The term proactive is defined on Dictionary.com as “acting in advance to deal with an expected difficulty.”

When we consider the effect of the following:

-low consumer confidence according to Gallup Inc. “In early February, only 14% of U.S. consumers said current economic conditions were "getting better" while 79% thought they were "getting worse;"

-worker confidence hit a record low in December 2007, according to the Hudson Employment Index ℠;

- recent news of layoffs and cutbacks;

then the potential benefits of a proactive approach are accentuated.

In 2007, Singapore Management University published an article that linked proactivity and “employee performance and success.” Greg Greguras, an associate professor of organizational behavior at Singapore Management University describes proactive individuals as “dynamic agents who identify and seize opportunities that bring about change in their environments by either improving their current situations or creating new ones.”

So how do we encourage proactive behavior? Beverly Kaye and Sharon Jordan-Evans counsel employees to improve their workplace satisfaction in their article entitled Job Satisfaction? Take Action. These authors direct the reader to “chart your course,” when it comes to career direction and “find a way to enrich your own work, negotiate for it, and then do it.” All in all, the recommendations emphasize the value of an employee taking personal responsibility for his or her own job satisfaction. In addition, Kaye and Jordan-Evans suggest that individuals actively ask others for feedback, find their own mentors and strengthen connections with others. On a similar note, Robert Dilenschneider – a public relations specialist – is quoted in strategy+business as saying “If you are competent at what you are doing and make efforts to continuously effect even tiny, incremental improvements, you will have power in the workplace — no matter what your anxieties are about the trends that you believe are lined up against you.”

Certainly in today’s business environment it is even more critical that employees show initiative, recognize new business opportunities and strive to sustain existing business. How do we encourage this? Greguaras is quoted as saying: “Research indicates that supportive supervision is an important factor that influences employee proactive behaviour and self-determination.” Can we therefore assume that an organizational culture that encourages employees to take responsibility for their own work satisfaction will have a positive impact upon proactive behavior? Perhaps. The Singapore Management University research with “165 matched supervisor-employee pairs” demonstrates “that a strong predictor of favourable employee outcomes (including performance, OCBs, (organisational citizenship behaviours) job satisfaction, and life satisfaction) is the satisfaction of one's psychological needs.”

Proactivity can also be demonstrated through strategic decision making, processes and procedures. For example, hiring or downsizing decisions can be approached in a proactive way. Jessica Marquez, New York bureau chief for Workforce Management, writes “in an increasingly tight labor market, companies today also realize that they can’t assume that the talent they need will be available for rehiring when the markets pick up again.” In the same article, Marquez writes that “Wachovia hopes to use the economic downturn, which is hitting many of its competitors particularly hard, as an opportunity to hire aggressively.” Working hard to retain top performers is also a part of the equation. Emphasizing this point, Beth Reeves, SVP of HR for Lincoln Financial Group is quoted in a Cornell Center interview as saying “when an organization goes through a bumpy time, you need to make sure your top performers will stay.”

References:

Cornell Center for Advanced Human Resource Studies. hrSpectrum. “Up Close with… Beth Reeves of Lincoln Financial Group.” [www.ilr.cornell.edu/cahrs]. January-February 2008, p. 2.

Jacobe, Dennis. “Consumer Confidence Down in February.” Gallup Inc. [www.gallup.com]. February 14, 2008.

Kaye, Beverly and Sharon Jordan-Evans. “Job Satisfaction? Take Action.” Career Systems International [www.CareerSystemsIntl.com]. 2003.

Kleiner, Art. “Anyone Around Here Nervous?” Booz Allen Hamilton strategy+business [www.strategy-business.com]. March 25, 2008.

Knowledge@SMU. “Why Does Proactivity Relate to Favourable Employee Attitudes and Behaviours?” Singapore Management University [www.knowledge.smu.edu.st]. May 28, 2007.

Marquez, Jessica. “Recession: Handle With Care.” Workforce Management [www.workforce.com]. April 7, 2008, p. 1, 16-22.