I’ve recently been sharing a story told to me by a 21-year-old front-line banker who is a close family friend. That story has brought chuckles, groans and acknowledgment from the bank leaders who hear it.
This young man had a co-worker around his age who had been in his branch for a year. A few weeks back, that fellow informed him that he was going to be leaving to work at another bank.
After telling our friend what his start date on the new job was, he never told their manager he was leaving. Several days before he began the new job, he began calling in sick.
The work schedule for the next month was put out and, lo and behold, that guy was still on it. Our friend told me he knew they’d be in a bind and understaffed on those days because this guy wouldn’t be coming back.
He knew at least one other person in the branch was also aware this guy was gone, but neither of them wanted to inject themselves into the situation.
On the day that fellow started his new job, he simply didn’t show up or call. A day later, the manager reached out to learn that he would not be returning. Their branch will likely be understaffed for at least a while and the folks who are showing up for work are bearing the burden.
When I asked him what he thought about the way that guy left, he said, “That’s just the way people are on the job. No one seemed shocked. I don’t think our manager was even mad. It was never mentioned. We didn’t talk about it in our meeting.”
It may have been that last fact that bothered me the most. It’s one thing to have a culture in which someone simply leaving without a word is not surprising. It’s another thing to accept that is just how things are.
Not acknowledging that the remaining team members are having to pick up the slack, and thanking them for doing so, sends the wrong kind of message, as well. To them, the person who left may seem like the smart one.
The bank leaders I’ve shared that story with have, without fail, not been especially shocked. Many then go on to share personal anecdotes that are downright funny, until you realize these stories are canaries in the coal mines. They may identify problems ahead.
One good friend chuckled and told me that my exasperation with that situation was “quaint.” She then shared that in her 30 years in management, she has never witnessed the level of disengagement and lack of commitment from new team members that she sees today.
“I can’t believe what we simply accept now,” she said. “And the labor market shortage is making things worse.”
It was when she told me she knew they were putting up with things they never would have in previous years that my antenna went up. Lowering standards seldom turns out well for anyone.
I was reminded of the saying, “Nothing demoralizes a good employee as quickly as seeing you tolerate a bad one.” And yes, anyone who has managed teams for any period of time knows that life and business are more complicated than a catchy leadership quote.
However, some quotes remain relevant for decades because there is truth to them. When managers’ rhetoric doesn’t match the standards they tolerate, employees (even good ones) can be forgiven for discounting what they are told.
Decades of working with and around in-store branch teams has heightened my awareness of how important structure, clear standards and a culture of respect are. Small teams working demanding jobs in tight quarters need to respect each other if they are going to function well.
And in recent years, the staffing levels and job duties of bankers in most branch formats have shifted closer to that in-store model.
I’ve long half-joked with teams that leaders can’t make co-workers like each other. They hope they do. That helps. But what they can insist on is that team members show respect to each other.
Through the years, I’ve had hundreds of teams tell me they’d rather run short-staffed with good people than be fully staffed with co-workers who aren’t dependable or have a bad attitude. No, folks do not want to run short-staffed for long periods of time. But it’s usually not hard work that burns good people out. Dysfunctional and disrespectful work cultures do.
Money will always play a key role in retaining good people. That said, our better team members don’t tend to jump for nominal increases. They will, however, leave bad (or clearly declining) cultures.
In tight labor markets, highly professional cultures are more valuable to attracting and keeping good people than ever.
In a world where standards appear to be falling everywhere, protect yours as never before. Your best employees will thank you for it.
