National Association of
Counties * Washington, D.C.
Vol. 32, No. 3
* February 21, 2000
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Ego Suction
This is a call for federal funding (of course) to develop what could be
one of the most important health and public administration breakthroughs
in the modern era an "ego suction" procedure.
We all have egos.
They help determine our personalities and help us focus on our goals. On
the other hand, public administrators regularly encounter employees who
seem to suffer from an ego overdose. Symptoms include the demand for
personal recognition, praise and attention to excess, often characterized
by the nearly constant use of the pronoun "I" or words such as "my" or
"mine."
They will be quick to remind others of their value and the
great agony that would result in the organization if they were not on the
job. Very often employees in need of an ego suction are very bright, very
hard working, and in fact, do contribute a great deal. However, their
approach lacks perspective, and in the long run, harms themselves and the
organization.
The lack of perspective means they will be less
likely to be part of an effective team, which requires replacing a
"personally centered" view of life and work with one focusing on group
contributions and "another centered" perspective.
When ego overdose
is an acute problem among the top leaders in an organization including
elected officials, executives and supervisors, the results can be
catastrophic for an agency. The excessive focus on a personal quest for
power and recognition can distort relationships and contribute to unlawful
discrimination, sexual harassment and workplace violence.
Are there
treatments? Most often there are. They begin, however, with the
individuals first-line supervisor and manager recognizing the problem and
thoughtfully, but clearly, making sure the employee is aware that these
ego overdose traits are noticed and are contributing to specific behavior
or performance weaknesses.
This can also be combined with an
Employee Assistance Program referral for counseling. Encouraging the
employee to select or confide in another employee as a mentor can also be
of great help.
In many cases these treatments will work
effectively. However in others, the cases are so advanced that more
radical therapies are necessary. These may include taking steps to ensure
that the person is not in a position to have sole possession of critical
organizational information or processes.
If there is a key
promotion available, the ego infection, in terms of how it actually
manifests itself in the workplace, may be a factor in the decision not to
promote the employee who is not responding to coaching and corrective
action planning. However, even these approaches will not work in every
case. We do not yet have the administrative skills or treatments for a
sure cure.
Perhaps a very sizeable federal block grant should be
made available to local governments to develop ego suction procedures or
vaccines to add a dose of caring, humility and respect to balance an ego
overdose. Sadly, even if an ego suction procedure is developed, there are
many elected and appointed officials who would refuse to believe they have
a problem and refuse treatment. Besides, HMOs probably would not cover the
procedure anyway.
Please feel free to share your comments with me
about any of the HR Doctor articles. "Visit" the HR Doctor on the Web at
http://www.hrdr.net/.
(If you have questions for the "HR Doctor," e-mail him
at philrosenberg@prodigy.net.
Rosenberg is the Human Resources director for Broward County,
Fla.)
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