Imagine a workplace where giving feedback feels completely safe and normal – a place where you can share your ideas or concerns without worrying that things might go badly. Unfortunately, many of us hold back from speaking up because we’ve either felt dismissed before or experienced situations where it all went wrong. But what if we could change that?
In this episode, we’re diving into psychological safety with executive leadership coach and author Suzi McAlpine. She explains why it’s essential for team engagement and decision-making, and how to foster trust within your team to combat burnout and enhance wellbeing and performance.
We’ll also cover the telltale signs of low psychological safety, the role of vulnerability in leadership, and the simple shifts that can make feedback a natural part of your team’s culture. This one is great for people leaders!
“I had this wonderful example of a chief executive I’d been working [with] who’s kind of like quite a staunch Kiwi bloke. He’s not one for normally sharing his feelings, but in a session with his exec team, he said to his team, ‘Look, I just want to apologise because I don’t feel like I’ve been leading you really well. I know some of my backup behaviours have come through and he listed a couple of them and he said, I just want to apologise.'”
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Episode insights
Episode Summary
Key points
This episode covers:
• Importance of psychological safety in the workplace
• Signs of low and high psychological safety
• Role of leadership in fostering psychological safety
• Strategies for building a feedback culture
• Measuring and improving psychological safety
Detailed summary
01:41 – Definition and Importance of Psychological Safety
Suzi McAlpine defines psychological safety as a shared belief among team members that it’s safe to share concerns, ideas, ask questions, and admit mistakes. She highlights three key benefits:
1. Higher engagement and motivation
2. Better decision-making
3. Continuous improvement
McAlpine notes that a lack of psychological safety can negatively impact people’s wellbeing at work.
04:33 – Signs of Low Psychological Safety
McAlpine outlines observable signs of low psychological safety in teams:
• Reluctance to admit mistakes
• Lack of challenging ideas
• Dominant voices, often the leader
• Nonverbal cues of hesitation
09:53 – Cultural Differences and Leadership Development
Sarah McGuinness raises the point about cultural differences between countries like New Zealand and Australia, and how this affects building psychological safety. She also discusses the challenges faced by leaders who lack formal leadership development training.
11:28 – Building Trust and Self-Awareness
McAlpine emphasises the importance of building trust as a leader’s first priority. She discusses two types of self-awareness:
1. Internal self-awareness (values, strengths, passions)
2. External self-awareness (how others perceive you)
She recommends establishing clear norms and ways of working to create psychological safety.
14:06 – Leader Behaviours for Psychological Safety
McAlpine outlines specific behaviours leaders should adopt:
• Model vulnerability
• Establish clear norms and rules of engagement
• Practice active listening
• Create a culture of feedback
• Respond positively to mistakes
• Improve group facilitation skills
20:05 – Creating a Culture of Feedback
McAlpine advocates for regular, two-way feedback, comparing it to tides rather than an annual “dump truck” performance appraisal. She suggests:
• Building feedback into operational rhythms
• Seeking consent before giving feedback
• Being transparent about intentions
24:17 – Importance of Positive Feedback
McAlpine emphasises the importance of giving positive feedback, suggesting a ratio of at least 3:1 positive to constructive feedback. She encourages leaders to “catch people doing well” and shine a light on desired behaviours.
26:58 – Vulnerability in Leadership
McAlpine discusses the role of vulnerability in leadership, clarifying that it doesn’t mean constant emotional displays. She provides an example of effective vulnerability from a chief executive apologising to their team.
31:38 – Measuring Psychological Safety
McAlpine suggests various ways to measure psychological safety:
• Engagement surveys
• Team assessments (e.g., Drexler Sibit model, Table Group assessment)
• Observing team dynamics and performance indicators
She emphasises the importance of getting buy-in from top leadership and linking psychological safety to bottom-line results.
37:00 – Strategies for Building Psychological Safety
McAlpine recommends:
• Starting with education
• Implementing good leadership practices
• Showcasing leaders who create high psychological safety
• Encouraging self-reflection among leaders
40:54 – Final Advice
McAlpine offers two pieces of advice:
1. Anyone can demonstrate leadership, regardless of title
2. Improve active listening skills to create a more psychologically safe environment
Additional Notes:
• The importance of active listening as a fundamental skill for fostering psychological safety
• The link between psychological safety and bottom-line results, which can be used to influence executive teams
• The potential for cultural differences between countries (e.g., New Zealand and Australia) in implementing psychological safety practices
• The need for a gradual, iterative approach when introducing new psychological safety initiatives
• The value of self-reflection for leaders in understanding their own barriers to psychological safety
APPLYING THIS TO THE WORKPLACE
If you’re thinking about how to apply this to your workplace, here are some things to consider.
The business case:
Teams that have high psychological safety enjoy several key advantages:
• Team members are more engaged and motivated, feeling their input matters and they can be themselves at work.
• Decision-making improves at both individual and team levels.
• People are more willing to admit and learn from mistakes without fear, leading to better continuous improvement.
• Employee wellbeing gets a boost, which is closely tied to psychological safety.
• Overall team and organisational performance increases.
Potential challenges to address:
• Overcoming cultural differences in implementing psychological safety
• Addressing leaders’ lack of self-awareness or formal leadership training
• Balancing vulnerability with maintaining professional boundaries
• Ensuring anonymity in feedback and surveys, especially in small teams
• Gaining buy-in from top leadership for psychological safety initiatives
Top tips for listeners:
• Establish clear norms and rules of engagement for team interactions
• Support leaders to model desired behaviours and actively seek feedback
• Incorporate feedback into operational rhythms, such as one-on-ones and post-meeting reflections
• Implement measurement tools to assess psychological safety, such as engagement surveys or team assessments
• Start small with vulnerability initiatives, focusing on moments where sharing can be helpful to others
• Improve active listening skills to foster psychological safety
