Jerks in the Workplace
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The latest McKinsey Quarterly (a journal of strategy and management published by McKinsey & Company) has an excerpt titled Building the Civilized Workplace, from a book by Stanford Professor Robert Sutton.
Jerks and bullies in the workplace are a widespread problem. All too often, those exhibiting the behavior do so because they feel secure in their seniority or fee-earning credentials. (Which is not to say that high-performers are always jerks. Usually, quite the opposite is the case. Not tolerating poor performance, for instance, is not the same as being a jerk.) Research shows that jerks and bullies not only hinder recruiting and retention but also raise levels of client churn and damage reputations.
Firms that harbor jerks may also suffer from reduced levels of creativity and innovation, as well as impaired or dysfunctional cooperation, within and outside the organization. That is no small matter in an increasingly networked world.
Continue ReadingDream Teams or Dysfunctional Nightmares
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A new year beckons! What do you plan to do in your firm, in 2007?
Are you contemplating going out into the market, to hire brilliant individuals away from your competitors, to let the magic of Dream Teams loose in your firm? If so, be certain that the magic that is released is not black magic! You may first want to read a piece by Geoffrey Colvin titled When Dream Teams Fail that was published in Fortune recently.
Dream Teams are a beguiling idea. Assemble a team made up of the very best brains and success will be assured, right.......? All too often: No, not really.
Closed Door Policies .....
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Imagine giving a group of bright, talented twenty-something professionals in your firm the following test:
Question 1: Which statement most accurately represents you:
A. I am determined to grow my capabilities and skills as a professional and value mentoring and nurturing from senior members of my firm very highly.
B. I aim to grow as a professional and can tolerate an environment where I have to do so on my own, but if an opportunity for a more professionally nurturing environment presents itself, I’ll take it.
C. I am quite happy not to receive mentoring or nurturing input from experienced, senior professionals in my firm
Logic Not Always Best For Real-World Decisions
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Real-world decisions are not always made through logical steps, and often they shouldn't be. That's the startling conclusion reached by renowned strategist Henry Mintzberg, author of the landmark book The Rise and Fall of Strategic Planning and Frances Westley in an article in the Spring 2006 MIT Sloan Management Review, titled Decision Making - It's not what you think.
Continue ReadingThe Dangers of MultiTasking
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Anastasia Goodstein's blog Ypulse, which provides "daily news & commentary about Generation Y for media and marketing professionals," has a posting called The Madness of Generation M, that references a Time Magazine cover story called The MultiTasking Generation. It makes important reading for anyone trying to understand the generation of professionals entering / poised to enter our firms; how they will view their work; and in this case, possible impacts on quality.
A key characteristic of Gen Ms (aka Millennials / Gen Ys) is an extreme ability to multitask. Or so we think. The article suggests that there is actually no such thing, because the brain doesn't work that way. When "multitasking," the brain actually focuses superficially on different things in sequence, back and forth, rather than simultaneously doing several things well. This has critical implications, especially in precision driven professions like law and accounting, where deep thought and accurate conclusions are paramount.
Continue ReadingThe Entitlement Generation
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Graphic from Nicholson Cartoons
I mentioned in my previous post that Graeme Codrington is a guru of some stature when it comes to matters of intergenerational issues in the workplace. Here is a post on his blog TomorrowToday.biz, about those on the cusp between Generation X and Millennials, now apparently nicknamed the Entitlement Generation.
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