The ‘Stepford Employee’ is a growing phenomenon in the workplace, where staff become overly agreeable, seldom ask questions, and rarely push boundaries, hindering both their personal growth and their organisation’s success. The term ‘Stepford Employee’ originates from the popular feminist horror novel, “The Stepford Wives”, which highlighted the dangers of subservience and docility for women. This growing trend in the world of work sees employees getting stuck in the status quo – not challenging leaders or pursuing professional growth.
‘Stepford Employees’ typically emerge when leaders enforce a rigid, ‘by the book’ culture that stifles development. When employees are micro-managed, discouraged from thinking creatively, and constantly given directives by overbearing leaders, they can quickly become disempowered and unmotivated – choosing to simply meet their work obligations and go home. When you consider the uncertainties around the cost of living, changes in the UK government, and fluctuations in the labour market – all of which have combined to create an increasing sense of unease – it’s perhaps unsurprising that employees are reluctant to push the boundaries of their role and instead, are seeking security and stability.
Some organisations might argue that having a workforce of ‘Stepford Employees’ is beneficial, as they’re more likely to adhere to workplace rules and regulations. And while this may be helpful with regard to areas such as health, safety, and data privacy, businesses should also be encouraging creativity and free thinking – allowing employees to step out of their comfort zone to learn and grow, often through making mistakes.
Leaders have a responsibility to set clear parameters and expectations around employee behaviours, role modelling the culture they want the business to display. This can then be supported by monitoring employee engagement to ensure these expectations are realistic, and fostering a positive work environment based on trust, psychological safety, and openness. Great leaders empower employees to provide useful, challenging, and constructive feedback that could lead to new approaches, improvements, and innovations in an organisation’s purpose and goals.
The key question to answer, is how businesses can take proactive steps to find a healthy balance where employees are happy to follow business critical instructions but are also actively engaged in improving the business where possible.
We recommend that businesses focus on the following:
Fostering open communication and feedback: Communication and feedback are crucial in any role, enabling employees to learn from past mistakes and mishaps. Organisations should establish closed feedback loops and monitor how well feedback is received to track employee learning and growth. Implementing workplace strategies like anonymous surveys or regular assessments of workforce sentiment can provide businesses with a clear and holistic view of the organisation, and help identify areas that need improvement.
Encourage a growth mindset: Growth mindset is a vital quality for employees as it enables continuous learning and development. Encouraging this mindset emphasises the importance of personal growth, ensuring employees feel confident in pursuing new experiences to then unlock their potential and facilitate innovation. This approach is crucial for the long-term success of any organisation.
Communicate clearly: When a business requires its workforce to adhere to an important directive, leaders must be able to demonstrate authority through clear communication, ensuring employees offer total compliance when necessary. They also need to be skilled in moderating their level of personal engagement based on the needs of the situation – knowing when to step in and offer their expertise, and when to step back to encourage employee autonomy and growth.
By stepping back and examining their workforce, taking into consideration the external factors that may also be affecting their people, organisations can identify gaps and work towards creating a culture of learning. Only then will employees feel encouraged to ask questions and challenge the status quo.
Lisa is a Senior Consultant with Right Management. She works across the whole spectrum of Talent and Career Management. She is a Chartered Fellow of the Institute of Personnel Development and is an AOC accredited certified executive coach.? Her facilitation style is challenging, pragmatic and engaging and her natural warmth and empathy means that she quickly builds a rapport with individuals and groups and often uses humour and shares personal stories to deepen these relationships.?
August 3, 2024
People can be so obedient in the workplace, they become Stepford Employees
by Lisa Stone • Comment, Workplace
‘Stepford Employees’ typically emerge when leaders enforce a rigid, ‘by the book’ culture that stifles development. When employees are micro-managed, discouraged from thinking creatively, and constantly given directives by overbearing leaders, they can quickly become disempowered and unmotivated – choosing to simply meet their work obligations and go home. When you consider the uncertainties around the cost of living, changes in the UK government, and fluctuations in the labour market – all of which have combined to create an increasing sense of unease – it’s perhaps unsurprising that employees are reluctant to push the boundaries of their role and instead, are seeking security and stability.
Some organisations might argue that having a workforce of ‘Stepford Employees’ is beneficial, as they’re more likely to adhere to workplace rules and regulations. And while this may be helpful with regard to areas such as health, safety, and data privacy, businesses should also be encouraging creativity and free thinking – allowing employees to step out of their comfort zone to learn and grow, often through making mistakes.
Leaders have a responsibility to set clear parameters and expectations around employee behaviours, role modelling the culture they want the business to display. This can then be supported by monitoring employee engagement to ensure these expectations are realistic, and fostering a positive work environment based on trust, psychological safety, and openness. Great leaders empower employees to provide useful, challenging, and constructive feedback that could lead to new approaches, improvements, and innovations in an organisation’s purpose and goals.
The key question to answer, is how businesses can take proactive steps to find a healthy balance where employees are happy to follow business critical instructions but are also actively engaged in improving the business where possible.
We recommend that businesses focus on the following:
Fostering open communication and feedback: Communication and feedback are crucial in any role, enabling employees to learn from past mistakes and mishaps. Organisations should establish closed feedback loops and monitor how well feedback is received to track employee learning and growth. Implementing workplace strategies like anonymous surveys or regular assessments of workforce sentiment can provide businesses with a clear and holistic view of the organisation, and help identify areas that need improvement.
Encourage a growth mindset: Growth mindset is a vital quality for employees as it enables continuous learning and development. Encouraging this mindset emphasises the importance of personal growth, ensuring employees feel confident in pursuing new experiences to then unlock their potential and facilitate innovation. This approach is crucial for the long-term success of any organisation.
Communicate clearly: When a business requires its workforce to adhere to an important directive, leaders must be able to demonstrate authority through clear communication, ensuring employees offer total compliance when necessary. They also need to be skilled in moderating their level of personal engagement based on the needs of the situation – knowing when to step in and offer their expertise, and when to step back to encourage employee autonomy and growth.
By stepping back and examining their workforce, taking into consideration the external factors that may also be affecting their people, organisations can identify gaps and work towards creating a culture of learning. Only then will employees feel encouraged to ask questions and challenge the status quo.
Lisa is a Senior Consultant with Right Management. She works across the whole spectrum of Talent and Career Management. She is a Chartered Fellow of the Institute of Personnel Development and is an AOC accredited certified executive coach.? Her facilitation style is challenging, pragmatic and engaging and her natural warmth and empathy means that she quickly builds a rapport with individuals and groups and often uses humour and shares personal stories to deepen these relationships.?