The last three chapters of this book focus on implementation and execution. This do-it-yourself part is divided into two sections:

1. Things you can do to prevent drama from happening in the first place (write policies your employees will actually read and follow, and provide training that will positively impact understanding and behavior).
2. Innovative but time-tested methods to resolve drama if it does occur (receiving, investigating, and resolving claims of misconduct).

We’ll start with policies. Though policies are universally recognized as useful tools to prevent misconduct, too many organizations pay little attention to writing and enforcing policies that will have that desired effect. Let’s be honest, no one really reads the employee handbook. More precisely, no one reads the typical handbook. (I do know of a few companies who’ve written clear, precise, transparent, and entertaining policies, but they are, unfortunately, the exception rather the rule.)

So how can you take a fresh new approach to writing policies? How can you write policies that become an integral component of your journey to becoming a drama-free workplace?

• First, as I discussed in detail in the “Freedom” section in Chapter 5,policies that restrict freedom do more harm than good. So write policies that set expectations and communicate your commitment to a healthy workplace.
• Second, policies have become nothing more than yet another legal CYA tool—an additional element in the company’s quest to “protect” itself from lawsuits, rather than a truly helpful guide. Be bold. Chuck the legalese and instead write policies that employees want to read, with guidelines they understand.

I’ll end the chapter by focusing on sexual harassment policies, summarizing the top 10 mistakes I’ve seen in those policies and providing a roadmap, including sample language, to avoid those pitfalls.

Taken together, these sections will help you authentically state your expectations as you make your journey to the top of the Healthy Workplace Culture Pyramid.

Policies Should Set Expectations, Not Restrict Freedom

Should policies be written to give employees the right to do something, or should they be written to encourage employees to do the right thing? If you’ve been paying attention, you know that I believe the best way to prevent workplace drama is to encourage employees, to promote greater connection and empathy, and to give them a sense of fairness.

So why do so many workplace policies seem to do the opposite? The primary reason is that most companies see their handbook, or individual policies, through the tiny lens of legal compliance. The handbook has become a way to “protect” organizations from employees who are always lurking just around the corner to find a way to bring a claim against you.

But policies have also been rendered all but useless for other reasons.

First, there’s the canned language. Go look at your handbook to see how many times it says “up to and including termination . . .” I’ll bet it says that a lot. Some of my other favorites are: “Discrimination or harassment on the basis of any protected category is prohibited” and “We will not tolerate retaliation.” These are great promises, but they lose their oomph when 10,000 other companies cut-and-paste the exact same language.

Second, too many policies are written to address the misconduct of one employee. Essentially the policy seeks to punish everyone for one person’s mistake or poor judgment. Someone wore clothes you find distasteful, unprofessional, or distracting? Let’s add that to the dress code. Someone is logging onto social media or doing their online shopping at work? Let’s write a policy naming the specific sites that are off limits. What do these situations have in common? The people in charge of enforcing behavioralexpectations are failing to do their job. Rather than taking the direct route —sitting down and talking to the person behaving badly—they take a passive-aggressive approach. Before you know it, you have a 100-plus-page handbook that’s been band-aided over the years. This isn’t helpful to anyone.

Policies also often contain punitive language with no real teeth. Are you really going to enforce your policy that says that someone who eats their lunch at their cubicle will be disciplined? Do you mean it when you say that you’ll fire someone if they fail to report the fact that they went out on a date with a coworker last week?  These policies almost always have one of two results. The first is that employees don’t believe what you’re saying. The policies become nothing more than a source for employee ridicule since they are not enforced (or they’re enforced inconsistently).  The other option is that your employees do believe you and start wondering if this scary workplace is one they want to be a part of.

Finally, too many policies fail to explain the “why” related to the policy, making them sound like nothing more than language taken from an ancient law book.

Here are some examples and ways you can improve your policies:

• Timekeeping policies shouldn’t just be a way to keep tabs on employees. Let employees know that in addition to legal requirements, you have timekeeping mandates because you are committed to making sure everyone gets paid for all the work they do.
• Also in the world of timekeeping, rather than just telling employees that they “must” take rest and meal breaks and that failure to do so could result in discipline (“up to and including termination”), tell them that the intent of this policy is to make sure employees don’t get burned out. A well-written policy tells your employees that you value their physical and mental health and want them to work hard when they’re working, but to take time to decompress, too.
• Disability policies should cover more than legal obligations.  Yes, your organization is required to provide an accommodation request if, after a good faith interactive process, you find an accommodation that is reasonable and will be effective in allowing the employee to do her job. But a great employer does more than comply with this requirement. Stating the “why” gives you a chance to tell employees that your goal is to make the process a win-win proposition. Explain that while it’s not always possible to find an accommodation that works, you’re committed to approaching the process with a can-do mindset.  This reminds employees that yours is a company that complies not only with the letter of the law, but also with the spirit of the law.
• Bullying policies are often vague and fail to define what is meant by “respectful” or “professional.” Does this mean that saying one curse word after stubbing your toe is wrong? Or does it mean that a boss who throws things at employees is behaving acceptably because he’s “high spirited?” (I’ve investigated both these claims.) First, if you think it’s necessary to have a policy on abusive or demeaning behavior, give specific examples and be realistic. Follow up by discussing this more during training. And finally, if you opt to have a policy emphasizing your commitment to a respectful workplace, enforce it. Consistently.  Too often I see companies who say “we want a respectful workplace” on paper but the reality is that bullies run rampant and people are too scared to do anything, especially if the bully is in a position of power.
• Policies about evaluations and salary reviews could help create a more seamless process, but unfortunately many policies make the process more bureaucratic. Inauthentic, canned language sends the message that you only see the evaluation process as a necessary evil and don’t really do much analysis when deciding about salary increases. Add language that sets expectations for managers and employees. This might include your organization’s commitment to continuous feedback (along with training on what that means), helpful supplements with answers to FAQs, and an offer to help if someone is struggling with how to give feedback. For employees, you can provide similar resources to let them know that the evaluation process isn’t something you do because your lawyers force you to; it’s a process you view as a vital employee development tool.

Take a look at your current handbook with these suggestions in mind to start the process of setting expectations that will help free your organization of needless drama.

And one final note: Be creative and innovative. Speak to your employees in the format and language that will most resonate with them. Here are a few ideas:

• Videotape some of your policies. That doesn’t mean you don’t put them in writing, but having a short introduction or a series of videos to present your expectations might help your employees pay attention.
• Host periodic town hall meetings. Make sure top-level leaders are there to speak and to answer questions. Make it fun and engaging and make sure what you cover corresponds with the other efforts you’re taking to create a healthy culture. Make it into a game show to see who can talk about your policies most accurately and enthusiastically.
• Share success stories. HR is often viewed as the equivalent of the vice principal’s office in high school—it’s where you are sent when you’re in trouble. Change the narrative and make the HR department (or whatever you call your department) a place that is actually human, and provides resources. If someone successfully used your leave policy and expressed appreciation for the guidance you provided during that difficult and emotional process, celebrate that. Ask the employee to tell his/her story—again, perhaps via video or some other engaging avenue (without disclosing any personal information, and assuming the employee is comfortable doing so).
• And if you’re really bold and playful, do something that’s completely outside the box. Develop a contest related to your handbook. Include stories that help illustrate your points. One company slipped in nonsensical policies to see if anyone actually read the handbook. And the HR director awarded prizes to employees who spotted the fakes. One of the pretend policies said, “If you quit within three months of hire, you have to wash the HR director’s car for six months after your departure.”¹ This type of playfulness may not work with all companies, but if you think it won’t fly at your workplace, maybe the answer is that you need to inject more fun into your organization!

Top 10 Mistakes in a Typical Sexual Harassment Prevention Policy

An employee handbook contains dozens of policies, but in today’s post-#MeToo world, many organizations are focusing most of their attention on their harassment prevention policy. I’ve reviewed thousands of policies in my work as an attorney, investigator, and expert witness. I can probably recite your policy without ever having seen it because there is very little difference between policies, regardless of company or industry.

Here are the top 10 mistakes I’ve seen in the typical harassment prevention policy. These aren’t listed in the order of importance but are instead listed in the order that most policies follow:

Say Goodbye to Legal Jargon and Hello to Clarity and Positivity

Some policy language is legally required, but that doesn’t mean you have to stop there. Ideally, policies should focus more on the promise of a healthy, productive, and respectful workplace culture.

My suggestion? Reinvent the workplace policy. Take the opportunity to craft policies that showcase your company’s commitment to making respectful treatment a mutual responsibility, a two-way street where respect and inclusion are core values that the organization expects everyone to adhere to.

Here is some sample language. Feel free to use this language, or, better yet, use this and other parts of this book as inspiration to draft your own language.

1. Instead of “We promise a harassment-free workplace,” consider stating:

   We’ve covered the legal issues separately but we want to take this opportunity to address something that is more important to us than legal compliance. Don’t misunderstand, we are deeply and genuinely committed to a workplace with no unlawful sexual harassment. But we want to make a much bolder promise than “We vow to comply with our minimum legal requirements.” The promise we make is that rather than focusing exclusively on compliance, we will do all we can to create, maintain, and promote a culture that values respect, fairness, and inclusion. We invite you to be a part of our quest.

    and/or

    Our mission is ___. We understand we can’t live up to that mission, or serve our customer base without providing you, our most important resource, a safe, comfortable, positive, and productive work environment. To that end, we give you our word that we are committed to providing a healthy work environment where you can effectively perform your job and where you can thrive – as an individual and as a valuable member of a supportive team.

    and/or

    Whereas some companies promise a “harassment-free workplace,” our goals are much loftier than that. This isn’t simply a guarantee that we won’t violate the law. Our word to you is that we will not only do our part to prevent and resolve unlawful harassment, but that we are committed to creating and maintaining a diverse, inclusive, and professional environment.

2. Let employees and managers know the resources you’ll provide to help them distinguish between severity of conduct (unlawful versus objectionable/offensive but not illegal), and guidance on how to make and receive reports of workplace concerns.

    We are steadfast in our commitment to:

   • Provide relevant, practical, and continuous education about our behavioral expectations to all employees—behavior we find acceptable or unacceptable, regardless of whether it rises to the level of illegal harassment. We understand that conduct that might start out as minor or infrequent can, if left unaddressed, quickly turn into more serious misconduct.
   • Provide employees, supervisors, and company leaders with resources, including helpful communication tools—including tools to object to inappropriate behavior as it occurs as well as tools to learn to report behavior to supervisors, HR, or through our company hotline.
   • Create a safe and comfortable environment where employees and managers share concerns so that we have an opportunity to look into them and resolve them.
   • Fairly and honestly investigate any reports of misconduct, allowing all parties to have a say.
   • Implement appropriate and meaningful corrective measures in the event our investigation uncovers misconduct (in English, we promise to fix any problems we identify).
   • Implement appropriate and meaningful consequences in an even-handed way and through the use of discipline that is commensurate with the wrongdoing uncovered by an independent investigation.
3. Close your policy with uplifting language (or send similar language in an email distributing the policy, or put language like this in a preamble to an employee handbook):

   What is most important to us is to start an honest dialogue about these issues. Though these topics (bias, harassment, racial strife, gender issues) might be difficult and sensitive, we want all our employees to feel comfortable asking questions and giving suggestions on how we can foster an atmosphere of trust and of mutual respect.

    We want to reiterate that we are not simply reciting corporate speak when we say that you, our valued employees, are truly our most valuable resource. We mean it, and we know that we cannot succeed on any level if we don’t have a workforce who trusts us, who views their role at the company (and their actual work) as meaningful, and who we can deploy as true-believing brand ambassadors. We hope this policy answers any questions you have about where we stand when it comes to these issues, but if you have any additional comments, please do not hesitate to contact any of us.

This is a lot. Perhaps you’ll opt to put only some of this language in your formal policy. Or maybe you’ll decide that you’ll have a policy spelling out the legal issues, and have a separate policy or a separate handbook that has these messages. Regardless of which option you select, the important thing is that you’re now on a clear path that will allow you to use policies to set expectations and to use as a vehicle to communicate with your employees. More important, you’re on your way to making your policies a key aspect on your trip to the top of the Healthy Workplace Culture Pyramid.