How to Prevent Favoritism in the Workplace - Spark Hire

How to Prevent Favoritism in the Workplace - Spark HireRegardless of the size of your office, favoritism can wreak havoc on the overall dynamic and morale of your company. Managers have to work hard to ensure that their actions do not seem to be favoring one employee over another. While its okay to praise one team member for their positive contributions, continually zeroing in on the efforts of one and ignoring what everyone else is doing becomes detrimental. Here are some strategies you can use to avoid falling into the trap of showing favoritism at workRemain aware of itIn many cases, favoritism happens simply because a manager is unaware that theyre doing it. Its natural to have certain employees you connect with well, and others you dont as much. However, its important not to let personal preferences create an uncomfortable working environment.To prevent this from happening, make it a point to pay attention to how you interact with employees. This heightened level of awareness ma y alert you to biases you didnt even know you were displaying. From there, you can alter your behavior to avoid perpetuating favoritism.Make sure everyones playing by the same rulesWhen an office lacks structure and rules, favoritism can run rampant. To prevent this from happening, make sure that everyone is evaluated on the same rubric. If youre in sales, employees should be evaluated on the sales they make, and not on whether they share the same interests as the boss. When there is a universal system to evaluate all employees, it makes it much harder to make choices based on personal preference. Instead, it becomes all about the facts.Remain aware of subtletiesAs a manager, youre always in the spotlight. Regardless of whether youre in an all-staff meeting or just pouring coffee in the break room, understand that employees are carefully watching your actions. Always remain aware of how you treat your staff members, and ensure that you give them equal time and attention. If you cons tantly stop and chat with Joe on the way to get your lunch, make it a point to say hello to Lucy and Mike too. Dividing up attention is an important part of being a manager.Beware of social mediaDepending on the environment in your office, you may find that your employees are highly connected to one another on social media. While this can boost camaraderie, it can also cause issues when managers get involved. If youre constantly liking and commenting on a certain persons statuses, it may be construed as favoritism. For this reason, its often smart to steer clear of friending employees.How do you prevent favoritism in your office?