Why psychological safety is a non-negotiable for successful teams by Caryn Douglas
We work with a client that has successfully embedded a culture of safety – the work is high-risk so safety is paramount. In fact, it is so well embedded that safety is the just “the way we do things round here” and has become a way of life for teams in that organisation. Other organisations have been equally successful, which is a great testament to the development strategies that have truly changed cultures.
Often the language of safety in organisations only relates to physical safety. Of course, the cost of getting physical safety wrong is highly visible; both in terms of potential harm to employees and in reputational damage, never mind fines or criminal charges. However, getting psychological safety wrong can be equally damaging to an organisation in far less obvious, but equally ultimately commercially devastating, ways.
Harvard Business Review describes psychological safety as “a shared belief held by members of a team that it’s OK to take risks, to express their ideas and concerns, to speak up with questions, and to admit mistakes — all without fear of negative consequences”. Play this scenario out for a moment – imagine a team without the psychological safety to do all those things outlined above. If team members do not feel safe to share ideas, there cannot be innovation, not sharing concerns means bad practices or behaviours go unchallenged, not speaking up with questions means no involvement or real engagement in decision-making. And hiding mistakes is a recipe for disaster as they nearly always come to light at the worst possible moment.
This team might still, by the seat of its pants, deliver results. For a while. But then the cracks will begin to show. Customers, internal and external, are a canny bunch. This kind of dysfunctional team set-up cannot deliver results consistently. Quality will be compromised, or delivery deadlines will be missed. External customers will take their business elsewhere and internal customers will become increasingly frustrated at being let down, they will not be able to fulfil their obligations, and the wider business begins to suffer. Being a member of that team will not be a wholesome experience. No-one can feel pride in a workplace where they have no voice, leading to frustration or detachment. Productivity suffers, trust erodes, poor task-related and potentially toxic interpersonal behaviours persist. Team members will vote with their feet by leaving.
Psychological safety is a collective experience – everyone has to feel it for it to exist. This means active recognition and celebration of difference, so no one feels marginalised. It needs trust, with team members having confidence in each other’s integrity and capability. And it needs a culture where feedback is sought and welcomed as a way of becoming collectively stronger.
For this to exist, leaders need to signal their expectation clearly and overtly model behaviours that promote the psychological safety, including some vulnerability. Psychological safety doesn’t always mean comfortable – and demonstrating fallibility can feel risky. Only by being a role model can leaders personally justify inviting the kind of open communication that welcomes challenge, supports team members as they lean into healthy conflict, and promotes a culture where mistakes are an opportunity for learning.
When psychological safety becomes as firmly embedded as physical safety, teams can really take off. The behaviours required are the same, they just need to be extended to all aspects of a team’s work, not just the maintenance of a physically safe working environment. Psychological safety is non-negotiable, not just because of what can go wrong, but because of the success that can be gained by creating a truly psychologically safe team environment.
Reference
What Is Psychological Safety? https://hbr.org/2023/02/what-is-psychological-safety