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Why Managers Should Stop Asking For Volunteers

stop asking for volunteersManagers trying to foster a collaborative office – virtual or physical – environment need to assign work in an equitable fashion. Asking for volunteers for a critical task tends to result in the same people stepping up to the plate. This leads to fewer professional development opportunities for some of your employees. It’s the wrong approach when teamwork is important.

Let’s take a closer look at this critical issue influencing the modern workplace. Helping all your employees build successful careers ultimately results in a productive and successful organization. In the end, it’s the best approach for truly promoting diversity and equality at your company.

Give All Employees The Chance to Prove Themselves

While some organizational hierarchy is required in an office, beyond the manager a more equitable structure is important. Collaboration and teamwork simply allow teams to boost their productivity compared to working more independently. It remains one of the major reasons for the current popularity of DevOps and other modern structural methodologies.

Ultimately, managers need to give each direct report the chance to prove themselves. This approach ensures everyone gets the opportunities they need to grow as a professional. Failure to do so just might result in some of your staff looking elsewhere for the chance to grow.

Avoid Gender or Racial Bias When Awarding Assignments

Sadly, various reports reveal women and minorities miss out on the prime assignments that help build their careers. Joan C. Williams, a professor of law and founder of the Center for WorkLife Law commented on this trend.

“The focus on where gender bias occurs, which has been largely on hiring and performance evaluations, is too early and too late. It’s missing one of the key ways in which gender bias is constantly being transmitted in today’s workplace,” said Williams.

Of course, that key is how assignments get awarded in the office. Again, ensure all your employees get the same opportunities to perform meaningful work. Frankly, regularly asking for volunteers might be a sign of managerial laziness.

Make the effort to share critical tasks amongst all your employees. Also take the same approach when assigning more menial work. Ultimately, following this strategy ensures the development of all your employees, as opposed to only a chosen few. It provides the means to build a company culture focused on teamwork.  

 Do You Need to Grow Your Team?

If you need help finding great professional talent, reach out to the team at Synerfac. As one of the top staffing agencies on the East Coast, we can help grow your team.

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