Responding to employee expectations

Recently, an audio recording was leaked from JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon’s town hall meeting with his leadership team, where he expressed frustration over cultural and behavioral trends within his workforce that he believes are negatively impacting productivity and efficiency.

Dimon’s concerns included:

• Remote workers who are not fully engaged during meetings and are distracted by their phones.
• The overuse of meetings, committees and group discussions, which are delaying decisions and slowing down action.
• Inconsistencies in work preferences that do not contribute to productivity.
• Employees isolating themselves within their own comfort zones, engaging only with familiar communities rather than broadening their perspectives.
• Generational differences in work behaviors, particularly those of Gen Z and younger millennials.

Addressing workforce challenges

Hearing Dimon’s frustration at such a high level was revealing. At Deo Mwano Consultancy, we work with our partners to help them establish clear employee expectations that define workforce culture, operations, job duties and performance standards. This includes outlining how employees should show up for work, what is expected of them and the consequences of failing to meet those expectations.

We collaborate closely with senior leadership teams to ensure consistency in how expectations are communicated, governed and demonstrated.

A key aspect of this work involves working with different departments to understand their unique cultures and expectations.

Real-world scenarios for training

One of the most effective methods we implement is role-play training videos that depict real workplace scenarios — both positive and negative behaviors. These videos provide a visual representation of what is expected in the workplace, often incorporating light humor to make the message more engaging.

During these training sessions, employees are encouraged to ask questions about expectations and policies, fostering an interactive learning experience. These discussions also allow managers and directors to address misinterpretations of policies and behaviors, ensuring that everyone has a shared understanding of workplace expectations.

However, setting expectations alone is not enough. It’s essential for organizations to evaluate how employees engage with these policies over time. Leaders must assess whether policies are understood, effectively implemented, and aligned with the company’s broader goals.

Where leadership in addressing workplace behaviors?

As I listened to Jamie Dimon express his frustration, I couldn’t help but wonder: Where are the COO, HR leaders, and learning and development teams?

If certain behaviors are negatively impacting business operations, there needs to be a proactive approach to address them. This does not mean simply condemning employees but rather:

• Setting clear expectations and ensuring they are well understood.
• Demonstrating expected behaviors rather than just discussing them.

Measuring the impact of workplace behaviors

To effectively address workplace challenges, organizations must quantify the impact of negative behaviors:

• How many employees are engaging in behaviors that violate expectations?
• What percentage of the workforce is contributing to inefficiencies?
• Are current policies and benefits inadvertently encouraging unproductive habits?

In some cases, companies resort to removing perks and benefits to curb certain behaviors. However, without properly diagnosing the root cause, such actions may penalize the entire workforce for the actions of a few.

Instead, organizations should conduct in-depth investigations to understand what’s driving these behaviors before implementing broad changes.

Deo Mwano is CEO of Deo Mwano Consultancy, which provides solutions to complex social issues that affect businesses, schools and nonprofits.