Skillfully Step Into Workplace Tension to Improve Employee Engagement

Harnessing The Energy That Lies Within Tension

Tension in the workplace can be uncomfortable and challenging, leaving us questioning how to navigate it effectively. But what if we told you that stepping into tension is not only necessary but holds the key to unlocking powerful energy and improving employee engagement?

WHITE PAPER

The Engagement Paradox

Traditional employee engagement strategies aren’t working anymore. Scores are plateauing (in some cases even declining) leading to a crisis of belief for both employees and leaders.

This white paper offers a new path forward – one that blends the energy employees want with the customer experience and business results leaders need.

The Power of Stepping into Tension

Have you ever been standing right in the middle of relational tension and asking yourself, how can I be my best possible self in this moment? What is inside of the tension that we desperately need right now? Wherever there is tension, energy is inside of it.

You don’t get to decide whether energy will be released from the tension you have with another person, customer, or different function. You do get to decide whether it will be forward-moving, generative, creative energy that takes you to a desired outcome, or that trust-sapping, suspicion-inducing, entropy-creating energy that takes you to homeostasis in the status quo.

How you step into tension makes all the difference in terms of where the energy goes.

Embracing Tension for Transformation

Leslee Thompson was the CEO of Kingston General Hospital many years ago. At the time, the hospital was under great public scrutiny around adherence to hand washing and medical errors. To combat this, Leslee went into the community and conducted town halls with up to 2000 people. Her leadership team told her, “Don’t do it, don’t step into that tension.”

But Leslee Thompson stepped into the tension. In one of the town halls, a woman stood up and said, “your hospital made mistakes that ended up causing me to lose my husband.” What do you say in a massive moment of tension? Leslee Thompson stepped into the tension. The conversation went to a point where the woman felt acknowledged. She asked, “is there anything you can do to help us ensure that this never has to happen to another person?”

Unleashing Free Energy: Creating Positive Outcomes 

In that moment, the Patient Experience and Advisor role was born. Years later, Kingston General Hospital has a host of Patient Experience Advisors, who are in the tension of wanting to make sure this never happens to another person. They were offering free energy. There is free energy right inside tension, ready to be harnessed to sustain high performance.