Be available
One day, as he walked down the hall, Misheff ran into a woman
who had just returned from maternity leave, so he asked her how
things were going and how she was balancing everything. She said
she was doing well, but instead of just saying that’s great and going
on with his day, he told her to get on his schedule for breakfast or
lunch. The woman did, so they met for breakfast, and in further
talking with her, he learned that she wanted to improve some of
her technical skills, so he talked it through with her, and they
developed a plan for her to do just that.
It’s just one way that Misheff shows his employees that his door
is open. By doing things like this, it creates a sense of trust among
employees and strengthens the culture you’ve established. But for
this to be successful, it can’t just be when it’s convenient for you.
He says to keep your door open even when you’re busy, and when
someone comes knocking, you have to make time for him or her.
“Unless you have a client with you, you give them your attention,” Misheff says. “Put everything else aside, and you don’t
answer the phone.”
When you continuously do this, people will begin to trust you
and will come to you with questions and concerns.
“Lead by example,” Misheff says. “Others that have come in
say, ‘No, he’s not BSing you — go see him. He’s there.’ My door
is open enough that enough people have come in and used it
that the word spreads.”
Sometimes, no matter how much you keep your door open
and give people attention, some may still be shy, so you should
give them a sounding board to express ideas and concerns.
Ernst & Young has a People Advisory Board that is made up of
nonpartner employees, who are elected by their peers. As a
board, they address concerns and ideas people submit, and
then they take them to Misheff.
“They’ll take me through what’s the real heartbeat of the
office,” Misheff says. “I also feel good about the fact that there
are enough people around here who aren’t afraid to say, ‘Hey,
it’s not clicking. You got to do something about it.’”
By setting up a committee of nonmanagerial people, it also
makes employees feel more comfortable contributing their
concerns or ideas.
“They can go in and air out on something, and then bring it to the
partners,” Misheff says. “Just because of titles, somebody may be
intimidated to say something — that’s just the real world.”
It helps the senior people make sure that the company is doing
everything it can for employees.
“You take somebody like me who’s been here over 30 years, and
somebody who’s been here one or two years, we don’t necessarily think the same,” Misheff says. “These guys are a bridge between
me or the partners to the new hires.”