I’ll give you a piece of my mind…but only in a cartoon balloon.

Recent research by Harvard Business School professors James Detert and Amy Edmondson shows that employees would love to give a piece of their mind, but are afraid to speak up. In Why Employees Are Afraid to Speak, the authors write:

While it’s obvious why employees fear bringing up certain issues, such as whistle-blowing, we found the innate protective instinct so powerful that it also inhibited speech that clearly would have been intended to help the organization.

In a work era that prizes “open communication,” the findings from Detert and Edmondson’s work are troubling. In HR training we encourage employees to speak up, to offer opportunities for improvement, and to “be engaged.” Great advice, but the tide of managerial resistance is hard to overcome.

Sometimes, employees told us they feared speaking up because managers had been genuinely hostile about past suggestions, but this was relatively rare. More often, they were inhibited by broad, often vague, perceptions about the work environment.

Real communication, the kind that flows both directions, is the lifeblood of an organization. Sure, a lot of companies say they “communicate,” but oftentimes that means they send out screeds in memos or on websites. How about a good little healthy debate among colleagues? That can work.

Detert and Edmondson say that simply putting suggestion boxes or communication policies in place isn’t the answer. The trick is making the communication environment safe, active, and a shared responsibility between employees and managers.

How’s your “Speak Up” approach working at your company? Do you have a communication culture? Or is it a little more like, “When I want your opinion I’ll give it to you”?