How hospitality employees perceive a manager’s integrity can affect the bottom line, says Tony Simons, an associate professor at Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration in Ithaca, N.Y. Simons and his colleagues studied 1,944 employees in 449 different departments, including food and beverage, in 107 hotels. The survey measured employees’ satisfaction with their supervisors’ behavior. Hotels whose employees believed their managers had integrity produced higher revenues than those where employees were dissatisfied with their bosses’ behavior. He also discovered that black employees were more sensitive to a manager’s inconsistent behavior.
How do you define integrity?
It’s about behavior and consequences.… When your boss says something is going to happen, how sure are you it’s going to happen? To what extent does he demonstrate the priorities he talks about?
Did the response of black employees surprise you?
When I talked to a few people who study diversity issues in companies, they were not surprised because they found black people think more about integrity. There are more conversations in the black community about hypocrisy, which is the opposite of integrity. What surprised me was black employees were harsher in rating black managers than white managers, harsher even than white employees rating black managers on issues of integrity.
Why would that be the case?
It makes sense if black employees have a hope and expectancy that a black manager will become a champion for minority causes. If the black manager does not, they feel disappointed.
What can a manager do to protect how his integrity is perceived?
Communicate clearly. Be more cautious about promises you make. Say no more often. Soberly think if you can 100-percent guarantee a promise. Acknowledge your limits of power. Consider in advance the other commitments you have. Pay a lot of attention to clarity.
