by Charles Plant | Nov 25, 2013 | Uncategorized
A colleague of mine once remarked that office politics in universities are so intense because the stakes are so small. Same too for companies except in some cases the stakes grow and the battles simmer.
Another friend recently reported that she’s in the midst of a big political battle and this got me wondering about the source of politics, the role that the organization plays in fostering politics and what politics are to begin with.
Having not spent much time in big organizations I had to do some serious thinking about what politics really are and I’ve decided that it’s an attempt to gain power so that one can do one’s job. Wikipedia says that it’s the use of power for the pursuit of self-interest without regard to the effect on the organizations ability to achieve its own goals.
But I don’t buy this. I think politics exist when someone is trying to achieve his or her own organizational objectives, not personal ones. I think people are just trying to do their job to the best of their ability and meet the goals set out for their role in the organization. The difference is important because if the source of politics is personal then the organization doesn’t have a role in it. But if the source is organizational then you can blame the company for its existence.
When people have to fight for resources including funding, personnel, authority and even attention to get their jobs done then politics will break out. The fight isn’t one to gain personally but to gain by achieving their own organizational objectives. That’s why the organization is at fault. It has created an environment where people have to battle internally to do their jobs.
by Charles Plant | Oct 16, 2013 | Leadership Development
Are you sitting doing your job quietly while everyone else is getting all the glory? Do you wish that more people paid attention to what you know? Are you upset when obvious phonies get all the attention?
It sounds like the beginning of a Charles Atlas ad that promises to turn the 98 pound weakling who gets sand kicked in his face to a super buffed guy who gets all the babes. But at work it is truer today than ever before.
If you can’t promote yourself, why would anyone else do it for you?
Oh yes, you can say that self-promotion is a waste of time. Eventually someone will notice what you do but that just isn’t the case. Unfortunately, people who don’t promote themselves rarely get anywhere. This is why effective self-promotion is one of those skills that a leader can’t do without.
Now I’m not one to ask how to do this because I actually suck at it. I would rather learn something from someone else than talk about what I’m up to. I just can’t figure out the right balance. That’s why I’m not very good as an entrepreneur, not very good at sales unless I’m dealing with someone who makes decisions based on evidence versus personality.
Now several weeks ago, I admitted I wasn’t very good at networking and it’s all part of the same gene. I haven’t figured out how to network well and I’ve not figured out this self-promotion thing yet. I think I’ll have to develop a process.
If you have any ideas on this, I would love to hear them.
PS: As I finished this and went looking for an image to steal and post to accompany the article, I discovered that there is a Dummies book on Self-Promotion. MUST BUY.
by Charles Plant | Oct 11, 2013 | Leadership Development
Of all the questions you need to ask when you’re looking for a new job, perhaps the most critical is “How will I know when I’ve succeeded?” This is the same as saying, when is enough enough?
Let’s say you’re sitting down to write a report for the first time to recommend a certain course of action. You’ll have to ask yourself a few questions.
- How many alternatives should I examine?
- How long should the report be?
- What level of detail should I include?
- How will I know when I’m done?
Typically what happens in situations like this is that the work expands to fill the time available. The report is done when it’s due. This means that you work away at it slavishly just until you can’t work any more because you’ve reached the completion deadline (or slightly over it) at which point of time, it’s finished.
If you’re looking for a new job, you’ll need to figure out how the company looks at things like this.
- What feedback do you get when you finish a major project?
- How does this influence the appraisal process?
- How does it influence compensation?
- How will it influence opportunities for advancement?
Questions, questions, questions. If your prospective employer can’t answer these things then watch out.
by Charles Plant | Oct 9, 2013 | Uncategorized
Back again for another day of questions to ask in a job interview. If you want to get ahead, you have to know how you’re doing on a regular basis.
In the industrial economy or if you’re in sales, you always know how you’re doing. No need to be told. There are all sorts of dials and levers that will tell you. In the knowledge economy though you can’t know unless someone tells you. And once a year when you’re getting your appraisal isn’t enough.
So when you’re looking for a job you need to figure out where you’re going to get feedback from.
- Will there be metrics?
- How often will you get metrics reports?
- If there aren’t metrics how will you know how I’m doing?
- How often will you meet with your new boss to discuss how you’re doing?
This is called performance management and is something done weekly in great places, done monthly in good places, done quarterly in OK places and done annually in poor workplaces.
If you want to tear your hair out, try working without feedback. Caveat Emptor.
by Charles Plant | Oct 8, 2013 | Leadership Development
Yesterday I set out four questions you need to get answered in an interview to tell if you’re going to be working for a good boss. In case you’ve forgotten or too lazy to check, the four questions are:
- How will I know exactly what is expected of me?
- How will I know how I’m doing?
- How will I know how to get better?
- How will I know how I’ve done?
Today we’ll look at the first one. You probably got a job description from the company before you applied. That must have gotten you so excited by requirements like: “Must have good knowledge of Excel” and others like “Responsible for inter-departmental process facilitation.”
Whatever. It’s a job and you need one but will you be working for an idiot? Does the job description tell you what you need to know? How will you know what’s expected of you?
Most job descriptions only talk about the process and not the results that are expected. What should be key for you is figuring out what results they want. This might not be in a job description but it should exist somewhere.
Wherever it exists, does it tell you what results are expected? And exactly, with measurements like; “Responsible for 13% net profit on sales to new markets?”
Does it tell you what your limits of authority are like “Must get all sales above $100,000 approved by manager in advance.”
This will tell you something about how good your new boss is at delegating. If she has thought through metrics it will mean that you’re responsible for results and have the authority to do the job. Otherwise, micromanagement here we come.
