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November 5, 2021
These days, many company leaders choose to be transparent with employees when it comes to the company’s inner workings. This has the advantage of helping workers feel more invested in the company’s success because they can see directly how they fit into the big picture and how their work contributes to what the company is trying to accomplish.
What to consider when it comes to transparency
When you’re trying to be more transparent, you might wonder how far you should go? What information is good to share and what should remain off limits? It’s easy to explain the mission of the company and its goals for the upcoming year so employees understand. But what about things like salary or trade secrets? Are these things that should be shared, or kept under lock and key?
Advantages of transparency
What you decide to share and what you decide to keep hidden is entirely up to you. But by increasing the transparency of the company with employees, you can experience several key advantages:
- Build employee confidence. You can help shape employees’ impression of the company, as well as their future career plans. For example, if you have a good year where Sales met their quotas and revenue is high, it helps employees feel good about where they work—especially if you extend the company’s success in the form of bonuses or profit-sharing. If the year wasn’t especially good, it helps employees understand why their annual merit increase might not be as high as in years past. Or, if the company is doing poorly, it helps your employees make an informed decision to stay put or to find something new, especially if layoffs are coming.
- Avoid discrepancy and lawsuits.
- It can be difficult to be open about money, but it can be an advantage to your company when salary levels are transparent. First, it lets employees know what they’re working towards, which can be incredibly motivating. Second, it helps you avoid discrepancies in pay, which can lead to lawsuits and legal issues.
- Keep tabs on data. Trade secrets are what sets your business apart from its competitors and gives you a unique edge. But what happens when those secrets leave with a key employee who retires or even passes away? Finding a way to be more transparent with important company data, even if it’s keeping it in a special locked or password-protected file that only a few have access to, it helps avoid data loss that can have tragic consequences for your business.
It’s completely up to you!
Of course, there are pros and cons to every decision. But increased transparency can help improve your company culture and the loyalty your workers feel towards the business.
In search of more staff?
Maybe it’s time to help your company grow. If you need new workers, Inter-Connect can help! To learn more, connect with us today.