Weathering the corporate storm
at work."
1. Show Respect And Tolerance
There are two possible slides to this – keep mum or start a fight. Needless to say, both are undesirable. By being tolerant and showing respect, one can earn points even if one is disliked. You will be reciprocated appropriately. Who knows, maybe your co-worker may even bat for you in front of the boss. Don't escalate a situation – if you think someone is not being nice to you, go talk to them directly, start a conversation, try to find out the clues behind their not being nice to you, try to settle the differences amicably. If that's not working then you can up the ante by going to the boss or taking help from other colleagues.
Indeed, politics is everywhere. When managers have to fight for limited resources and use influence to optimise resource usage and get the job done in time, politics is of paramount importance.
Employees may collude with each other to eliminate any threat from other parties. An influential colleague may orchestrate a performance that potentially costs someone their job. You may get stabbed in the back when you're least expecting it. The alpha male or female who now exists in almost every office will call the shots unperturbed by the consequences of their decisions. In such cases the dark side of office politics comes to the fore. Such practices will occur now and then, but they should not serve as a basis to judge office politics.
To be on the safe side, as well as to be a stellar player, keep the following tips in mind.
Ehsan Chowdhury, Assistant Vice President at an international bank, believes it is important to know the people who can help one navigate through the avenues of corporate life. He says- "The most important thing is to get to know the right persons who can help you get things moving." He also adds, "Another thing is to maintain good rapport with your seniors."
3. Don't Let Disagreements Get Personal
Follow up with a word of praise or apology following any disagreement. This is obviously better than saying nothing or starting a bitter quarrel that could signal the complete end of your work relationship.
4. Make Sure The Boss Knows You Are Adding Value
Mr. Saajid, a product specialist at a renowned multinational telecom operator, suggests you bat for yourself. He says "Try to highlight the good things one has done, through numbers like key performance indicators (KPI)." It's hard to argue against that if you don't communicate your achievements or your team's to the senior management, chances are really low that they will get to know about those achievements. In times of cost cutting, the mistake may come back to haunt you as you may get fired even when you did something worthy. But then again, keep a check on how frequently you flaunt your achievements.
5. Beware Of Vital Cues
Is your team unhappy with you? Is your boss unhappy with you? Are other departments objecting to what you are doing? What are your co-workers thinking? It is important to get wind of the answers to such questions, they will tell you a lot about the current status quo of the office as well as the existing perception regarding you.
6. Project Yourself As A Problem Solver
The boss is likely to be impressed. He or she may as well recommend you for that promotion or send you to represent your department at seminars or conferences.
Office politics is, therefore, a double-edged sword, which if used wisely can help you win the so-called rat race in the professional world. What we need is a fresh dose of confidence and that has to come from the upper management of the companies. They need to instill confidence in their employees, that the bogeymen of the corporate world will not be able to thrive through the means of dirty play, nepotism or favoritism. Although, companies talk of dynamic cultures in the ads, it's time for them to iron out the unscrupulous employees who give office politics a bad name.
Comments