Organizational Apathy

Management is easy. Leadership is engaging and motivating people, turning people on,

getting 110% out of a personal relationship- General Colin Powell (Scarlett Surveys International, 2010). Organizational apathy is the cause of lack of productivity, burnout, indecisiveness, lack of creativity, lack of motivation amongst employees in the workplace. Leaders need to understand, predict, and improve employee behaviors to achieve organizational success (Hafer & Martin, 2006, p. 1). The purpose of this paper is to review literature on apathy of federal employees, and how they impact organizational performance. The paper will also explore leadership strategies in employee engagement, critical variables connected to employee engagement; and what it takes to increase productivity, emotional wellness, and resilience in the workplace. Lastly, the paper will examine ways for leaders to avoid organizational apathy.

The biggest money-wasters that leaders may overlook are employees who are indifferent to their jobs, employers, and quality of work (Joinson, 1996, p. 76). Leaders are frequently stunned by the financial impact of employee apathy. Lower productivity and performance, lost opportunities, flawed ethical practices and stifled creativity - all of these can have a great impact on an organization's goal (Joinson, 1996). Some federal employees are apathetic in their jobs because they are bored with their jobs, not being challenged or engaged in the organization, not part of the decision-making, not provided training, and have an ineffective reward system. The key questions are do employees in the workplace really care or are they just going through the motions. This is important for leaders to know because it can have an impact on the organization's performance.