It’s a great feeling to be sought for your opinion and participation when your organization needs to make an important decision. But what happens when the organization’s managers don’t listen? Management consultant Liz Ryan perhaps put it best: “When you work for a company that is not interested in your opinion, you can tell. They make it obvious. Once you know in your gut that your boss is not interested in your opinion, what other choice do you have than to find another job?”

Some suggest that these bosses perhaps should be let go. Given that bad members can lower employee satisfaction and engagement, supervisors who exercise this form of control often emphasize politics over productivity and abuse their power, while employees complain because of the lack of support they are getting. They are “thrown under the bus” and forced out of the loop, and communication is all one way. Giving employees a chance to voice their opinions as part of the process leads to improved justice perceptions and satisfaction, and thus regularly not listening to feedback can be an issue. For example, one study found that both employees and managers recognize that paying lip service to employees and soliciting their suggestions without taking their advice occurs. Employees who became aware of this feigned interest were more reluctant to offer input later, experienced more conflicts with colleagues, bullied others, and refused to participate in meetings. Conversely, employees who had their ideas implemented spoke up more often and had better interpersonal relationships with their coworkers.

Questions 

1. Do you think sometimes managers are justified in not taking their employee’s advice? Why or why not? 

2. How should managers handle their employees’ dissatisfaction with not having their advice put into practice? 

3. Which do you think is the most effective form of employee involvement and participation (EIP) program, participative management or representative management? Is it possible to implement elements of both? Why or why not?