Don’t Settle for an Open-Door Policy

Posted on by

“Ask me anything. My door is always open!”

Have you ever heard these words? Or how about said them?

The phrase harbors good intentions, namely:

  • Managers want to encourage open communication.
  • Managers want to be supportive.
  • And also, managers want to be accessible.
  • But at the same time, managers don’t want to micromanage their team.

However, it’s not an effective policy because:

  • Employees worry about interrupting their manager.
  • Employees don’t want to appear poorly informed, necessitating questions.
  • Employees might fear possible judgment.
  • And how do employees know when the door truly lies open?

Here is perhaps the most serious criticism with an open-door policy: It’s passive!

Rather than take action to address questions and concerns, and also provide support, the manager with an open-door policy waits with the incorrect assumption that all is well and fine. No news is good news, even if the team might actually be struggling.

So what can you do?

Effective leaders don’t wait for things to happen, but instead take proactive steps to better guarantee desired outcomes. And the same holds true when leaders allow for an open-door policy but create the environment in which it’s not necessary. Team members have immediate access to information, communicate more collaboratively, and engage in continuous learning.

Read on to implement actionable ideas that diminish a reactive, “ask me anything” offer.

Table of Contents

Proactive Engagement

It all starts with proactive engagement. Rather than remain passive and react to problems that arise, you instead create opportunities for discussions. Proactive engagement also removes the fear of random progress checks, as well as interrupting and asking for help.

Consider the following:

  • Delegate, Don’t Abdicate: On any project or task, you discuss when and how the direct reports check in. You clearly define tasks and then set a cadence to discuss progress, share information, and give feedback. Conversations might come in the form of private meetings, such as 1:1s, or they may be group meetings with the team. (See: How to Delegate Like a Pro)
  • Schedule Regular 1:1s: These private meetings serve as opportunities for deep discussions, which then provide clarity into the work of direct reports. The cadence of 1:1s allows you the opportunity to give guidance too. And of equal importance, you strengthen your relationship of trust and support. Just be sure not to cancel or postpone these important meetings!
  • Provide Meaning: Ensure the team feels inspired overall, taking pride in the work they do. You can create intrinsic motivation by setting team values, and iterating how each person contributes to achieving these values.

Knowledge Sharing

How do “knowledge” and “information” differ? The latter can simply be data in a spreadsheet devoid of any context. The former combines the information of the spreadsheet with experience and know-how, which then creates actionable results.

Knowledge sharing provides employees with the best practices, experiences, and ideas of not just you but also the team. What’s more, the access is immediate, ongoing, and self-served. Shared documentation, as well as coaching and 1:1s, all offer opportunities for sharing.

Some common examples include:

  • Shared Wiki: Shared documents and transparency empower the team to find many of their own answers. You can create a written repository of knowledge via shared doc files or available tools like Notion, Confluence, and Airtable. Employees become truth seekers, empowered to search for best practices, data, and insight.
  • Create an Asynchronous Channel: A channel private to the team in Slack, Microsoft Teams, and other communication platforms allows anyone to direct a question to the others, tapping into the knowledge and expertise of everyone and not just the manager. Rather than creating a reactive environment, it encourages thoughtful engagement and empowers team members to contribute at their optimal pace. 
  • Communicate, Communicate, Communicate: More information provides a deeper understanding of the issues and challenges, so over-communicate. When employees become aware of the bigger picture, they better align their efforts and ideas with the team and corporate objectives. They become empowered.

Psychological Safety

For the team to readily share information, they need to feel safe from judgment, retaliation, and/or ridicule. When a psychologically safe culture exists, so also does a supportive and collaborative environment. Employees will ask questions and help one another solve concerns. 

There are many ways to create a safe environment, from providing praise and feedback, acknowledging successes, and lending support.

Here are a few ideas to incorporate:

  • Give Feedback: To start, understand that feedback consists of both the positive and the negative. With the positive, employees understand what went well and how to repeat it. With the negative, employees understand what missteps and obstacles to avoid in the future. Ensure that feedback is frequent, detailed, clear, and actionable. (See: Supportive Communication)
  • Celebrate Wins: Don’t wait for formal feedback sessions, such as 1:1s and performance reviews. Don’t wait for project completions and closing big deals. No matter the size of the wind, you recognize effort when you celebrate, and this includes small successes too. You provide positive reinforcement. You inspire the team by valuing all that they do.
  • Address Conflict: If you want to create psychological safety and a collaborative, supportive environment, you need to identify sources of workplace conflict. Any issues which get ignored or go unnoticed, and so unresolved, hinder working together. Be proactive and firmly manage toxic people!

Ongoing Coaching and Training

With continued training, employees become better able to avoid failures. You remove at least some of the need for an open-door policy, as their skills, knowledge, and expertise increase. (See: Create a Culture of Learning)

Try the following:

  • Learn Continuously: Provide ongoing learning which aligns with employees’ personal goals, current team needs, and future objectives. Training can take the form of mentoring, guidance via any of the daily incidental conversations, and formal learning programs.
  • Accept Mistakes: Welcome missteps and setbacks because they provide opportunities to learn.
  • Share and Learn in Meetings: When you create a supportive environment in which people feel comfortable exchanging ideas and information, then meetings can become places of learning too. Employees share ideas in brainstorming and other discussions, as well as disseminate newly gained information from seminars, conferences, and so on

Conclusion

Keep in mind that teams consist of people of different ages, from different experiences and cultures, and with different personalities. Older individuals might be willing to interrupt with a question, but younger people may not, for example.

So don’t settle for an open-door policy. When you do, you bury your head in the sand and hope for the best. No questions from the team does not mean an absence of problems!