Canadian people managers who have left or are planning to leave their role say factors such as lack of fulfilment or advancement (49 per cent), inadequate compensation (41 per cent) and mental-health issues (31 per cent) influenced their decision, according to a new survey by the Harris Poll on behalf of Express Services Inc.
The survey, which polled more than 500 employers and more than 500 employees, found eight in 10 (79 per cent) employers believe supervisors at their company have the tools they need to help their direct reports succeed.
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However, fewer than a third of companies said they offer training related to the issues and skills that hiring managers say are relevant to supervisors, including how to give constructive criticism (30 per cent), how to discuss issues/concerns about direct reports’ performance (28 per cent) and how to set professional boundaries with direct reports (24 per cent). Notably, 70 per cent said their company should be doing more to support and help supervisors succeed.
While 69 per cent of managers said they’ve received some form of training just 26 per cent said they’ve received training on workplace conflicts and just 21 per cent on providing constructive criticism.
Among small- and medium-sized employers, manager training often comes down to time, cost and internal resources, said Brent Pollington, a Vancouver-based Express Services franchise owner, in an emailed statement to Benefits Canada.
“Many companies — especially smaller ones — may feel that unless the lack of training is directly hurting performance or profits, it’s not an urgent investment. . . . Most smaller firms simply don’t have the bandwidth to deliver meaningful training. But they often feel the pain of that more directly — whether it’s through employee turnover, poor customer experience or loss of revenue.”
The current labour market may also be impacting employers’ approach to manager training. “Because it’s perceived as an ‘employer’s market,’ there’s less urgency to invest in retention strategies or leadership development. When people are worried about layoffs and jobs receive hundreds of applicants, companies may feel they don’t have to differentiate or invest proactively.”
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A lack of training, particularly around conflict resolution and constructive criticism, is also contributing to rising workplace toxicity, the survey noted. Almost half (45 per cent) of employers said there are more instances of bad employee behaviour being reported than there were three years ago, including gossiping (40 per cent), followed by unprofessional communication (26 per cent), avoiding working/collaborating with others (24 per cent), micromanaging of direct reports (21 per cent) and taking credit for another person’s work (21 per cent).
Employers can counter this toxicity by encouraging a positive workplace through transparency about roles and reporting structures, said Pollington.
“Employers need to be upfront about what a role entails, where the business is strong, where there are challenges and what kind of environment new hires are coming into. Similarly, candidates should be honest about their own gaps and expectations. When both sides are aligned from the start, they’re better equipped to support each other long term.”
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Similarly, in order to stave off burnout, people managers need to be proactive and communicate about any challenges they face in their role.
“If you’re a manager and you’re experiencing burnout, struggling with technology changes or seeing communication breakdowns among your team, not voicing those concerns to leadership will only hurt you in the long run.
“Part of the onus is on managers to advocate for the changes they need —but in a way that ties their needs directly to the business, whether that’s profitability, productivity, customer satisfaction or other outcomes.”
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