Experts say Elon Musk’s iron-fisted tactics on Twitter are inhumane and dangerous, plus they’re against … [+]
Chaos continued to erupt as employee rallies exited Twitter on November 17 following Elon Musk’s ironclad demands. He gave workers until 5pm to decide whether to quit or stay and work “long, high-intensity hours”. Meanwhile, major corporations like CBS suspended their Twitter accounts due to the troubled reception and uncertainty about its future. Musk has used the kind of repressive leadership tactics that caused workplace disruption after the pandemic — the opposite of what experts are calling for to repair the workplace havoc and heal the mental health challenges the pandemic caused.
Workplace leadership experts claim that so far Musk’s leadership style is heading in the wrong direction. In a recent Forbes.com interview, Jenn Lim, CEO of Delivering Happiness and author of Beyond Happiness: How Authentic Leaders Prioritize Purpose for Growth and Impact, told me Musk is treating people as collateral damage instead of human beings, forgetting basic human decency in the way he’s handling layoffs. Lim’s assessment raises the question of what impact his inhumane actions will have on the employees’ already battered mental health. Others worry that copycat executives will mimic Musk’s tactics to get a bigger bang for their buck at the expense of employees’ mental health.
The world’s richest man’s latest back-to-office strategy flies in the face of many other leaders, who also insist remote working is the way of the future and here to stay. Steve Black, Topia’s chief strategy officer, says the all-in-office policy is a risky talent strategy for other companies to adopt. “For Elon Musk to force employees back into the office full-time is a risky talent strategy because it will likely lead to many employees leaving for more flexible work,” Black said. “In our recent Adapt survey, we found that 65% of employees who are forced back into the office full-time say they are more likely to look for a new job; 46% are attracted to jobs that focus on employee well-being and 42% want the ability to work from home when they want. Musk is going directly against both of these factors by removing all flexibility and forcing a minimum 40 hours a week.”
Musk was headed in the wrong direction
If a motorist was driving the wrong way on a one-way street, pedestrians would flag him down. If a leader is taking a large organization in the wrong direction, people in the know will flag it before it crashes and burns. What follows are the actions experts say corporate leaders need to take in 2023 to restore post-pandemic stability to the workplace — all of which Musk is taking in reverse.
- Psychological safety for employees. According to Jennie Yang, vice president of people and culture at 15Five, leaders should consider the competencies they want to see in their managers and employees, such as resilience, self-direction and adaptability to ambiguity. “To survive a recession, psychological safety for employees will be critical next year, so leaders in particular will require the skills to handle internal communications,” she said, adding that recovering from the trauma of toxic workplaces of work and improving soft skills to manage. tough economic times are inevitable. “Key skills to focus on include strong mental and emotional well-being and the ability to connect with others.”
- Increase team productivity without burnout. Tim Harsch, CEO and co-founder of Owler, told me that the biggest challenge for leaders in 2023 will be managing through economic uncertainty and increasing team productivity without burning out teams. “This will take clear and honest communication across the organization and establishing quality key performance indicators (KPIs) that everyone buys into within the teams,” he said.
- Creating a sustainable workplace. David Hassell, CEO and co-founder of 15Five, agrees that business leaders will need to stay confident in the face of uncertainty in 2023. When business leaders rise to the occasion and lead with uncertainty, they ultimately create a positive workplace for their employees to thrive, Hassell told me, predicting that businesses will double down on leadership and management training and that the standardization of the 9-to-5 workplace is gone, adding, “Creating a sustainable workplace that anchors employee trust and loyalty is vital. This is especially important in a remote or hybrid work environment. Employees feeling a sense of stability, support from leadership, a sense of purpose in their work, and connection to others—all those that leadership needs to direct – will be less likely to disengage or ‘quit’ in the coming year.”
A better way to make tough decisions
Elon Musk’s tactics are diametrically opposed to what evidence-based research findings and expert opinions recommend. Here are the ingredients top leaders say are needed to repair the havoc in a post-pandemic workplace:
- Gallup insists that a company’s most important asset is its people.
- TalentLMS reported that 78% of employees want more support from the workplace.
- A body of research shows that empathy is the most important leadership skill, especially in times of crisis.
- Experts say leaders should manage with stability and certainty during economic uncertainty, not add more confusion and disruption.
However, many misinformed leaders will identify with Musk’s reckless tactics and follow in his footsteps. Steve Black at Topia points out that this is a dangerous path for other companies to follow. Twitter and Tesla have been strong and popular brands. Black points out that most brands are not in the same category. Herein lies the danger, he warns, warning organizations: “If these brands follow Musk’s lead, they won’t be able to attract and retain enough top talent for a full term in office to be a worthwhile strategy. After all, a ‘Tesla is doing it, so we can’ strategy would be too risky for most organizations.”
The best way for executives to stay true to company culture when faced with the kinds of tough decisions faced by Elon Musk is to make leadership decisions without emotion. “As leaders make these tough decisions, it’s tempting to take the emotion out of it,” Jenn Lim told me. “Psychologically it can be a remedy to calm a troubled conscience. But conscious leaders take the opposite route. During Covid, these leaders put aside titles and office politics and put on their empathy hats, knowing what was at stake and how they were affecting livelihoods. As you make these decisions, keep your company’s values and purpose close at hand, making them part of your considerations. Leadership must begin with why these elections are being held and then like they align to the company’s values and purpose. When they are supported, the true character of an organization has the opportunity to show its humanity.”
