This series is based on my observations of the fan base, or lack thereof when the Colorado Rockies play a home game in Denver. I have noticed many people rooting for the opposing team and not the Rockies.
What is wrong with this picture? Why does the crowd in the home city of Denver sound louder and more enthusiastic for the opposing team?
Here’s the lesson: an organization’s leadership must listen to the noise in the crowd and that crowd is your employees. Are they engaged or disengaged? What are the reasons for both? If the troops are engaged, find out why and reinforce what you are doing. If the troops are disengaged, find out why and take the necessary, and painful steps to make corrections. Symptoms in the crowd often reveal deeper organizational issues.
This means that leaders need to get out from behind the computer and get into the fire stations or wherever else you might work to find the answer to those questions. If your response is, “I don’t have time to do that,” then that is a lame excuse. Get out and find out.
