The undercurrent of information

My client's finance employee also does "HR with it." That's often how it goes at smaller companies: too small for permanent HR support and too big to do nothing about it. This finance lady, Sandra, thinks HR matters are just as important as her finance job. And so we're lucky for that! She finds it important that her colleagues are comfortable in their own skin, have a nice workplace with good stuff and last but not least: can tell their story once in a while. So she also knows a lot. I call that 'the undercurrent information'. She knows how people are really doing, the concerns or irritations they sometimes have, the unspoken expectations. Exactly that information that founders or managers often miss. Because it is no longer or not yet said to them: too exciting or simply; never a good time.

Open growth culture

Sandra is the "oil man. At the right moments, she gives a signal or brings things up from the undercurrent. In this way, she has been able to prevent employees from quitting their jobs, dropping out or getting into conflict on a number of occasions. We so often see founders or managers convinced that everything is going well. This always includes the text: "My door is open! If there is anything you can always come to me, everyone knows that. And I don't hear anything, so I'm fine. They underestimate the threshold in front of the door. As an employee you don't just step over that threshold if you're worried about something. Of course it would be good if that threshold was not there. One of the characteristics of an open growth culture is that people can share their concerns or frustrations without it having negative consequences for them. However, this requires practice and attention. From leaders and certainly from employees. So in the meantime, it's nice to have Sandra around. To build invisible bridges and connect people.

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And that works just like with oil: you hardly see any of it, but when the oil runs out, the wheels jam. So this one is for Sandra and all the other HR professionals who sometimes think: how do I explain where I'm making an impact? So here it is!

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