A recent article in the Post Register of Idaho Falls, Idaho was brought to my attention about a government agency looking to boost staff morale after learning from a recent survey that satisfaction among its employees is at an all-time low. To fix the issue at hand the supervisor of the Salmon-Challis National Forrest, Frank Guzman, has organized a “morale getaway” for 100 employees comprised of two-half day meetings and a presentation by motivational speaker Jeri Mae Rowley. All of this at the price tag of $23,000. Morale issues in any organization, especially in our current economic climate, can impact overall performance in the workplace and needs to be addressed as soon as they are made aware of. Unfortunately the retreat planned by Mr. Guzman, as described in the article, will be ineffective and will yield little results if the root cause(s) to employee morale is not addressed.

While for some, the estimated cost alone of the getaway may be a bit extreme for a government agency, it’s the objectives that appear to be lacking. This blog has never set out to be political by any means, but I become overly concerned when federal tax dollars (yours and mine) are spent on workplace performance improvement interventions by the government that fail to address the root cause to performance issues.

The survey, conducted by the Partnership for Public Service, ranked morale and employee satisfaction at the U.S. Forest Service near the bottom of all federal agencies. The retreat that was prompted by the survey results promises to address a wide range of topics including working conditions, safety and leadership. While it is admirable that the agency is willing to take on the issue of morale, the shotgun approach to finding solutions will only confuse the situation and cause more unnecessary stress.

When I choose to tackle a morale issue in an organization, it’s best to first take a targeted approach. If data from your assessment shows issues in a morale stemming from a particular policy, a function or specific leadership – start there. With this approach you can create a cascading effect where other issues impacting morale, for example, may eventually resolve themselves. Organizations with their many leaders and functions within are usually not islands unto themselves. When something occurs in one part of the company or organization, it usually impacts other areas. A positive change in one area may build upon itself and influence other areas.

In fairness to Mr. Guzman and Ms. Rowley the article in the Post Register provides little to no specifics on how morale will be improved. I do not know Ms. Rowley and I’m not able to speak to her ability as a trainer and professional speaker. I do, however, question the need for a retreat for a majority of the employees and leadership at this point in time, especially the need for a motivational speaker. Perhaps the leadership needs to start with themselves in this matter? What is important to take away from this news item is that interventions to improve workplace performance, whether a knowledge and skills gap in employees or overall employee morale, cannot be applied unless the root cause to the issue is identified and addressed. Start there and then work throughout the rest of the organization for positive results.