy and enthusiasm.  

 So if you want to deal with workplace perception, make employees feel heard.