Employee apathy is an indication of an organization that doesn’t treat its employees as stakeholders. While much is written and discussed regarding “managerial buy-in”, employee involvement is often overlooked. It is crucial for an organization to get its employees know and understand their policies, accept them, and abide by them in order for the organization to grow in accordance with the vision that directed the creation of the policies.
Some of the ways to overcome employee apathy are-
Making policies user-friendly – While legal verbiage is necessary, a policy can also be creatively and interactively presented.
Communication – Communication about existing policies is vital. More often than not ignorance of policies can cause violations.
Highlight what is at stake – Employees should be alerted to what is at stake. It could be fines and lawsuits for the company or personal repercussions for the violator of the policy
Mandatory policy review –Reviewing policies and taking a short “quiz” at the end of it can help employees understand the importance of policies and exactly what is expected of them.
Streamline policies – Policies overwhelm is a genuine fatigue. The organization should be very clear on which policies are absolutely essential, retire legacy ones, and keep policies simple, accessible, and minimal as possible.
Seek feedback – Seeking employee feedback helps generate involvement, participation, and communication, breaking apathy.