Don’t be fake positive

To start, this is almost always leadership's fault.

People don't generally enjoy talking about failures or bad news. Quite often, at work, people tend to focus on the good news rather than the bad, especially if the report is about their work. Having your team report on their work (goals, OKRs, KPIs, or everyday tasks) is the only way you can know what's going on as a manager. Good reporting will ensure you understand the status of things, and flagging a negative signal can help you get things back on track before they are critical. If your reporting is dishonest, it defeats the report's entire purpose. Being honest with your work is essential.

Teams reporting fake positives is way too common.

People make mistakes

Last week, I was catching up with a friend who owns a deli. They specialise in making healthy, high-quality sandwiches with fresh and local ingredients. He told me they're having issues with one of their employees, who is sometimes dishonest about his work. They start every day by chopping and preparing fresh ingredients for that day's sandwiches. He recalls a time when he asked if the onions were chopped fresh that day, and the employee lied and said they were fresh. By the looks of it, they were clear leftovers from the day before.

Many managers may take offence to this, maybe even fire this person for not doing their job or lying straight to his face. For my friend, the issue was more about the sandwich. He didn't care that the employee forgot to prep the mushrooms—he cared that his customers were getting fresh sandwiches that day, not leftovers.

Too often, workplace cultures build this expectation of perfection. A misstep or failure could cost you your job. While getting false reports from your employees is frustrating, it's really on you as a manager to foster an environment for safe, honest reporting. Both you and your employees must understand that people make mistakes and that you're working together towards a common goal. Forgetting to prep the onions doesn't mean they did a bad job; people make mistakes. Now let's go cut some onions.

It's OK to fail: building that honest reporting culture

The leadership's job is to ensure you cultivate a safe environment to fail safely and report honestly about progress. A safe workplace environment lets employees feel comfortable and secure in expressing their thoughts, ideas, and concerns without fear of negative repercussions. In such an environment, open communication and honesty are encouraged and valued.

This level of transparency allows managers to truly understand what's going on in their team, not for the sake of employee evaluation, but to see where their focus is needed. If you have an honest and clear understanding of what needs attention, it's a lot easier to prioritise their work and lead the team in the right direction.

There are a few common things that will help your team use failures as a business opportunity rather than a point of shame.

Make goals about outcomes, not outputs

This shift helps employees focus on the end result rather than just ticking off tasks. If you base team performance on outputs rather than outcomes, it gives little room for success.

In the example about the deli, if the employee thinks his goal is to cut onions, then they have failed. It's over. But if they understand the goal is to provide fresh sandwiches, they know they can still fix it. Until the customer receives that sandwich, he has a chance to correct course.

When goals are outcome-based, employees can align their efforts with the bigger picture, fostering innovation and problem-solving.

Regular check-ins and retrospectives

Regular check-ins and retrospectives provide structured opportunities for teams to discuss progress, address issues, and learn from mistakes. Having them more often gives your team the space to be honest and alert things when they start to slip, not when it's already in the red.

To make sure your team is willing to flag these signals early, your check-in meeting need to be open, honest, and constructive, focusing on continuous improvement rather than blame. Rather than seek blame, seek answers to these questions:

• Where are we failing/falling behind?
• What went wrong?
• What can we do to fix it?
• Should we be shifting our focus?

Make sure you're not focusing too much on how bad things are but more on being productive. Leave every check-in meeting with action items and work towards getting things back on track. As much as we hate to see things fail, it's always a signal that there is room for improvement.

Don't tie employee performance to company metrics

If you tie an employee's livelihood to company metrics, there is no incentive for honest reporting. Employees are encouraged to hide the truth if bad numbers mean a lost bonus.

While employees report on progress and execute tasks, the whole team is responsible for the company's success. Rarely is any part of a business unaffected by others' actions or outside influences.

Ensure your team knows you're in this together. Your employees will feel encouraged and empowered to do better toward your collective goal.

It starts with the manager

Lastly, the most important part is always remembering that it starts with management. Employees can only provide honest reporting if they feel safe sharing mistakes in your team culture. Take pride in your failures as much as you celebrate your wins, and your team will follow, too.