One Foot Out the Door: How to Combat the Psychological Recession That's Alienating Employees and Hurting American Business [Hardcover]

Judith M. Bardwick Ph.D. (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 31, 2007

As many as two-thirds of our employees are either actively looking for new jobs or merely going through the motions at their current jobs. Fearful and feeling vulnerable after years of watching friends get laid off, they expect the worst to happen, and they see no reason to give it their all. This phenomenon, identified by renowned author Judith M. Bardwick as 'the psychological recession', can have a devastating effect on a company's financial health. Based on extensive research showing how costly bad management really is, this eye-opening book offers concrete prescriptions for combating alarming trends such as high turnover, low productivity, and lackluster performance, including techniques for: strengthening the bonds of trust and respect between managers and employees; customizing working conditions and rewards for individual employees; and hiring for the 'best fit' between the organization's core culture and the personal qualities and priorities of the individual.Using hard numbers and current studies that prove the direct connection between a company's financial performance and its employees' commitment, this book is a wake-up call to organizations desperately needing to restore the broken spirits at the heart of their companies, and enhance their bottom lines.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“If you’re an HR strategist, buy One Foot Out the Door right away…. you need to read this book. Dr. Bardwick, who was a professor of psychology at the University of Michigan and is currently a Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the University of California, San Diego, did the workplace research for you and presents facts and figures from dozens of seminal employee motivation studies. You could pay a consulting firm a ton of money to compile this information, or you could just plop down 20 bucks and have it in one convenient volume. I don’t say this lightly, but if you’re in HR and don’t read this book you’re really missing out."

-Know HR Blog

“If you’re an HR strategist, buy One Foot Out the Door right away…. you need to read this book."

-Know HR Blog

""[Bardwick] has always challenged conventional wisdom and I consider her to be not only a great management thinker, but also a great thinker about life."

-- Marshall Goldsmith, Marshall and Friends column in BUSINESSWEEK.COM

"If you’re looking for ways to recruit or retain talented people, Bardwick offer[s] strategic, smart suggestions for establishing a workplace that is welcoming to a diverse set of people and committed to their job satisfaction and growth."

800ceoread.com

"I consider [Bardwick}] to be not only a great management thinker, but also a great thinker about life."

-- Marshall Goldsmith, Marshall and Friends column in BUSINESSWEEK.COM

“…takes a good look at current employee motivation issues and offers a full-course banquet of useful ideas to resolve them.” -- Inland Empire Business Journal

“...a good deal of practical and sensible advice…an interesting and compelling read.” -- Facilities Manager

Book Description

800-CEO-READ Business Book Awards for 2007 (category: Human Resources/Organizational Development)

Library Journal's Best Business Books for 2007

CEO Refresher The Best Books of 2007

As many as two-thirds of our employees are either actively looking for new jobs or merely going through the motions at their current jobs. Fearful and feeling vulnerable after years of watching friends get laid off, they expect the worst to happen, and they see no reason to give it their all. This phenomenon, identified by renowned author Judith M. Bardwick as “the psychological recession,” can have a devastating effect on a company’s financial health.

Based on extensive research showing how costly bad management really is, this eye-opening book offers concrete prescriptions for combating alarming trends such as high turnover, low productivity, and lackluster performance, including techniques for:

• strengthening the bonds of trust and respect between managers and employees

• customizing working conditions and rewards for individual employees

• hiring for the “best fit” between the organization’s core culture and the personal qualities and priorities of the individual

Using hard numbers and current studies that prove the direct connection between a company’s financial performance and its employees’ commitment, this book is a wake-up call to organizations desperately needing to restore the broken spirits at the heart of their companies, and enhance their bottom lines.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 17 and up
  
• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: AMACOM (October 31, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0814480586
• ISBN-13: 978-0814480588
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,174,941 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars So-So, February 13, 2008

By 

T. Thornton "bookworm extraordinaire" (Charlotte, NC) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: One Foot Out the Door: How to Combat the Psychological Recession That's Alienating Employees and Hurting American Business (Hardcover)

This book started out great. The first few chapters provided a timely and factual overview of where we are and how we got here. I have personally witnessed the author's examples of the psychological side of this dilemma in my own workplace. The recommendations she made were interesting and useful. Then came the second half of the book...

The author veered off into a discussion of conservative vs. liberal politics and how certain issues should/would be resolved. These issues were at times tangential to the book's premise (like healthcare) but added little value to the other arguments she makes in the book. I didn't get it...I actually found myself staring at the book with a quizzical look wondering why she included some of the chapters.

In any event, I will leverage the information from the first few chapters, but cannot recommend the book to others.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How to respond to "a crippling psychological condition", April 24, 2008

By 

Robert Morris (Dallas, Texas) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: One Foot Out the Door: How to Combat the Psychological Recession That's Alienating Employees and Hurting American Business (Hardcover)

Bardwick's purpose is to examine what she characterizes as "a widespread sense of vulnerability in the American workplace...After many decades of being fat, dumb, and happy, American businesses and American workers have been forced into a change. In a relatively short time, fat has morphed into thin and happy into frightened. Prolonged fear does not bode well for future success." Throughout her rigorous and lively narrative, she examines the causes, effects, and implications of what she characterizes as "the psychological recession that's alienating employees and hurting American business."

How bad is it? According to research conducted by The Gallup organization, only 25% of employees are engaged in their jobs, 55% of them are just going through the motions, and 20% of them are working against their employers' interests. There is another study of 50,000 employees at 59 global companies conducted by the Corporate Executive Board. One of its most significant revelations is that "emotional factors were four times more effective in increasing employee engagement rather than rational ones." It is no coincidence that many of the companies listed on Fortune magazine annual list of those "most admired" are also on its annual list of those most profitable and many of them are #1 in their respective industries. There is indeed a direct, indeed compelling link between employee productivity to organizational performance.

For these and other reasons, I think that some of the most valuable material is provided in Chapter 6 ("Commitment and Engagement - Not Morale or Satisfaction") because without full engagement by everyone involved in the given enterprise, it will be difficult (if not impossible) to achieve its objectives, whatever they may be. Barwick stresses the importance of asking the right questions, hiring and then retaining the right people, and measuring the right attributes; otherwise, employee "morale" and "satisfaction" are meaningless terms. She also provides a wealth of information and counsel that explains how to formulate and then implement initiatives that will help any organization to avoid or recover from the current "psychological recession."

I wholeheartedly agree with Judith Bardwick that we need "to regain our traditional spirit of optimism and fierce [but principled] competitiveness that makes us internally as well as externally competitive" because organizations "cannot flourish and fulfill their possibilities when their leaders and their labor force are chronically scared. Fear destroys energy, trust, teamwork, innovation, and courage."

In this context, I am reminded of Henry Ford's observation, "Whether you think you can or think you can't, you're right."

Those who share my high regard for this book are urged to check out The New American Workplace co-authored by James O'Toole and Edward E. Lawler, Marshall Goldsmith's What Got You Here Won't Get You There: How Successful People Become Even More Successful!, Phil Rosenzweig's The Halo Effect...and Eight Other Business Delusions That Deceive Managers, Michael Ray's The Highest Goal: The Secret That Sustains You in Every Moment, Paul Spiegelman's Why is Everyone Smiling?: The Secret Behind Passion, Productivity, and Profit, and finally, Human Sigma: Managing the Employee-Customer Encounter co-authored by John H. Fleming and Jim Asplund.

2.0 out of 5 stars A review of the "read inside" sample of the book, November 21, 2011

By 

Kyle Lassiter "Therapist and Life Coach" (Colorado, United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: One Foot Out the Door: How to Combat the Psychological Recession That's Alienating Employees and Hurting American Business (Hardcover)

The "read inside" sample of the book consists of:
11 pages of index, which appears to be very comprehensive.
11 pages of end notes, which also appears to indicate good documentation.
4 1/2 pages of the first chapter of the book, which is an introduction to the subject so general you have
no idea yet if you want to purchase the book.
The rest is the table of contents, again good, but doesn't really help you with deciding if you really
want to buy the book. So the "read inside" gets two stars for it's lack of actual content beyond the
introduction to the book that anyone over 40 could have written themselves.