Building Trauma Informed Workplaces — Empowerment (Part 2)
This is part six of the series on building Trauma Informed workplaces; if you haven’t read the introductory article, you can read it here.
As we build trauma informed workplace cultures, we are focusing on seven foundational principles based on work from SAMSHA on trauma informed care. These principles help organizations build workplace cultures where everyone can be successful, regardless of whether they have experienced trauma.
The principles are as follows: Safety, Trust & Transparency, Community, Collaboration, Empowerment, Humility & Responsiveness, and Cultural, Historical, & Gender issues.
Last week we began our discussion on the importance of empowerment in building trauma informed workplace cultures. Empowerment in the context of a trauma informed workplace is about environments where individuals feel valued and that they are making a meaningful contribution. We look at the concept of empowerment in a trauma informed culture in four distinct parts- choice, strengths leveraged, recognition, and growth.
This week, we will wrap up the topic and look at the remaining two components of Empowerment — recognition and growth. If you missed part one or want a refresher, you can read it here.
Recognition
In the context of trauma informed workplaces, recognition refers to the practice of acknowledging and appreciating efforts, achievements, and contributions within the organization. It involves acknowledging others’ hard work, dedication, and performance to reinforce positive behaviors, cultural values, and to motivate.
Recognition is a key aspect of empowerment in the context of trauma informed workplaces because it validates the value an individual brings to the group. When individuals receive acknowledgment and appreciation for their strengths, progress, and efforts it boosts their self-esteem, self-worth, and belief in their ability to overcome challenges.
In addition to being a key aspect of an empowered, trauma informed work environment, recognition also has amazing impacts on overall employee engagement and retention, so the investment here is well worth it for leaders and organizations.
Managers, supervisors, peers, or customers and clients can give recognition. To best create a trauma informed culture, encourage and empower everyone to offer recognition Do this is by making recognition part of your culture and by helping individuals in all roles learn how to best offer recognition.
A lot of the same rules we use for giving constructive feedback apply to recognition. Specific appreciation is far more meaningful than general comments. When recognizing someone, describe the specific event or action and the impact it had.
Also, the timeliness of recognition is important as well- the sooner the better and more likely it will hold more value to the recipient. Frequency counts too, as long as the recognition is sincere and meaningful, there’s no harm in being a bit effusive with your praise and getting practice delivering and helping your team get used to hearing it!
While recognizing outcomes is valuable, it’s also important to recognize those actions on their own as well, especially actions that align with the organization’s values. Outcomes are out of our control, but our behaviors are not. Recognizing individuals for what they can control can be more important in the context of trauma, since as we know, trauma goes hand in hand with a sense of powerlessness.
Another key consideration when providing recognition is to make sure that you match the recognition to the individual. Meaning- make sure you know how that person prefers to be recognized and this is a moment where if you don’t know — ask!
Some people feel embarrassed being singled out publicly, so private recognition works best. Others might not feel recognized without an audience. There’s no wrong way to prefer your recognition, but you can have recognition backfire by not respecting preferences.
Also, consider a variety of avenues for recognition, it can certainly be face-to-face or over the phone, but a nice email or written note can be a great way to amplify the meaning and create a memento for someone to hold onto. Even homemade ‘trophies’ or small gifts can make an amazing impact. Taking the time and thought to put something extra into recognition can truly set it apart.
Growth
According to the 2022 Microsoft Work Trend Index, 76% of employees say they’d stay at their company longer if they could benefit more from learning and development support. The numbers rise higher for business decision-makers (+7). Employees consider opportunities to learn and grow as the number one driver of great work culture.
It’s no surprise that growth is a frequent topic for leaders and HR professionals, the vast majority of employees are looking to their jobs and organizations to provide for their growth and development.
Trauma can significantly impact a person’s ability to cope with stress and adversity. By fostering growth, trauma informed workplaces promote resilience by helping individuals develop skills and strategies to navigate challenges.
Fostering growth in trauma informed workplaces acknowledges the potential for post-traumatic growth, which involves positive psychological changes such as increased personal strength, a deeper sense of purpose, and enhanced relationships. By providing support and opportunities for growth, workplaces can facilitate this transformative process.
Organizations can foster growth in the workplace in the obvious and often discussed ways-
- Offering high-quality training and education- either internally or providing access to external resources
- Creating clear, transparent, and equitable pathways to career advancement
- Creating cycles for relevant, reciprocal feedback and ongoing development
When we talk about growth at work, we are often focused on promotions and the idea of climbing the corporate ladder. Thinking about growth only in these terms fails to see the multitude of opportunities for personal and professional growth at work. It may also unintentionally remove or limit individual choice, which works against the goal of empowerment.
With the changing demographics of the workforce and more people looking to switch companies or careers multiple times within their lifetimes, more expansive discussions of growth at work are necessary. It is important for this reason to also ensure opportunities for growth within roles and growth outside of work and beyond are supported.
Consider, a customer service representative decides they’d like to pursue a college degree. This is not a requirement of the role; however, the organization supports the growth efforts by providing tuition assistance and adjusting the schedule to fit better with classes. The individual feels supported and empowered and is likely a much better member of the team and likely to stay with the organization in the future.
There are countless and deeply individual ways to promote growth for your team. Remember, a key component is choice and ensuring that growth contributes to feelings of overall empowerment.
As we discussed in part one of the article on empowerment, feelings of powerlessness are at the core of trauma and traumatic experiences. Lack of control or choice over what is happening around you or to you can lead to lasting impacts on an individual’s sense of self and power over their own lives.
Because a lack of control or helplessness can be so tied to trauma, empowerment is one of the most important principles in creating a trauma informed workplace culture. Creating empowerment in your organization is pivotal to building a trauma informed culture and is done through the components of choice, strengths leveraged, recognition and growth.
Next week, we will be discussing the principle of Humility and Responsiveness as part of trauma informed workplace cultures. Make sure to hit follow so you don’t miss it or the other articles.
