WORKPLACE SAFETY OF THE PSYCHOLOGICAL KIND

Self-awareness and consideration deliver benefits to all

For all the encouragement given to

people to use their voices, it’s equally important

to ensure support from leaders who

have the authority to make it safe to do so.

This “Let’s Lead column” was originally published in the February 2023 issue of Rough Notes magazine.

By Meg McKeen, CIC

I know I’m not the only one. I mean, it can’t just be me who checks the service tag on a random fire extinguisher as I pass by, curious whether the device is up to date. And didn’t I see you reaching down to adjust the curled-up mat at the entrance, so the next person doesn’t slip, trip, or fall as they make their way inside?

As insurance professionals, it’s our job to spot risk. Day in and out, we identify the circumstances that might put the things and people we’re trusted to protect at risk, and then we use our tools to navigate the process of solving for it.

After a while, we might even say to one another with a knowing wink that risk management is just in our DNA.

But as many insurance professionals today are rising to roles with people leadership responsibilities, there’s another sort of risk to our own organizations and those we counsel. It’s one that can be so much harder to spot but we have a responsibility to understand it.

Psychological safety

What would you say if I told you that the wisdom you need to find success, however you’ve defined it,
for your organization today is already in front of you? It’s not a stretch, as I see and hear what’s inside the hearts and minds of your greatest resource: the people who choose to work with you every day.

But in so many instances, you’ll never benefit from this wisdom or these ideas because they are never shared because of the very real risk of feeling psychologically unsafe.

What do I mean? Referencing the work of American leadership, teaming, and organizational learning scholar Amy C. Edmondson, Harvard Business School professor Frances Frei shares this on Chief’s The New Rules of Business podcast: “Psychological safety considers two tensions. The one tension is ‘I’m worried for myself if I speak up’ and the other is ‘I’m worried for the organization if they don’t hear my ideas.’ Psychological safety looks at both of these and says, ‘We see too much of the worrying for speaking up and not enough of how worse off the organization is going to be.’”

So how do we reconcile that while we may be united in wanting success for our organizations, each individual working within it will be in a very different place on the journey to get there?

It’s a two-way street

Early in my career, working for a large insurance carrier, I joined an impromptu call with senior leaders of the company to address a tough, significant client situation. My thoughts felt incomplete and un-
polished as I stumbled in sharing my go-forward plan.

My boss called me right after with “feedback,” which I knew just couldn’t be good. I was prepared for criticism or second-guessing, but I wasn’t pre-pared for this: “Meg, your voice is a tool. Don’t be afraid to use it, because when you speak, people listen.”

After letting out the breath I didn’t realize I’d been holding, two things happened:

My boss reaffirmed that my authority was indeed mine and my aptitude for doing the job had never been in question. Perhaps most importantly, he reaffirmed that his role as a leader was to see the struggle I was having and to clear the path to make it less so.

This is what psychological safety looks and sounds like. For all the encouragement given to people to use their voices, it’s equally important to ensure support from leaders who have the authority to make it safe to do so.

It’s not a “you” problem; it’s a “we” problem.

As I worried back then, judgment, criticism, and even repercussions for speaking up aren’t uncommon, and the mere possibility of experiencing any one of these explains why so many hesitate to do so.

Are there other reasons we hesitate? Perhaps past experience and hurt or being diminished or dismissed altogether have a role. Or perhaps we receive the message along the way that having or voicing an opinion is only for those of a certain age or tenure.

Unfortunately, the antidote for the well-intentioned leader who wants to foster a psychologically safe workplace isn’t as simple as saying “just speak up” the next time you hold a team meeting.

As leaders, we have not just a responsibility—but also an opportunity—to create, implement and utilize systems of idea sharing and feedback giving (and receiving), and to recognize when these systems may, or may not, be working.

As you’re navigating these layered events in the lifecycle of your organization, consider:

• Leadership changes. As many experienced individuals plan their exit from our business in the very near future, many new-to-leadership individuals will take their places. Ensure you are creating space, both physically and intellectually, for the fresh practices and perspectives they will bring and that you aren’t simply clinging to a new version of the way it’s always been.
• Ownership changes. It’s more than the name on the door that changes when one organization is acquired by or merges with another. Two distinct cultures also evolve to become one. How can you honor the traditions and the history of each while building a new, never-existed-before culture, too? If your requests for feedback don’t generate a response or they leave people feeling put-on-the-spot, consider allowing for anonymity in their response.
• Employee turnover. Be thoughtful about the message you send to your remaining employees when an employee chooses to leave your organization. While we know it’s not personal, it can often feel that way. Depending on your reaction, your existing employees may feel unable to express their own concerns and may explore other options, too.
• Shift from in-person to hybrid or remote work. No matter the arrangement you’ve determined to be the best for your organization, be mindful of an influx of employees who opt out of optional meetings and/or gatherings. Understand that the arrangement that works for you as a leader may not work for individual team members. Can you take steps to ensure these interactions continue to be inclusive of all?

Psychological safety isn’t something we’ve been trained to spot as insurance professionals, but with self-awareness and consideration, it’s one we have a responsibility to create, and we will
all benefit when we do.

The author

Meg McKeen, CIC, founded Adjunct Advisors LLC in 2018 with the simple belief that we can and must do more to support the individuals who choose a career in insurance. Her experience working for more than two decades in underwriting, leadership, and sales within the industry fuels her work as a consultant today, in which Meg now holds space, at the crossroads of personal and professional development, for insurance professionals as they grow their sales and leadership acumen and organizations in the midst of cultural change, through private coaching, consulting engagements, and the podcast she hosts, Bound & Determined. Learn more at www.adjunctadvisors.com.