Breaking Organizational Silence: How Leadership Humility Drives Better Outcomes

One common issue in organizations is silence—when employees choose not to speak up about mistakes or concerns. Silence can negatively affect both employees, increasing stress, and the organization, reducing innovation and commitment. Recent research (Zettna et al., 2024) highlights the role leadership humility plays in breaking this cycle.

Research suggests that up to 50% of employees may regularly withhold critical information from their organizations, creating significant risks. This “organizational silence” occurs across industries and hierarchies, leading to missed opportunities for innovation, unaddressed ethical concerns, and increased employee stress. The persistent nature of this issue, combined with its substantial financial and human impact, makes understanding and addressing organizational silence a top priority for modern management. Fortunately, a group of researchers recently did just that by studying the role of leadership.

The Research

Zettna and colleagues (2024) conducted five experiments and multi-wave surveys involving thousands of employees. Findings showed that teams were more likely to voice concerns and mistakes under one interesting condition: when leaders demonstrated humility.

• How can leaders show humility? Humility can be shown by:
• Admitting your limitations and mistakes.
• Valuing others’ strengths and contributions.
• Remaining open to feedback and new ideas.

Furthermore, teams that spoke up reported better performance outcomes. Organizations also experienced measurable benefits, including a 3% increase in customer satisfaction and loyalty and higher team earning capacity. Strong team commitment amplified these effects.

The Application

So, if you want employees to speak up, focus on these areas:

• Promote leadership humility: Train leaders to acknowledge their mistakes and respect team members’ ideas.
• Understand silence at all levels: Silence can occur individually or across teams. Addressing it on only one level limits impact.
• Include teams in decision-making: Participation fosters commitment, which strengthens the effects of humble leadership.

In all, breaking organizational silence requires deliberate effort, but the benefits—both for employees and the organization are well worth it.

Reference

Zettna, N., Nguyen, H., Restubog, S. L. D., Schilpzand, P., & Johnson, A. (2024). How teams can overcome silence: The roles of humble leadership and team commitment. Personnel Psychology. Advance online publication.