10 things nervous employees can’t hear right now

March 30, 2009 by
Filed under: Communication, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, Web site 

When employees fear for their jobs, even innocent comments by managers can send them into a panic.

Here are the top ten phrases and sentences to avoid, according to BuzzWhack.com:

  1. “Can I see you in the conference room?” This one’s especially frightening if contact is initiated with a tap on the shoulder.
  2. “Isn’t your performance review coming up soon?” No one likes being asked to defend how well they’re performing, especially in times like these.
  3. “We don’t see this as a problem, but as an opportunity.” False optimism can be even scarier than the truth.
  4. “I’ve always thought of us as family around here, but … ” But when the choice is between an employee and the manager’s mother, guess who the boss is siding with.
  5. “You’re a great contributor, but … ” Compliments followed by “but” are a bad idea in general.
  6. “Maintaining the status quo is no longer an option.” When your boss has to use a dead language to explain something, you can bet it’s going to be devastating news.
  7. “We’re not planning to have layoffs, but there will be some restructuring.” No matter how often managers do it, using that euphamism doesn’t help.
  8. “We’re going to refocus and concentrate on our core business.” What an employee hears: “We’re going back to the way things were before you were hired.”
  9. “Due to the ongoing turmoil in the capital markets … ” No sentence with the words “turmoil” and “capital” have ever contained good news.
  10. “They’ve asked everyone to come to the Employee Appreciation room for a 4 p.m. meeting.” News delivered late in the day probably means something bad for someone.

Can you think of any workplace phrases that have recently become off-limits? Share them in the comments section below.

Tags: , ,

Comments

3 Comments on 10 things nervous employees can’t hear right now

  1. Sharron on Tue, 7th Apr 2009 1:37 pm

    2. We’ve remodeled so this doesn’t happen anymore, but when I would sent out a message after 5pm saying the door access code had been changed, people automatically assumed someone was fired, even if the code was being changed for a completely different reason. And since my messages wouldn’t say why the door code was changed, the grapevine would be suddenly buzzing with speculation about who was let go.

  2. Joe W. on Tue, 7th Apr 2009 1:38 pm

    3. We really appreciate everything you have done for us, but……

  3. Bob on Tue, 7th Apr 2009 3:25 pm

    4. “There is only room for ONE of you in the new organization, so please take these sharp objects, step in to the conference room, and fight to the death”

    Just kidding….. But I HAVE heard:

    - People being paged over the PA system to come to HR immediately. Everyone in the building knew THAT person was RIFed.

    - “We are prioritizing our effort….”

    - “We are optimizing our priorities….”

    - “We are restructuring our long-term goals….”

    - “We are seeking long-term options that optimize equity for the investors.”

    - “We are right-sizing the manager – employee ratio.” (and subsequently RIFed a number of employees, keeping the managers)

    - “We are flattening the organization”

    - “Your position has become redundant”

    - “We wish some of you well in your future endeavors” (not kidding — an executive really said this in a speach to “the masses”)

    - “We are going in a different direction, that does not include you with it….”

    - (Sign on door) “Closed.”

    - (No sign on door, door locked)