Canadian Government Executive - Volume 26 - Issue 05

24 / Canadian Government Executive // January/February 2021 MIDDLE MANAGEMENT Motivating unexpected results By John Wilkins The size of your dreams must always exceed your current capacity to achieve them. — ELLEN JOHNSON SIRLEAF, PRESIDENT OF LIBERIA (2006-18) A nne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery is a fa- vourite book of young peo- ple growing up in Canada and around the world. One amusing passage tells how Anne mistak- enly adds a skin medication instead of va- nilla to making a cake. She exclaims after- wards to her stern-faced guardian Marilla, “Isn’t it nice to think that tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it yet?” Like Anne, people surprise. The thought of starting afresh tomorrow gives hope. In the face of inevitable mistakes, opportunities for unexpected results are ripe for harvest. Nelson Mandela put it this way: “The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.” Managers who set clear direction, es- tablish challenging targets, and inspire their employees create high-performance workplaces. They have a fixed term to think about how to make the most change in a short time. Motivation is the key. Elevating expectations In the 2015 film The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel , Bill Nighy’s character proclaims, “The great and terrible thing about life is there’s just so much bloody potential.” Motivation improves perfor- mance. Performance management sys- tems without motivated people fail to deliver desired results. A public service that feels appreciated goes the extra mile. Starting with high expectations raises the bar for all. Public managers must face complex poli- cy problems with high citizen expectations and few resources. Reforms inadvertently cause more job intensity and stress in the workplace. Employee trust, job satisfac- tion, and workplace commitment are de- clining. However, public service values mitigate unethical or corrupt behaviour. The stereotypical perception is of a pub- lic service that is marking time and evad- ing risk. The reality of active pauses in progress, while remaining mentally pre- pared and expectant of decisions, is more subtle. A responsive public service with high expectations eagerly anticipates, trusts, and acts on choices made. This kind of selflessness, self-control, and pa- tience is hard to master. Annual employee performance apprais- als are rarely timely and avoid confronta- tion. What if performance was managed in the moment via frequent, structured, substantive check-ins? Managers could clarify expectations, track performance, offer candid feedback, and recognize and reward results. This rigour would make accountability a dialogue, eschew under- management, and place evidence and an- alytics at the core of government decision- making. A performance culture elevates expectations. Inspiring leadership Leadership musters the personal stamina and fortitude to innovate in the most dif- ficult environment without ignoring or appeasing critics. The formula for suc- cess is knowing your brand — how people feel about what you say and do. Effective leaders show passion for work and com- passion for workers. Leaders need to engage employees dif- ferently to better position their organiza- tion for success. Engagement involves discretionary effort that transcends for- mal job descriptions to do the right thing, as well as commitment that helps people identify with and embrace organizational purpose. Aligning with the organization’s goals empowers employees to get there without constant direction. A Hay Group survey revealed that two- thirds of employees globally report feel- ing engaged in the workplace. Sixty-nine per cent of respondents feel motivated to go the extra mile. Just 54 per cent agree that there are no significant barriers to doing their job well. The 15 per cent gap suggests that employee motivation is not always matched with a supportive work environment. Meanwhile, the half who are already engaged and motivated get frustrated by under-delivering on expecta- tions. Their leaders need to enable them. The challenge is to convert pre-existing motivation into productivity. Fifty-eight per cent of public institutions claim not to have the depth and breadth of leader- ship ability required for the next five years. Forty-two per cent are actively using tech- nology to create online communities to share good practices. The answer lies in leadership development for managers. Inspiring people in times of change to share the mantle of leadership is a social movement. Engaging and listening to peo- ple spread the word quickly and widely. Good messaging overcomes cynicism and apathy with honesty, plain language, and reinforced values. Leaders need to be in- spired themselves to inspire others to be- lieve that change serves the purpose and future of the organization. Failure to focus on the future usually comes from lack of vision and task versus goal-oriented focus. Setting aside time to plan involves learning today what can be applied tomorrow. Developing critical managerial competencies means: • Cultivating an intergenerational work - force and culture that attracts and re- tains talent; • Appreciating the key differences be - tween management and leadership per- spectives; • Understanding how to motivate teams working through complex change; and • Self-assessing leadership skills and their impact on others. J ohn W ilkins is adjunct F aculty in P ublic M anagement at Y ork U niversity . H e was a career senior public servant and diplomat . ( wilkins @ yorku . ca )