From Recognizing Problems to Developing Solutions
For some time, the Rosenboom Workforce Institute has been examining the relationships among employee engagement, organizational leadership, workplace culture, and institutional effectiveness.
The message has remained consistent: organizations cannot reasonably expect exceptional outcomes from employees who do not feel supported, valued, or engaged in their work.
But recognizing organizational problems is only the beginning.
Knowing that employee disengagement exists does not necessarily tell a supervisor what to do about it. Understanding that employees feel undervalued does not automatically provide an organization with a strategy for improving recognition, communication, or professional development.
The question is not simply whether we recognize the problem. It is whether we are prepared to do something about it.
That distinction is the foundation of a new approach to professional development at RWI.
Beginning with today's Workforce Wednesday discussion, our articles and LinkedIn publications will increasingly serve as practical professional development mini-guides.
Rather than simply describing a workplace challenge, each guide will offer specific actions, reflection questions, and practical approaches that leaders and employees can apply in their organizations.
These guides draw upon the same principles explored in RWI's growing collection of 58 professional development and operational workbooks.
Our objective is straightforward:
Make professional development accessible, practical, and immediately useful.
And Veterans Day provides a particularly meaningful opportunity to begin.
Veterans Day: Recognizing Service Is Important. Recognizing Experience Matters, Too.
Today, Americans pause to honor the men and women who served in the United States Armed Forces.
Their service deserves our gratitude and respect.
Veterans Day also invites an important workplace conversation.
When military personnel transition into civilian employment, many bring years of experience working in complex organizations, making difficult decisions, managing resources, developing others, and accomplishing objectives under demanding circumstances.
Yet military experience does not always translate easily into civilian organizational language.
A veteran who supervised personnel, coordinated operations, maintained accountability for substantial resources, or trained others may enter a civilian workplace where those experiences are not fully understood or utilized.
And although this discussion begins with veterans, the underlying organizational challenge extends much further.
Consider the experienced employee who possesses skills that never appear in a job description.
Consider the staff member whose previous leadership experience is unknown to the supervisor.
Or the employee who once volunteered ideas and accepted additional responsibilities but eventually stopped contributing beyond the minimum expectations.
What happens when an organization hires an individual's labor but overlooks the experience, capabilities, and perspective that person brings?
Sometimes, the organization loses something before the employee ever resigns.
It loses the employee's willingness to contribute more than is required.
RWI Mini-Guide: Five Actions Leaders Can Take
The following five actions provide a starting point for organizations seeking to recognize employee capabilities and strengthen workforce engagement.
1. Conduct a Capabilities Conversation
Annual performance evaluations generally examine how well employees fulfill their assigned responsibilities.
But how often do those conversations explore capabilities that fall outside the current job description?
A supervisor might know that an employee processes financial transactions, manages student records, or coordinates scheduling without knowing that the same individual previously supervised teams, developed training programs, or implemented operational improvements.
Try this:
During the next individual meeting, ask employees three questions:
What professional skills or experiences do you have that we may not be fully utilizing?
What kinds of responsibilities would you like to develop or explore?
Is there something about our current operations that you believe you could help improve?
The objective is not to promise a promotion or create additional work without compensation.
It is to understand the full range of capabilities already present within the organization.
2. Translate Experience Into Opportunity
Organizations frequently evaluate applicants and employees through the narrow language of position descriptions.
That approach can unintentionally overlook transferable capabilities.
For veterans, military terminology may not directly correspond with civilian job titles, even when the underlying responsibilities are highly relevant.
For other employees, previous experience in different industries or departments may be similarly overlooked.
Try this:
Identify one upcoming organizational initiative and examine whether employees outside the usual decision-making group possess relevant experience.
Invite participation based on demonstrated capabilities and interests rather than relying exclusively on organizational rank or current position.
The goal is to make better use of existing talent while respecting employees' workload and professional aspirations.
3. Make Employee Contributions Visible
Recognition does not always require a financial reward, public ceremony, or elaborate employee appreciation program.
Sometimes, recognition begins when a supervisor identifies a specific contribution and explains why it mattered.
Consider the difference between saying:
"Thank you for your hard work."
And saying:
"Your recommendation helped us simplify a process that was creating unnecessary delays for students. That improvement made a meaningful difference."
The second statement connects the employee's effort to an organizational outcome.
Try this:
During the next departmental meeting, recognize a specific employee contribution and describe its impact.
Avoid generic praise. Explain what was accomplished and why it mattered.
Recognition becomes more meaningful when employees understand that their efforts are noticed and valued.
4. Watch for Changes in Employee Participation
Employee disengagement does not always announce itself through absenteeism, complaints, or declining performance.
Sometimes, the earliest warning signs are much quieter.
An employee stops volunteering for projects.
A previously outspoken staff member becomes silent during meetings.
Someone who once suggested improvements begins responding with, "Whatever you think is best."
These behaviors do not automatically establish disengagement. Employees may be experiencing workload pressures, personal circumstances, or changing professional priorities.
But changes in participation deserve thoughtful attention.
Try this:
When a previously engaged employee begins withdrawing from discretionary activities, schedule a private conversation.
Instead of asking why the employee has become less motivated, ask:
"I've noticed you haven't been participating in improvement discussions as much lately. Has something changed that we should talk about?"
Then listen without becoming defensive.
The objective is understanding, not assigning blame.
5. Connect Recognition to Meaningful Action
Listening to employees is important.
Acting on what they communicate is equally important.
Few experiences are more discouraging than repeatedly asking employees for suggestions while demonstrating little willingness to evaluate or implement their ideas.
Not every recommendation will be feasible.
But organizations can explain decisions, identify alternatives, and communicate what happens after employees offer feedback.
Try this:
Create a simple employee feedback follow-up process.
For each substantial recommendation, document:
The issue or opportunity identified.
The action being considered.
The person responsible for reviewing it.
The expected follow-up date.
The eventual decision and its rationale.
This creates accountability without requiring a complicated new program.
More importantly, it demonstrates that employee input does not disappear after the conversation ends.
A Practical Exercise for This Week
Here is one exercise organizational leaders can complete without purchasing software, hiring a consultant, or establishing a new committee.
The Untapped Talent Review
Select one department and ask its supervisor to consider the following:
Question 1: Which employees have professional experience or capabilities we may not be fully utilizing?
Question 2: Which employees previously demonstrated initiative but participate less frequently today?
Question 3: What existing opportunities could allow interested employees to contribute their capabilities more meaningfully?
Question 4: What barriers prevent us from recognizing and utilizing the experience already available within our workforce?
Question 5: What one action can we complete within the next 30 days to address an opportunity identified through these conversations?
Document the answers.
Assign responsibility for the selected action.
Revisit the results in 30 days.
This exercise will not resolve every organizational challenge, but it provides something that many discussions about employee engagement lack:
A specific starting point.
The Connection Between Employee Experience and Institutional Performance
For colleges and universities, this conversation has particular significance.
Higher education institutions devote substantial attention to student recruitment, academic achievement, persistence, retention, and graduation.
Those are essential responsibilities.
But consider the employees responsible for creating those outcomes.
Admissions representatives who guide prospective students through uncertainty.
Financial aid professionals who interpret complicated eligibility requirements.
Academic advisors who recognize students struggling before an official warning appears.
Veterans education benefits professionals who help students understand complex certification and payment requirements.
Faculty members who identify emerging academic difficulties.
Business Office personnel who resolve financial concerns that could otherwise interrupt enrollment.
All of these employees contribute to the student experience.
Their ability to perform effectively depends not only on technical knowledge but also on communication, leadership, trust, organizational support, and the opportunity to contribute meaningfully.
This is why RWI continues to emphasize a foundational principle:
The student experience cannot consistently outperform the staff experience that supports it.
Institutions that want to improve student outcomes should also examine the organizational conditions under which employees are expected to produce those outcomes.
Continuing the Conversation Through RWI Workbooks
Today's mini-guide introduces concepts explored more comprehensively in several Rosenboom Workforce Institute professional development workbooks.
When Good Employees Stop Trying examines the organizational conditions that can contribute to employees withdrawing their discretionary effort.
When Employees Feel Invisible explores the consequences of employees believing their contributions, experiences, and perspectives are not recognized.
When Leadership Finally Listens focuses on the importance of meaningful communication, employee voice, and organizational responsiveness.
These resources are intended to move professional development beyond discussion through guided reflection, practical exercises, workplace scenarios, and opportunities to apply concepts to actual organizational challenges.
They are part of RWI's collection of 58 active workbook titles spanning employee engagement, institutional leadership, workforce development, higher education operations, and professional onboarding.
Explore the collection:
Rosenboom Workforce Institute Bookstore
https://www.rosenboomtaxandadvisory.net/new-page-5
A Final Veterans Day Reflection
Today, we honor those who served our country.
We recognize their sacrifices, their commitment, and their contributions.
As organizational leaders, perhaps one additional way we can demonstrate respect is by ensuring that the experience veterans bring into civilian workplaces is genuinely recognized and valued.
And perhaps we can extend that same commitment to every employee whose talents, experience, and contributions deserve meaningful consideration.
Because organizations do not become stronger simply by employing capable people.
They become stronger when leadership creates the conditions in which those capabilities can make a difference.
Today's question worth asking:
How much valuable experience already exists within our organizations that remains undiscovered, unrecognized, or underutilized—and what are we prepared to do about it?
About the Rosenboom Workforce Institute
The Rosenboom Workforce Institute (RWI), an initiative of Rosenboom Tax & Advisory LLC, focuses on workforce engagement, organizational climate, employee retention, leadership development, and institutional operational effectiveness. Through research-informed assessments, professional development workbooks, practical guides, and advisory services, RWI helps organizations examine workplace challenges and translate findings into actionable improvement strategies.
Dr. Matthew Rosenboom
Rosenboom Workforce Institute