Office Politics

Tactic that might work is a website that outed

office psychopaths.

posted on 1188438816.65

Agent Provocateur

In Joseph Conrad's classic, _The Secret Agent_ 
(written in 1907) a foreign spy attempts to 
provoke the British government with an outrageous 
act.  It is the reaction -- not the triggering act 
itself -- that would do the most harm.

Workplace provocateurs attempt to goad you into a 
response -- typically emotional -- that causes 
lasting damage to yourself.  Since most workplaces 
do little (if anything) to identify provocation, 
this tactic is very effective.

Watch out!  The provocateur may not be a mere 
freelancer, but part of a group.  Some office 
groups include members that specialize in 
agitation.  If a particularly obnoxious employee 
seems to enjoy the protection of powerful people, 
be especially wary.  He may get away with frequent 
outbursts -- but someone who responds in kind may 
not be so lucky.

posted on 1182038430.73 by SiteAdmin

Do Not Forget to Praise

A powerful way to create a positive atmosphere at 
work is to praise a job well done.  Write a 
thank-you note to that person in the other 
department who helped your project.  Mention your 
team member's special contribution at the next 
meeting.  Praise shows others that you value them 
-- that you can be trusted to recognize their 
achievements.

posted on 1177986744.46 by SiteAdmin

An effective manager can (and must) nip office

politics in the bud. I had a General Manager who 
did this extremely well. If someone went to him in 
private and made a comment(derogatory) about a 
colleague .. he would immediately call the 
mentioned colleague and with both of them in the 
room .. he would say " Mr J just mentioned to me 
something about you.." 

Needless to say.. Mr J got the message .. and so 
did the rest of the organization soon!

posted on 1173114767.2 by fundakid

Office Politics = Social Pollution?

Office politics not only hurts employees 
individually -- the cost to organizations is in 
the hundreds of billions of dollars per year.

This is analogous to how environmental damage is 
no longer just about the spotted owl or the beluga 
whale.  The destruction of the environment 
threatens the planet as a whole, and with it, 
human civilization.  

Maybe there needs to be the same awareness about 
office politics as about environmental damage.
Once the institutional paralysis induced by staff 
conflicts, maneuvering and intrigues gets to a 
certain point, organizations will be unable to 
function, and society is doomed.

posted on 1171049094.62 by SiteAdmin

The Opt Out Option

J.D. "Illiad" Frazer, cartoonist of User Friendly 
fame    

     http://www.userfriendly.org/

has written a book (_Money for Content and Your 
Clicks for Free_).  It is full of valuable 
information for independent content developers.  
Why, however, should you become an independent 
creator in the first place?  

On the job, claims Frazer, some coworker will be 
watching your every move, waiting for a chance to 
slip in a "metaphorical dagger" should you make a 
mistake.   

Could the the best strategy for office politics be 
to leave the office altogether?

posted on 1169832018.77 by SiteAdmin

Does Everyone Really Think This is Normal?

Here is a story from the New York Times 
(registration may be required) claiming that 
difficult people are not going away, you just have 
to learn to live with them, etc.
  
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/18/fashion/18difficult.html


They also emphasize that you (anyone reading the 
article?) may be at fault if you have trouble with 
difficult people.

Does everyone consider this normal?  If you look 
at the workplace 30-40 years ago, "difficult 
people" did not seem to be such a problem.  Even 
the New York Times article states that all the 
books on this subject, as well as the demand for 
relationship consultants, is a relatively new 
development.

Is the phenomenon of "difficult people" a personal 
self-help issue, or are forgotten workplace 
management techniques from the recent past the 
key?

posted on 1169154959.65 by SiteAdmin

Keep Your Job Despite a Group Attack?

Here is a true story.  In a previous job, I
reported to a very senior manager (Chief
... Officer) who was generally supportive of what
I was doing, at times enthusiastically so.
Unfortunately, the Chief had a confidant, who
exercised a great deal of influence over him.

The confidant built up a strong coalition around
himself.  This "team" had many targets (including
myself) and their attacks were relentless (it went
on for years) and steadily escalating.

Turnover was already high, and it was clear that
all of us would eventually be picked off one by
one.  Hence, I tried to unite some of the other
victims (all senior-level employees) in order to
defend ourselves.  These employees showed a lot of
initiative in their work, were not afraid to make
proposals to senior management, etc.

Together, however, the targeted employees were
very timid.  It was impossible to act in unison
with them -- they were afraid to be seen together
even briefly.  This was quite surprising, since
the danger was clear but not immediate (i.e. each
of them would last at least a few months before
the confidant finally got rid of them).

The confidant's "team", however was very bold,
meeting openly to strategize, going out on long
lunches and dinners together, etc.  This is
despite the fact that, individually the coalition
members (including the confidant himself) were
quite cowardly, and very afraid of the Chief.

So, I eventually left, and the other targeted
employees were all picked off one by one, as
expected.  Was this the right thing to do, should
I have tried to stick it out till the very end?
Is there any way to fend off such a team attack?

posted on 1168551446.03

Check Six!

The Nobel-prize-winning physicist, Richard 
Feynman ( 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Feynman ), 
was on the commission that investigated the Space 
Shuttle Challenger disaster.  Of course, there 
were a lot of politics!

During the investigation the Air Force General 
Kutyna remarked that every member of the 
commission (including himself) had a weakness.
Feynman initially thought that he personally was 
not seriously threatened, but the General had the 
following tip for the great physicist.

    "Thinking that you're safe is very dangerous!
     Somewhere, there's a weakness you've got to
     find.  You must always check six o'clock."

In an airplane, the six o'clock position is 
directly behind the pilot (twelve o'clock is 
straight ahead).  Most air combat victories 
result from a "sneak attack" from the rear -- 
with the losing pilot completely unaware until 
the last moment.  Does this sound like your 
office?

posted on 1167801240.54 by SiteAdmin

The Ruling Clique

The office -- just like in high school -- is 
usually dominated by a ruling clique.  The 
members of this group support each other; their 
solidarity can be quite remarkable.

At first glance, the employees in the top clique 
may look like the regular rank-and-file.  There 
will always be  few senior staffers, but they are 
not necessarily -- even unlikely -- to be big 
bosses.

Nevertheless, if you run afoul of the ruling 
clique, and you are in big trouble.  These 
individuals are quite likely to be "above the 
law" , with the boss always on their side.  Watch 
out!

posted on 1166935408.43

Join a Fief -- Keep Your Job

There are often different factions at the office. 
If you just focus on your work, and ignore this, 
you can be in big trouble.

If no single faction finds you at all useful, you 
will just be branded as "not a team player".  
Want to guess what happens next?

Unless you are sophisticated enough to maneuver 
between these fiefs, you will just have to join 
one of them -- preferably the strongest that 
would take you.

posted on 1166202687.2

Does That Co-Worker just have an Axe to Grind ...

  ... or is he a REAL axe murderer!

Highly respected criminal psychology expert,
Dr. Robert Hare http://www.hare.org/ describes
that psychopathic individuals are actually quite
common in the workplace.

The office psychopath will probably not actually
kill someone, but nevertheless shares many
characteristics with the criminal variety.

These include the following.

    * Glibness and superficial charm.
    * Deceptive, manipulative behavior.
    * Constant need for excitement.
    * Self-centered and lacking empathy.
    * No moral sense -- other people are just
       tools for pleasure or material gain.

See also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychopathy

Have you ever come across such a person?  How did
you handle the situation?

posted on 1165600115.22 by SiteAdmin

Exit Strategy?

Entrepreneurs sometimes talk about an "exit 
strategy" for their startups.  For example, going 
public is an exit strategy; selling the startup 
to a more established firm is another.

Do employees need exit strategies, too?  This 
would mean planning how you would leave your job 
even *before* you take the offer!  Subsequently, 
you would periodically evaluate the situation 
throughout your tenure, always thinking of the 
exit strategy -- even when things are going great.

Is this kind of planning a necessity in today's 
work world?  Is it maybe too cynical?

posted on 1165353036.82 by SiteAdmin