Respect

The Importance of RESPECT in the Workplace

(Published: July 30, 2022)

A former colleague of mine said that to get results, there is a need to first get along with others. While I agree with that comment, I have personally found that it very much depends on the organisation and the prevailing culture. If an organisation or even say a sports team is truly professional, then the right results can be achieved if there is a common shared goal. You do not really need to get along with someone if everyone knows their role, does the role to the best of their ability (leaving everything out in the field) and RESPECTS each other.

Respect is the key as it means that your role is acknowledged and your contribution to the overall effort is welcomed. Respect allows you to provide your inputs based on your specific role, qualification, experience, and expertise. Without respect, everything you say or do will be undermined or ignored.

I was an executive member of an organisation where we didn’t particularly like one another and there were often, heated “discussions” around the table. Hammer and tongs stuff! But we were just freely expressing out views and opinions as members of a healthy and functioning executive team. Everyone around the table respected one another for their individual contributions provided based on their respective roles and perspectives. Robust comprehensive discussions were carried out with healthy inputs from members with different backgrounds and expertise which resulted in well informed decisions being made collectively as a team.

Why do I say, this is a sign of a healthy and functional executive team? We would emerge from the meetings and go out together for a drink afterwards! We knew that what we said and did in meetings behind closed doors were in our capacity as professional executive management staff. There was nothing personal and we were not necessarily friends either. But we got things done!