Introducing Cascade's Leadership Facilitator, Bill Swift!

Cascade is delighted to introduce Bill Swift to our Members. A trainer and counselor since 1981, Bill has a passion for promoting life-long workplace learning. He is an expert at facilitating organization development, exemplifying forward-looking leadership by practicing principles of honesty, direct communication, and resilience. As an accomplished presenter, Bill is able to articulate program goals, strategy, and progress. His wealth of workplace experience includes 10 years as the Director of Employee Assistance Programs for Southwest Washington Medical Center and 15 years as the President and CEO of EASE, a premier Northwest Employee Assistance Program. He has consulted with hundreds of workplaces, teaching practical management techniques with real-world applicability. His clients vary from landscapers to CEOs, from welders to college professors. Bill has a Bachelor's degree in Psychology/Sociology from Duke University and a Master's degree in Counseling Education from Florida Atlantic University.

The article below is Bill’s most recent article, published in the September issue of NewsBrief.

Supporting Employees During Tough Economic Times

Many employers have asked us over the last few years to advise them on how to support their employees during tough economic times. So, in preparation for some workplace training sessions, I consulted with some counselors, psychologists and other workplace consultants to see what they are doing differently during these “tough economic times.”

One psychologist put it to me this way, “Sure the angst and uncertainty is more widespread right now…but the kind of support human beings need, and have always needed, has not changed.” Other professionals are telling me the same thing. “The best people-management techniques that work during a boom economy still apply when the business world is less certain.”

It is no secret that uncertainty is challenging even in the most grounded workplaces. What proves to be effective in the workplace are the kinds of things great companies provide to their employees no matter what:

• Recognition – Having positive regard for who people are and what they are doing.
• Empathy – Showing, “I get what you are feeling, and I won’t judge it or try to change it.”
• Linking People In – Allowing and encouraging ownership of decisions…even tough decisions.
• Teaching and Encouraging Resiliency

There is an Oregon wood products company using their “slow period” to have supervisors build skills for Resiliency, Conflict Management, and Encouraging Employee Ownership. There are several messages being sent here, including:

1. We still need good people to do good work
2. We believe the work will be back
3. Teaching life skills is good business

A coordinator there explained to me that these kinds of trainings, ones they have been talking about for years, are difficult to schedule when they are at full production. They have had layoffs like so many of us, but have found a way to keep many good employees actively engaged.

Still, it is difficult to find an elegant way to support employees during challenging times. It is nearly impossible to not make mistakes, even with the warmest of intentions.

Some thoughts on what can make a positive difference:

• Teach the skills of resiliency
• Encourage over-communication: Employees need information or they will fill in the blanks with something
• Expect anger, but still listen
• Return to your organization’s Mission and Purpose
• Look for creativity and reinvention
• Take care of yourself and ask: “What is really important?”
• Get support

And talk to other employers about what they are learning. There are many stories out there of how adversity has brought out a work team’s best. I would love to hear yours.

Bill