Psychological Safety:Increasing Individual, Team and Organisational Performance

Psychological Safety: Increasing Individual, Team and Organisational Effectiveness 

Online: Teams: 14-15 March 2023

Non-IPM Members: R 6 499.00 (excl VAT) 

IPM Members: R5 699.00 (excl VAT)

Date: 16-17 March 2023 Time: 08:00 AM - 16:00

Venue: Holiday Inn Sandton 

Non-IPM Members: R 7 999.00 (excl VAT) 

IPM Members: R7 199.00 (excl VAT) 

While organisational challenges are unique, psychological safety and employee wellbeing are common concerns. The following reports from various researches can signal challenges with psychological safety in many organisations:

·        63% of those thinking of resigning, it is due to a lack of psychological safety. Predictive Index People Management Report

·        Wellbeing was the top trend in 2021 and continues to be with over 80% saying it was important or very important to their organisation, Deloitte

·        Since the start of Covid, 85% say their general wellbeing has declined and 89% say their workplace wellbeing has declined, Only 21% rate their wellbeing as good and a mere 2% as excellent ,HBR

·        2020 marked the biggest leadership quality gap in a decade. It reached an all-time low. Leadership energy has taken a nosedive with 60% of leaders showing signs of burnout, DDI Global Leadership Forecast

·        29 % of employees reported depression, Gartner

·        Dominant negative emotions experienced by employees: daily worry 40% · daily stress 44% ·daily anger 21% · daily sadness 23% , Gallup State of Global Workforce 2022

·        Rio Tinto published a report where findings show that bullying is systemic and the majority of the surveyed employees believed the organisation is not psychologically safe to report bullying incidences. They found harmful behaviours occur by and between employees, manager, including senior leaders

If these trends continue productivity will deteriorate and churn rates soar. Psychological safety is the engine for performance, a necessary foundation for an employee wellbeing strategy. Some of the contributors to psychological danger or threats in some of the organisations we have worked with include:

·        Unmanageable workloads which put everyone under pressure and operating in the reactive mode

·        Reactive and aggressive leadership

·        Eroded leadership elements

·        Inability to give or receive feedback

·        Bullying and victimising people who speak up

·        Inadequate leadership support to navigate change

·        Limited “human touch” or connection while working remotely

·        No time or awareness to pay attention to psychological factors by leaders

·        Insensitivity or inability to read the emotional feedback from the system

·        Continuous change that creates uncertainty resulting in people focussing on own needs negating the needs of others

Research has shown that when individuals do not feel psychologically safe, they do not  bring their whole self to work, they withhold contribution, become less creative, less collaborative, they self-censor and self-silence. With rising cases of well-being issues in the workplace, building psychological safety can contribute to improved well-being and sustainable performance.

This 2 day session will cover: 

·          The need for Psychological Safety

·          Psychological Safety in Times of Change

·          Psychological Safety and Wellbeing

·          Psychological safety and diversity 

·          Understanding Psychological Safety Factors

·          Psychological Safety and Mistakes

·          Psychological Safety and Feedback 

·          Psychological Safety and Leadership Elements- Conscious Leadership

·          Psychological Safety and Behaviour Change -Creating a Safe Culture

Skills:

• Learn repair and maintain leadership elements 
• Identify psychological threats created by change and diversity 
• Ask non-inflammatory questions 
• Listen actively to understand and navigate feelings and values 
• Use mistakes for learning 
• Express appreciation and disappointment with candor
• Embrace diverse expertise rather than single “hero” mentality 
• Create a connection culture rather than a transaction culture 
• Provide certainty in times of change 
• Understand psychological risks of working in a team

Tools:

• Psychological tendencies list 
• Psychological Safety Assessment 
• Failure party techniques 
• The Fear Conversation 
• User Manual of Me
• Non-violent communication template