"I NEVER PLAY FAVORITES"

Most managers view themselves as being fair and believe they don’t show favoritism. In our survey, we ask employees whether they agree with the statement, “My manager does not play favorites.”

a. 58%
b. 68%
c. 78%
d. 88%

Choose one on the poll to the right and click the link below to check your answer.

The answer is 68% favorable.

Managers try to be fair because they know perceived favoritism will destroy teamwork and the morale of their department. However, various actions may cause employees to believe a manager has favorites. Two common contributors are:

- Managers are friendlier or have more in common with certain employees, and it shows.
- Managers have certain employees they “count on” and therefore they give them special attention.

Correcting these and other perceived issues of favoritism is not easy. In the first case, perhaps the manager needs to make a concerted effort in getting to know each of his/her employees as people. The second situation should be addressed by holding every employee accountable. Outstanding employees may appear to receive favoritism, but if all employees are held accountable to perform their fair share of the work then the favoritism issue will decline.

Several pages could be dedicated to this issue, but the lesson learned should be that top management must monitor this issue in order to know who is showing favoritism and take actions to reduce it.

"The Survey Says" is written by Richard Reinhardt, Vice President of F&H Solutions Group. You may contact Richard by email at rreinhardt@fhsolutionsgroup.com or by phone at 901.291.1546.