All those unwritten rules of the office also guide policy
Linda Noeth
WOMEN AT WORK
Linda Noeth
Typically, new employees are treated to the "fire hose" approach of information delivery during new-hire orientation. Company history, organization charts, benefits, facilities questions and work schedules are just some of the topics covered within the first few hours of employment. As critical as this type of information is, some of the most important details about a new job won't be found in any PowerPoint presentation or employee manual.
That information involves understanding an organization's office politics. As nationally known author and speaker Donna Cardillo describes it, "office politics refers to the many unwritten rules of the workplace that involve getting along with others, getting noticed and appreciated, and following the protocol of 'how it's done here.'" While many people will deny that they play politics in the workplace, they may still realize how critical it is to at least be politically savvy when it comes to the accepted behavior in a company.
There are, of course, the obvious norms that new employees need to observe such as adhering to the chain of command and the decision-making process; using the correct communication channels, both formal and informal; understanding the expectations for employees' participation in outside professional activities, as well as work-sponsored social events. Yet, there are many more subtle customs in a workplace.
I remember my surprise when I realized that the birthday celebrations at my new company involved more than just someone bringing in a cake. They meant everyone on the birthday person's team brought something. I soon learned that this exuberance was just the tip of the facility's "food paradigm," a tradition that underlay fundamental unwritten rules critical to the success of the business.
For example, not only did we celebrate birthdays frequently, we also celebrated teamwork and goal accomplishment. I learned that managers and employees were encouraged to recognize not only exceptional performance but steady dependable performance, and reward it appropriately. Whether it was a formal monetary award, a pat on the back or a giant cookie, there was an expectation that good work would be appreciated.
The generosity of the birthday celebrations carried over to the extraordinary amount of charitable giving and volunteerism the employees at my new company donated. Again, there were no formal guidelines. No one said you must give, but there was an intangible attitude that said we would reach out and help others, not just around the holidays, but year-round.
While observing the management in my new organization, I recognized that the upbeat feeling of our unit could, in some part, be attributed to the fact that most of our supervisors and managers were able to relax and enjoy our reasons to celebrate as well. Not only were they approachable, but I found they were comfortable enough in their roles to be good sports. They dressed up for Halloween, they washed employees' cars to raise money for the holiday party, and they allowed themselves to be spoofed during the annual kick-off meetings. Again, there were no formal procedures to follow for this type of management behavior, but I knew it was part of the group's paradigm and it had a huge impact on the work environment.
Office politics, company paradigms, unwritten rules — it really doesn't matter what they're called; what does matter is that employees pay attention to these practices and learn to use them successfully.
Linda Noeth is training and development manager for Unisys inside sales and marketing.
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This column is written by members of the Rochester Women's Network, whose focus is to help women connect, grow and succeed. For more information, go to www.rwn.org.
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