Jacqueline McClure, Genesis Background Screening Services
Even if your company has a great organizational chart full of talent, a well thought out workflow matrix and policies that are supposedly set in stone – there will always be some office politics going on.
In today’s competitive workplace, most people are strategizing on how to gain some advantage, be noticed, promoted and enhance their chance of success within the company and on through to their next employment destination.
You say you aren’t a game player? Think you can avoid office politics? Consider it a negative practice? Think again. There are a lot of positive opportunities to polish your brand, promote your team and even help your favorite causes. And you can do it with class, not sneaky tactics or sabotage.
So, how can you approach office politics in a positive way? Accept that it has probably always existed and always will. As long as you are working with human beings with their individual personalities, agendas, and competitive spirit, you will have conflicting goals. Add in the limited resources of today’s businesses and you can see that the workplace can be a minefield of challenges and conflict.
Remember, you can only control your own behavior. Above all, keep your integrity. Avoid gossip and poor judgment and don’t get caught up in the rumor mill. Stay confident and assertive, but don’t become aggressive or argumentative. Accept criticism as a learning tool and don’t take it as a personal attack.
Use your network to help you build visibility for yourself and your team. By making others look good, you come across looking pretty good too! Start building relationships with a variety of people in the organization. There are many people that may not be at the top of the organizational chart that still have great influence within the company. Finding out who is respected, who mentors and who is the intellect behind the organization will help you decide how you want to start building your relationships.
Okay, there is the negative part – figuring out about the cliques, people who don’t get along, manipulative personalities and how they affect the organization. Unpleasant to observe, but now you know what to avoid and can be ready to counteract it. These are the people that you won’t want to confide in or align yourself with. The most you can hope to do is avoid any negative behaviors that affect you or your team. The whole idea is to have such a good reputation that negative comments or underhanded tactics will not affect you.
Genesis Background Screening recommends checking backgrounds of everyone you hire. Partnering with a knowledgeable professional CRA is the best way to be sure your reports are interpreted correctly and that you are compliant with current regulations. Not only can the right partner serve your background screening needs, they can help you implement Best Practices for your Human Resource department – all at an affordable cost. For more information, please contact Genesis Background Screening Services at 866-944-0041 ext 101, email getstarted@gbsspro.com or visit www.genesisbackgroundscreening.com
Genesis Background Screening is not a law firm and provides our blogs for informational purposes only. These blogs should not be considered as a substitute for experienced legal advice. Any laws or regulations mentioned in our blogs need to be researched by your company and any questions you have need to be answered by your legal counsel to be sure your organization is within the law and compliant with regulations.
