“How are you doing?” is a common question. Yet often we feel it is inappropriate to answer truthfully. We know or at least assume that the person asking does not want to hear you recite a list of what ails you. The standard response is along the lines of “I’m fine”. In the UK you might hear “I can’t complain”, which is a contronym for:”I could complain (but being British know it is socially inappropriate.”

In the workplace, complaining or voicing negative ideas is no more acceptable than answering “How are you doing” with negative honesty. For leaders, this can be a problem. If your team members feel it is inappropriate to complain, you will not hear about issues that worry them. Those issues fester, damage morale, and ultimately contribute to people leaving the company.

Leaders need to create a safe place for complaints to be voiced. I am going to outline two ways that have worked for me.

Individual Complaints

In your one-on-one or skip-level meetings, ask a question along the lines of:

“What about your job do you like the least?”

“What would you most like to change about your work?”

“Since we last met, what has been the least enjoyable thing at work?"

These questions are phrased to get a detailed response. Compare these questions to ones that might be answered with a simple “No” or “Fine”:

“Is there anything that is irritating you at work?”

“How do you feel about work since we last met?”

Team Complaints

I would love to claim responsibility for the second method, which I am going to outline. However, I was introduced to it by Matt Ross when I joined Funding Circle US. As part of Sprint Retrospectives, put two columns on a whiteboard. The first column is to record things that went well in the sprint. The right-hand column is for things that could have gone better. Each team member is asked to write at least one thing in each column. We would put a smiley face above one column and a sad face atop the other.

The items do not have to be project or work related. Writing that you missed the day that Humphrey Slocombe ice cream was brought into the office is fine.

Team members should also be encouraged to add a +1 to items with which they agree. This does not replace them being expected to write an entry of their own.

The facilitator of the meeting then leads a discussion of the items listed. Most of the time should focus on the second column, with priority given to those items with the most plus ones. The discussion should be steered towards what needs to change to prevent the issue from arising again. From that discussion, it is ideal if an action, assignee, and target date can be identified. At the very least, someone should commit to investigate and provide an action and date as a result of the investigation.

Once action has been taken, that action should be placed in a future happy column. Showing people that their concerns are heard and result in positive change is vital.

This setting is not one in which people should raise concerns about individuals, which is why leaders should seek complaints in the private setting of a one-on-one.

Summary

Seek out complaints from your staff.

Show your staff that concerns raised in this manner result in action from leadership to address the issues.