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Networking at Work
Career success depends on both results and relationships. Our free coaching tips can help you communicate with colleagues, resolve work conflicts, and build stronger teams.
NETWORKING AT WORK TOPICS
Learn how to build, evaluate and improve your network.
Success at work depends on both results and relationships. The seven people listed below can increase your success or make your life easier, so developing and maintaining positive relationships with them is a good idea.
Here’s a cross-cultural joke: An American was visiting a cemetery one day when he noticed an Asian gentleman putting a bowl of fruit on a grave. “When do you think your friend will be eating that fruit?” he asked. “The same time that yours will be smelling those flowers,” the other man replied.
This story makes a clear point about the blindness of cultural biases. The way we’ve always done things makes sense to us, but not necessarily to others. And the habits, words, and gestures of ‘those other people’ may seem confusing or odd to us. In an increasingly cross-cultural workplace, many misunderstandings can arise from cultural differences in communication. Some common areas of difference are listed below.
More and more people are working with colleagues that they never see. In a recent study of U.S companies having more than 5000 employees, Brandman University surveyed 135 key managers about their use of virtual teams (http://www.brandman.edu/research/), finding that 40% of the companies already use them extensively and 56% expect their use to increase.
Instead of communicating face-to-face, these widely distributed employees are collaborating computer-to-computer, creating some predictable challenges. The following tips for making virtual teams work include suggestions from Susan Gerke, adjunct professor at Brandman and author of “Working Remotely”.
The advice for employees is followed by suggestions for their managers.
The cultural differences described below are often observed in organizations. Since these are stereotyped descriptions, many organizations will exhibit characteristics of more than one type.
Your exposure to higher level managers is usually limited, so you need to make a good impression when you have the opportunity. After all, the managers above your boss can affect your pay, promotions, assignments, and even your job security. Whether they are in business, government, or the non-profit sector, all executives appreciate certain things. Here are a few ways to make the most of your encounters with the higher-ups.
Secrets to Winning at Office Politics
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