Business owners and managers are oftentimes disconnected from the cubicles and work stations where employees get most of their work done. Employees spend most of their time working in the office. Therefore, their observations and opinions regarding the organization’s typical daily challenges and the dynamics of the workplace might prove to be quite illuminating from a manager or owner’s point of view.

Just think of how much employees see and hear on any given day. They probably have plenty of ideas on how to make the business successful. They also might have valuable ideas regarding current solutions that aren’t as effective as management or ownership believes. Requesting honest feedback from employees is actually a fantastic opportunity to learn more about the business and understand things from the staff’s perspective.

When workers are provided with a platform to express their feelings about the business and the work environment, they feel empowered. Employees want to feel as though their opinions mean something to management. When workers are excluded from meetings, planning sessions and other discussions, they feel alienated from both the organization and their day to day activities.

Some employees who feel as though they don’t have a voice within the organization will become so frustrated that they quit. When you solicit feedback from your employees you’ll likely notice that your retention rate increases. Everyone wants to feel as though their thoughts and opinions are valued.

When employees are offered the opportunity to speak in an open forum about the workplace, it creates the potential to uncover nagging issues. Oftentimes, there is a severe communication disconnect between employees yet no one sheds light on the problem out of a fear that the airing of grievances will either be misunderstood or create even more conflicts. Don’t let your employees fall into this trap.

If you suspect that you won’t receive honest feedback in an open forum or even in one on one interviews, solicit anonymous feedback through regularly scheduled surveys. Alternatively, you can have everyone type up an honest feedback letter and drop it into a suggestion box. This way, management will be aware of conflicts between employees, clients and third parties. Soliciting honest employee feedback might identify a critical misunderstanding or disagreement before it picks up steam and causes a more significant problem.