CEOs Harming British Business finds Ashridge Business School: MBA News

Research by the UK's Ashridge Business School has found that a lack of engagement amongst UK CEOs may be harmful to British business, a warning sign for and management student.

 

The report, Engagement Through CEO Eyes interviewed a cross section of CEOs from UK businesses, who expressed a belief that a lack of engagement among the country's bosses may be having a harmful effect on British businesses.

 

"Through engagement, we can release the potential in all of us at work and with estimates of up to £26 billion being lost to the UK economy because of dis-engagement every year, it is critical that our business leaders recognise their role here,” explains Amy Armstrong, research fellow at Ashridge Business School, who carried out the report.

 

Conducted on behalf of Engage for Success, a UK government sponsored movement on employee engagement, Ashridge Business School's research also brought up further valuable insight on how the country's business leaders might be damaging their own businesses.

The culture and the system that operates within some of the nation's businesses was highlighted by some respondents as being a barrier to employee engagement. In particular, outdated styles of leadership, a focus on short-term results, and the hierarchy within organizations preventing honest conversations between employees and management.

 

One CEO responding to the report said he believed that "big corporations have got a massive challenge if they think they're going to retain talented people through command and control and not include them into decision-making and creative processes early on."

 

In conclusion, the report points out that through engagement, there is a better way to work that releases the full capabilities of people at work, to enable organizational growth, and ultimately economic growth.