Have you ever smelled something that you just could not pinpoint what it was? You do everything you can to find the source – you check the kitchen cloths, the fridge, and even the back of the cupboard for rotten potatoes. Years ago, I found myself looking for a smell. The problem was that I was the only one who could smell it. My husband Shane thought it was all in my head and I did too after a few weeks. Over time it got worse. Something was rotten and it was starting to drive me crazy.  After two months I began to think I was crazy and started to google medical issues that created phantom smells. 

One afternoon I bent down to pick something up in a cupboard. The smell instantly hit me, and I knew in that moment I was not crazy. I called Shane to check it out and he finally admitted that I was right. It wasn’t long before he discovered that the smell was not coming from the closet but was coming from underneath the house. 

Shane suited up in old clothes and a headtorch and headed under the house, half expecting to find a dead rodent. What he found was much worse. He emerged looking horrified and informed me that most likely several months earlier the connection to our insinkerator (garbage disposal) had come loose and rather than food waste going into the system, it was being deposited directly under our house.   We were essentially living on a compost heap. Shane quickly called the plumber who instantly refused to come as he knew what we were up against, but he was helpful enough to give Shane instructions on how to fix the mess. Im not quite sure how my husband managed to get the job done without spewing but he got there in the end and our house was back to normal with a strong smell of disinfectant.

The story was not over, however. Within a few days we had a few visitors. Having cut off the food supply, the mice came looking for food in the house. Over the course of 2 days, we managed to catch 10 mice. I will never forget the constant sound of the traps snapping in the middle of the night.

Why am I telling you this story? I think that the employee experience can be a little bit like this situation. As leaders sometimes we are unable to smell things that may be going on in the organisation. We may put into place initiatives that we think will be important to our people, but they seem to land flat and instead our employees complain and we feel resentful, unable to understand why no one appreciates what we do for them. The truth is that we can be clouded by what is important to us and we can miss the “smells”. Over time, if we don’t locate the source of a smell, it can grow and can become toxic. 

As a leader, its likely you have people in your organisation who can sniff out the issues. The ones who can sense the smallest shift in dynamics or who can walk in a room and just know something isn’t right. Its ok if you don’t notice these things – you can’t be good at everything! However, to ensure that you maintain the health of your organisational culture, it’s important to take the time to listen to these people so that you can take the time to investigate what is going on. 

The Employee Experience is not about giving employees what they want – its about taking the time to really listen and understand what they need so that they can do their best work and your organisation can flourish. If you are struggling with some smells in your organisation, I’d love to set up a time to chat and help you discover what might be growing under the house.