You may have been through harassment prevention training. But do you really know your role in creating a positive environment for your employees?
Open communication is a good place to start.
- Be honest and open. You may not need to withhold as much information as you are now. Tell your employees what keeps you up at night, what your goals are for the department. Be transparent and consistent. The more you tell them, the more they’ll share with you, including their concerns.
- Facilitate conversations around topics such as professionalism, inclusion, respect, and empathy. Choose one of these words and begin each staff meeting by asking people to talk about what it means, e.g. have a hugger in the office? Discuss the professionalism of workplace hugging – don’t hug anyone you supervise or are dating.
- Say something every time you hear or see a microaggression. It’s those brief and commonplace indignities that can fly under the radar and, unless you intervene, can move from a snarky comment to hostile – and illegal – in a heartbeat. And by not saying something in the moment, you’re sending the message that others don’t need to either. And the cycle begins.
- Work with your teams to create action items that will keep a positive culture alive in your workplace. Consider creating a spreadsheet with your core values. Work with your team to come up with action items for each. Hold one another accountable – it’s a core value!
- Sharpen your skills. Provide training for your managers on how to facilitate conversations about respect and inclusion and how to manage behavior in addition to managing performance. The way leaders communicate can shape an organizations’ attitudes toward sexual harassment. We can help you. Check out our extensive list of topics here. Attend our Harassment Prevention Training at no cost.
Research by Stanford University sociologists suggest that when leaders communicate that preventing sexual harassment is given high priority, their employees will take the issue more seriously.
So what are your next steps?
Join us! We’re offering a no cost, super interactive Harassment Prevention Training Webinar on April 25th at 9AM PST. Be sure to save the date in your calendar, and register in advance here!
PS – We are excited to announce that our Strategic HR course is featured in LinkedIn Learning’s new Pathfinder! It will be FREE until April 29th, so be sure to check it out this month!!
Let’s create a plan to build a positive workplace! | Invite Catherine to speak
