A person resigning from an organization could be leaving for a new career opportunity, an unsolicited job offer or dissatisfaction that has stemmed from building grievances. Organizations usually attempt to understand why people leave, several responses throw light on deficiencies on part of the organization to fulfill that what was assured or claims of unfulfilled expectations. (beliefs held by an individual regarding what the organization owes them and what they owe the organization)
Psychologically we mold our behaviour based on expectations (besides rules) and the associated outcome attached to that behaviour. Thus, beliefs and expectations held by an individual often influence reality and impact results. Author John Spadling, mentions that when you create expectations you change people’s behaviours. As such expectations set during the course of an employee’s tenure has a direct correlation with his or her actions and reactions. In organizations, expectations and beliefs fall under buckets linked to performance, promotions, pay hikes, rewards etc.
This is referred to as the “PSYCHOLOGICAL CONTRACT” – the unwritten expectations and obligations between employees and employers (Denise Rousseau). When the contract is fulfilled, employees tend to align their behaviours with that expected by the organization but when this contract is breached the same employee can become less satisfied, motivated and under perform which in some circumstances may lead to disengagement and the employee to think about leaving the organization.
Employees evolve or devolve their behaviour according to their experiences within the workplace. For e.g. often rewards are linked to performance, this belief influences an employee’s behaviour to excel. However if this isn’t the case and excelled performance isn’t rewarded one can experience an array of negative emotions thus hampering work and output.
Giving this backdrop, organizations require to understand what is being communicated at different stages of the employee’s life cycle. When a psychological contract is fragile, efforts need to be made on part of the organization to reduce the gap between that was is expected and what is the reality of the situation. Giving a clear, objective, fair picture to the employee is pivotal. In instances where unforeseen factors have disrupted normal expected functioning, organizations should then earnestly communicate the reasons for sudden change. Since psychological contracts develop based on communication, authentic and constant communication is key.
In attempt to fulfil the psychological contract, addressing and managing expectations is a key behaviour for employers so they don’t give employees the wrong perception which then doesn’t materialise.
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