Mushrooms grow in the dark. Similarly, a business that keeps its employees in the dark is one that suffers from low morale and high turnover. We live in a information rich society with the Internet, E-mail, CNN, cable, satellite TV pumping a steady stream of information 24 hours a day. People today want to know what's going on. Businesses must communicate at least 10 times better than in the past.
Good communication eliminates myths, rumors and bad attitudes.
Seek employee's input and advice. When managers ask their employees for their input, the results are usually positive. A good example is Guardian Industries, an 800-person glass plant in Indiana. They decided to start listening to their employees and find a better way of deciding how to staff the shifts. The employees decided that instead of working rotating shifts between day and evening, they would rather work permanent 12-hour shifts.