How do you cultivate goodwill at work?

A brief history of benevolence

As an article in the Revue Gestion of HEC Montréal points out, the rise of neo-liberalism in the 1960s marked the rise of individualism within organisations, stimulating attitudes of ‘every man for himself’ and competition. The article also points out that this line of thinking has had negative consequences not only for people's health, but also for the sustainable development of companies. It was against this trend that the term ‘caring in the workplace’ was first coined.

Defining benevolence to understand it better

Estelle Morin, a full professor in the Department of Management at HEC Montréal, wrote in an article that in business, benevolence is the attitude that consists of looking after the well-being of one's team as they carry out the projects entrusted to them. ‘It's about health and safety in all three dimensions: physical, psychological and social. Benevolence also makes it possible to establish the climate of security necessary for teams to take initiatives, and even risks, in order to improve their efficiency and find innovative solutions’, explains the professor, who points out that benevolence is based on the deeply human need to be of service.

American researcher and Harvard Business School professor Amy C. Edmondson agrees: benevolence is one of the necessary conditions for creating a climate of psychological security. This definition is illustrated in her book ‘The Fearless Organization’. ‘A caring manager will make decisions and take action in the interests of others,’ adds Marianne Plamondon, CHRP and lawyer specialising in employment and labour law, a partner at Langlois. She also adds that if the culture of the organisation is benevolent, this will lead to widespread trust in the organisation.

How to maintain a climate of benevolence at work: a few tips

The right to disconnect

In a context where remote working has become the norm in many companies, employers need to adjust their performance requirements and give each employee the time they need to adapt and ensure the organisation's efficiency at the lowest possible cost. That said, investing their energies in adapting to change also requires employees to benefit from their ‘right to disconnect’, as introduced in France in 2017. Under this provision, companies are required to put in place ‘mechanisms to regulate the use of digital tools with a view to ensuring respect for rest and holiday time as well as personal and family life’. How can this be done? A company could, for example, add a statement to its emails to the effect that its staff are under no obligation to reply outside normal working hours, unless it is an emergency and this is indicated in the title of the message. It could also ask its employees to limit the sending of emails outside office hours to what is really urgent.

Kindness is contagious

Journalist and columnist Olivier Schmouker says that being kind is contagious. A study by researchers at the University of California at San Diego and Harvard shows that when one person shows kindness to another, that person is predisposed to show the same kindness to a third person. Kindness is contagious and can trigger a virtuous circle.

Kindness gives you energy

Another study published in The Journal of Personality and Social Psychology shows that employees who regularly receive gratitude are more likely than others to make discretionary efforts, welcome new recruits and take on the tasks of absent colleagues.

Kindness is found in small gestures

Another tip is simply to pay attention to the little things that make you feel good, so that it reflects on those around you. For example, as mentioned in an article in Les Affaires, smile. A simple smile to your colleagues or a polite word at the right time can make all the difference to someone's day. Also, try to show appreciation to those around you. A ‘thank you’ or a pat on the back for an employee who's done something right can be worth all the gold in the world.

To conclude

What if we started thinking ‘collectively’? What if we stopped seeing work as a constant competition between colleagues, and instead saw it as an opportunity to work together to rise as an organisation? If ‘collective performance’ policies were prioritised, instead of analysing performance on an individual basis, wouldn't we be putting in place initiatives that promote benevolence? It's a question worth pondering.

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