EVOKING EMOTION FOR BEHAVIOR ADOPTION
Research into an organization’s
emotional climate to help leaders
effectively promote behavior adoption
THE GOAL: Reduce unsafe behaviors at a manufacturing plant by mapping the emotion landscape
OZ partnered with a CPG producer to uncover the emotional drivers behind unsafe behaviors (and barriers to safe behaviors) at the organization’s manufacturing plants, where injury rates were high.
THE METHODOLOGY: ZMET®
Olson Zaltman conducted one-on-one ZMET foundational interviews with 12 plant employees about how it felt to have a bad day at work.
THE INSIGHTS: At work, employees felt like warriors engaged in battle
The research revealed that plant employees saw themselves as warriors in a battle, constantly needing to march forward. The emotional landscape pinpointed the emotions driving unsafe behaviors and emotions to promote safer behaviors:
DRIVERS OF UNSAFE BEHAVIORS:
Anxiety
“[This is] a piece of machinery that is brand new
and then it falls apart. And people are looking at
you saying, ‘What the hell are you doing?’ You’ve got to do something.”
Cynicism
“It feels like a jail-type setting. They’re not in our department and don’t deal with the heat and humidity, so maybe they don’t understand where we are coming from.”
Employees voice a doubt in the credibility and intention behind enhanced safety initiatives. They spoke about a pressure to prioritize productivity over safety as well as plain acceptance of the risks of the job.
LEVERAGE TO PROMOTE SAFE BEHAVIORS:
Gratitude
“My pay doubled. My quality of life improved. I was able to buy a house. All these doors opened up for me when I got this job.”
Esprit de Corps
“You want to look out for each other. It is a family here, and you want to make sure everybody gets along.”
Pride
“My dad couldn’t read. I came from nothing. I make a good living now, and I am very proud of everything I do.”
Despite evident tensions in the organization’s culture, employees expressed a sense of camaraderie with their fellow plant employees, pride in the work they did, and gratitude for the organization and opportunity to work.
Want to know more? Contact us via email tbradley@olsonzaltman.com