Are Employees Twittering Away Productivity?

Fast Company offers answers to executives' tough questions about microsharing in the enterprise: "As the enterprise microsharing market grows all in, I hear from skeptical leaders befuddled by this trend, wanting to be reassured their people aren't simply wasting time. Here are specific questions I've received and how I respond to each..."

The author goes on to offer Q&A on these three questions:

• How can all of this yammering be good for business and my bottom line?
• Will these super short messages that some people write so frequently open us up to litigation?
• Is social software going to unravel organizational systems?

Read the full article here. In the meantime, I'm going to go link to this blog entry on our twitter feed ;-P

Photo credit: wonderferret

10 ways to survive office politics

TechRepublic author, Calvin Sun, writes: "Office politics will never go away. It’s a fact of company life. However, destructive office politics can demoralize an organization, hamper productivity, and increase turnover. Here are some tips, applicable for both staff and management, on dealing with office politics..."

The article then goes on to list ten suggestions. Here's a summary:

1. Live at peace with others
2. Don’t talk out of school
3. Be helpful
4. Stay away from gossip
5. Stay out of those talk-down-the-boss sessions
6. Be a straight arrow
7. Address the “politics” issue openly when appropriate
8. Document things
9. Set incentives to foster teamwork
10. Set an example for your staff

Read the list in full detail...

Working together: Teambuilding seminars gain popularity

Birmingham Business Journal: "Unique seminars are popping up around the area to unite employees. Most managers would equate the thought of their staff banging on drums in a circle with other inappropriate office behaviors, such as excessive e-mail usage or gabbing with unproductive co-workers who just won’t leave your desk.

But one local “teambuilder” sees things a little differently. He’s even taking drumming to another level by using its rhythm to bring coworkers together..."

An interesting angle on team building activities. What do you think? Are these promising alternatives, or just 'same seminar, different day'?

Trouble at the Office?

Business Week launches special "Business @ Work" report. This is a insightful collection of articles covering topics such as:

• Toxic Bosses: How to Live with the S.O.B.
• Rigid Bureaucracy: Breaking Out of the Box
• Count Results, Not Hours
• Staying Creative: Success on a Shoestring
• Are You Being a Jerk? Again?
• And other great topics
  

Coworkers.com Announces Improved Review Management Features

Coworkers.com has improved its review management capabilities by allowing users to more easily dispute and exclude unwanted reviews.



“One of the strengths of our review platform is that it allows for the creation of detailed, and optionally anonymous, reviews. While this offers our users the ability to give and receive unbiased feedback, it is also open to occasional misuse. Seeking to better address this, and in listening to feedback from our users, we have simplified the process for excluding such unwanted reviews from a users profile.” explains CEO Jonathan Clay. “Should a user receive a review that does not seem legitimate – for example an anonymous review that seems like ‘spam’, they can simply login and “dispute” the review with a single click. After the user enters a reason (for example, ‘erroneous’ or ‘excessive’), the review will be excluded from their profile, and its rating will no longer count toward their aggregate score. In addition, a user can report a disputed review to Coworkers.com if it appears to violate our TOS.”

Clay goes on to say “since our ‘soft launch’ (beta release) last year, we have been listening closely to our early adopters, as well as knowledgeable business advisors, trying to find the right balance between information freedom and protection against derogatory information in the delicate area of work reputation management. We believe that we now have a solution that is fair and effective for all parties concerned. By restricting disputed reviews to premium (paying) members, we are acknowledging the fact that abuse can occur and minimizing its impact, without sacrificing the principle that honest information about people’s work histories should be accessible.” Professional reviews are just one of the many workplace performance tools offered at Coworkers.com. Review a colleague, or request feedback today.

How Well Does Your IT Shop Welcome New Hires? Ask Them

cio.com: "Want to find out what new employees think of your IT department? Just ask them, says Direct Energy CIO Kumud Kalia... This kind of information has a short shelf life; employees forget their early experiences once they're settled. New employees obviously won't want to be too harsh, "but it is possible to get at the truth without overt criticism of coworkers [or] the company..."

Ongoing, unbiased, requested feedback - now that's something we certainly 'get'.

Inc.com: "Are You a Bad Boss?"

From inc.com: "Seven signs that your employees detest you. (By you, of course, we mean some other boss.)"



"There's a reason Dilbert, The Office, and their ilk are so popular. Satire gets old fast, but the appeal of realism endures. And the real world, sadly, is full of lousy bosses. Someone ought to do a study on where these louts come from. Were they abused by their own bosses? Did they toss overboard the ballast of human kindness to hasten the ascent of their career balloons? Or is this an example of absolute power corrupting absolutely? Such research might also demonstrate how ubiquitous miserable managers are. The proliferation of boss-bashing screeds with titles like When You Work for a Bully, Nasty Bosses, and How To Work for an Idiot suggests a plague..."

The article outlines "seven signs that you are a bad boss". Here's our favorite excerpt:

"Sign # 4: Your 360-degree evaluations come back short and full of generically positive comments, with one very mild criticism ("Sometimes she works too damn hard for her own good") thrown in for credibility's sake..."

This is exactly why Coworkers.com Reviews are a more effective solution to providing and receiving unbiased feedback!

Holy $#%&! Researchers Say It's Good to Swear at Work!

A new study finds that profanity in the workplace can actually help boost office morale.

"Swearing can help develop and maintain solidarity among workers, as well as relieve stress, according to the study conducted by researchers at the University of East Anglia, based in Norwich, England."

Hmmm, well it seems to work for Gordon Ramsay, but we'll guess it's still a context sensitive issue.

7 Tips for Resolving Conflicts Quickly and Peacefully

"Everyone has to deal with difficult people, whether they are argumentative, abusive, stubborn, or combative. The question is, how can you assert your own rights without creating an unnecessary incident?

In most cases, angry people are screaming to be heard. They want to be valued, loved, and listened to. They want to feel important but aren’t able to express themselves constructively. With the right attitude, it’s possible to get past these insecurities and reach an understanding. These 7 strategies will help you setting disputes quickly and peacefully for the benefit of everyone involved..."

See the list at PickTheBrain.com

CareerBuilder.com Survey Reveals How Many Workers Commit Office Taboos

So where do you fall, or might you care to note something interesting about your coworkers?...

via creativepro.com: "Ever wonder why you can't seem to get anything done in the office? It may be because your co-workers are preoccupied with something other than work. 'Workplace Taboos' is a new CareerBuilder.com survey, conducted by Harris Interactive of more than 5,700 workers. The most common workplace taboos that workers admitted to taking part in include:

• Falling asleep at work (45 percent)
• Kissing a co-worker (39 percent)
• Consuming alcoholic beverages while on the job (21 percent)
• Stealing from the office (22 percent)
• Spreading a rumor about a co-worker (22 percent)
• Snooping after hours (18 percent)
• Lying about an academic background (4 percent)
• Taking credit for someone else's work (2 percent)"

Suggested Reading: The No A#*hole Rule

The No A#*hole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn't, by Robert I. Sutton.
Based on our last blog entry, I'm sensing a theme here. This will be last A-bomb in a while, we promise.

Whether you are a worker trying to improve your skills at navigating the social intricacies of the workplace, or a higher-level manager trying to keep an eye out for trouble makers, this book may be of interest.

From the publisher: "Sutton then uses in-depth research and analysis to show how managers can eliminate mean-spirited and unproductive behavior (while positively channeling some of the virtues of a#*holes) to generate an a#*hole free—and newly productive—workplace. Enlightening case studies include an analysis of how Google's "don't be evil" maxim helped launch the company to unprecedented early growth, how JetBlue and Southwest Airlines "fire" passengers who demean their employees, and how a "belligerent" e-mail from Cerner CEO Neal Patterson made his company’s stock plunge 22% in three days (and how his graceful apology helped the stock bounce back)..."

Managing Generational Differences in the Workplace

fastcompany.com: "Different generations exude various qualities and have differing needs in the work place. Get an insider's tips on how to manage diverse teams by recognizing three fundamental needs that are common across employees of all generations...

I think that, underneath the dazzling differences, three perennial commonalities remain: the desire for fairness, the need to be stretched, and a yearning for community..."

This article attempts to specify the primary qualities of a universally satisfying workplace. The "three key ingredients" outlined in the article - fairness, stretch, and community - seem like pretty good buckets to lump things into. However it would be nice to see more elaboration on issues of: blending of personalities, flexible work schedules, and team communication.