As animal health companies, practices and retailers integrate and grow, leaders must encourage candor. Megan Reitz and John Higgins have studied accessibility, employee dynamics and why employees rarely cross the leader’s office door threshold. They challenge leaders to ask five questions.
Source: Harvard Business Review, March 9, 2017.
Reitz’ and Higgins’ research suggests that you need to ask questions in five areas:
- First, are you honestly interested in other people’s opinions?
- Second, have you considered how risky it feels for others to speak up to you?
- Third, how aware are you of the political game being played?
- Fourth, what labels do people apply to you, and what labels do you apply to others that define the rules of what can be said?
- Finally, what specifically do you need to do and say to enable others to speak?