Managing Expectations through Consistent Process

Over the years, I’ve had plenty of people share their experiences with me and ask my advice on whether the organization they work for is doing things properly. As a human resources professional, I love to hear everyone’s stories, but am sometimes disheartened at the outcomes and ponder: How could this situation have been handled differently?

Below are examples that outline how two different employers mismanaged their employees’ expectations through a lack of consistent process.

Example One:

An employee, who was with an organization for a year, traveled frequently and was being reimbursed for meals. There were no set guidelines and when this person was on the road, she bought food and submitted expense claims for reimbursement upon returning to the office. After following this process for a year, her boss unexpectedly denied an expense claim. The expense was for water and chips the employee bought as a quick lunch while on the road. Her boss didn’t think this was a “proper” lunch and didn’t want to reimburse the claim. As similar claims were always approved in the past, the employee met with her boss to clarify the situation. The boss informed her that all expense claims during the year of a similar nature were wrongly processed. The employee was confused, as the items on all these claims were clearly stated and approved by this same boss. When the employee asked for clear guidelines on what was eligible and what was not, the boss felt it was unnecessary and refused to provide these guidelines. The employee left the meeting confused and disappointed. Not only had her boss taken issue with a $2.49 claim, but had refused to provide any guidelines in order to ensure that no additional expense claims were denied in the future.

Example Two:

An employee worked shifts at the same organization and on the same site for three years. When the employee started, there was an expectation that any out-of-town work was given to the newest hire. The employee gladly obliged, as this seemed to be the organization’s practice. Naturally, three years later this person was no longer the newest employee. Even so, he was informed that because another work site needed extra workers he was being temporarily transferred. When the employee’s boss spoke to the staff, it was stated that all employees would take turns working in the remote location for two week intervals. Ironically, the last employee to work the out of town shift was the newest hire.

In each of these situations, it was not the outcome that bothered the employees, but the process in which it was handled by the employer.

Here’s my take on how both these situations could have been handled better: Employers should manage employees’ expectations by being consistent in applying processes. This generally makes employees more comfortable with the outcomes. Without any set expectations, employees will set their own. When management’s expectations differ from employees’ as a result, it creates a situation where staff feels like something has been taken away. Not doing anything about these situations runs the risk of employees becoming disengaged.

What’s the best way to prevent this from happening?

Set expectations and be consistent with them.

This blog entry was written by Darcy Acton, Manager of Industry Human Resource Development. For more information, contact Darcy at (306) 933-7466 or darcy.acton@sasktourism.com.