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Festival of Obvious Ideas #5: Be nice to your workers

Lincoln Archer

by Lincoln Archer

19 Oct 06:00am

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Filed under: Bosses, Employees, Employers, Festival Of Obvious Ideas, Work, Work Life Balance

88 comments

Hear us. Trust us. Reward us.

A friend first, a boss second, entertainer third

That’s the simple plea from white collar Australia in response to a simple question: How would you get your workplace working better?

Over at news.com.au we’ve been running what we somewhat exuberantly called the New Work Project survey. In the few weeks it’s been running, we’ve received 25,000 submissions from all corners of the country and in all walks of life.

We’ve heard from public servants, miners, accountants, teachers and lawyers. We’ve even had an archaeologist, a cartographer, an estimator (although we can’t guess how many), a fabricator (but we assume he’s making it all up), a hardship officer and a pimp (we should introduce him to the hardship officer, because we all recognise that ain’t easy).

There are average workers, high-earners and very high-earners. There are office newbies and industry veterans. You name them, we’ve heard from them.

And what they’re telling us is clear: no-one is talking about game-changing paradigm shifts or blue-skying it or cross-divisional synergies. They’re not even talking about first principles or unique sales propositions or diversified revenue streams.

Instead, there are three rules to follow to create a happy workforce: talk to them, let them work, reward that work. 

Here are a few individual responses to speak for the many:

”listen to staff comments” … “allow more roundtable discussions with all employees” … “encourage people to speak their mind”... ” use logic, not process, to dictate how we operate” … “stop micro-managing” … “make people pay a fee to hold a meeting”... “give me incentive payments” … “let staff be rewarded with extra time off or extra pay” … “have a more creative environment”

That last quote is worth pausing over.  Employees aren’t just thrusting out their hands and demanding more cash as a reward for hard work. Well, not all of them anyway.

Just as important for all, and more important for some, is the idea of a creative dividend to their efforts. Many want to feel involved in the decisions being made, others want room to create the job they want to be doing.

And some want to have fun while they earn a living.  One in three respondents said they didn’t mind thinking about work outside of office hours, while the same proportion said they left work behind as soon as they stepped outside the office. One in 10 said they loved their job, while only one in 10 said they felt like they could not escape it.

So to most of our respondents, work is either a positive part of life or just one small section of it. They don’t need management jargon or the seven secrets to success, they just want to feel part of the process and to enjoy coming to work.

So the best thing bosses can do is simply to listen to them. They’ve earned it.

Most commented

427Australia, you have nothing to fear but fear itself
375There's no one Thomson won't burn to save his skin
313Thomson didn't answer the question everyone is asking
304Animal experiments won't cure me from cancer
262Who murdered the Arts degree?
246A big day for Thomson, who thus far is guilty of nothing...
231Craig Thomson speaks. Meanwhile, in Australia...
231South Australia. It's the middle bottom bit.

88 comments

Show oldest | newest first

    • Mahhrat says:

      05:57am | 19/10/11

      Here’s a few from the APS for you:

      Tell me what you want done, give me the authority I need to get that job done, then piss off and let me do the damn work.  Then (and this is the bit the APS doesn’t do at all well), hold me accountable for the output.

      I had that in a workplace in 2008.  I saved that department hundreds of thousands of dollars, exactly because management simply let me do my job (financial governance). 

      In 2011, I’ve got a great boss but no flexibility because management just won’t leave us alone.  It’s utterly ridiculous.

      The result of micromanagement (of which the APS rules supreme) is that people don’t own their work.  Once you stop caring about it, you end up with all the bad behaviour problems that everyone hears and decries, especially from the private sector.

      The APS needs to be run more like a business, inasmuch as our output is a service, and not profit driven.  Perhaps if we became more “competetive”, we would not need to contract out so many facets of work.

      Oh, one area that differs from this is major public expenditure.  Even if it’s a group of 3 that decide on large expenses, they are decided on without recourse to specialised purchasing teams.  I’m good at purchasing, but I’m no expert - I would love to call in an APS “consultant” who’s job is to gather quotes, help us decide exactly what we need, all that.  The amount of bad contracts and bad work that gets done because medical professionals aren’t purchasing officers is simply bewildering.

      Reply

    • Fran Smith says:

      07:42am | 19/10/11

      What is the APS, MRAt?

    • Mahhrat says:

      08:09am | 19/10/11

      Australian Public Service.  While technically that’s only the Federal service, I’m using it to encompass Federal and State government offices.  I’ve never worked for a council, but I image they’re not much different.

    • Arnold Layne says:

      08:16am | 19/10/11

      @Fran - It’s the Australian Public Service.  The federal level.

    • Ando says:

      12:11pm | 19/10/11

      Spot on. The public sector is strangled by useless meetings none of which help people do there job. Someone from the private sector would have lost all motivation within a year, unless they aspire to become management.

    • Kika says:

      01:30pm | 19/10/11

      Micro management is the WORST thing to expect employees to adhere to. It does nothing but create misery, mistrust and a revolving door for everyone.

    • Markus says:

      01:52pm | 19/10/11

      On the topic of micromanagement, I had a boss who insisted I come along to every single meeting involving our section, despite not actually requiring any technical advice/input from me, and knowing full well I would have zero contribution to the decisions reached.

      It got to the point where I was spending 60% of my days in such meetings.
      I was still expected to stay completely on top of all of my other work too, of course…

    • Aitch B says:

      02:20pm | 19/10/11

      @Markus

      Perhaps even worse when your boss insists upon attending a meeting with clients when he knows absolutely nothing about the project you’re discussing and then proceeds to offer mindless suggestions and comments.

      In that scenario you’d almost be compelled to think that he’s got nothing else to do!

    • acotrel says:

      06:31am | 20/10/11

      Kevin Rudd was a second division officer in the APS.  It is probably the reason he was deposed, and had the heart operation.  - extremely competent and conscientious, workaholic, micromanager, unable to delegate effectively or tell others to get to work without becoming stressed himself.
      Leadership is like a lot of things - easy when you know how.  The first thing is that there must be sufficient information readily available so that your helpers can self-manage.  The second is common goals must be established.  The third is, that when managing, always ask questions which require your workers to be accountable - bald statements might have to be defended.  A rant and rave always comes at high personal cost in terms of stress. Finally more people should learn the discipline of project management - train your people !

    • Tina says:

      06:18am | 19/10/11

      I want my employer not to block every page that contains the word facebook so I can comment on the “dump facebook” piece today. I would have a lot to say about that one.

      “Others want room to create the job they want to be doing.”

      I love those people that are “creating their own jobs”. They got hired for a reason, have a job description and then tell you “Oh no, I have designed my job differently. I dont order stationery anymore.”.

      Reply

    • Super D says:

      06:41am | 19/10/11

      That seems to be a common thing.  The fact is that just about all jobs have boring bits that are time consuming and tedious - such as constantly having to remind junior employees that they are paid to do the boring crappy jobs.

    • Fran Smith says:

      06:47am | 19/10/11

      Let me get this straight, Tina - you’re at work and you’re on the internet for personal reasons? If you’re not doing your job and you’re accepting a pay cheque, that is fraud.

      Reply

    • John W says:

      07:44am | 19/10/11

      @Fran: Life’s not always that black and white. Google and other workplaces call it “creative space” to do your personal thing on company premises with company equipment during the day. Their view is that it makes you more productive for the company in the long run. Many workplaces and roles pay for productivity and KPIs, not mere attendance by the hour. The best work doesn’t always happen strictly between 9 and 5.

    • Tina says:

      07:45am | 19/10/11

      I am at work and I am online for personal reasons (which is in limits permitted by the way). I do my job, dont worry about that. But thanks for caring.

    • Tubesteak says:

      07:58am | 19/10/11

      That’s a bit harsh, Fran.

      Not many jobs out there these days that are endless processing jobs. There are periods where you have little or no work and there are periods where you are very busy.

      As far as I’m concerned (and thankfully my boss agrees) as long as you get things done by the due date or within a reasonable time-frame then it doesn’t matter what you do with the rest of your time. I’m not in a billable hours environment anymore and I don’t have to account for every 6 minutes of my day.

      I have some broad roles and oversight of a few things and I get them done. If I spend a bit of time here and there on the internet then it shouldn’t matter.

    • Steve Perry says:

      08:04am | 19/10/11

      Calm down Fran - Some employers let their staff have these things called ‘breaks’. Some people use them to go and have a smoke, others to go and get a coffee. Some even use that time to jump on the Punch…

    • Fran Smith says:

      08:06am | 19/10/11

      Tina, how is posting to the Punch a necessary part of your job? Get back to work. You’re lucky I’m not your supervisor.

    • Mahhrat says:

      08:15am | 19/10/11

      @Fran, on the off chance it’s any of your business, perhaps Tina is so good at her job that she has spare time, and decides to use it here?

      I’ll let you in on a secret - Tina (like me, I’m guessing) is paid to do a job.  She does that job and gets paid.  Why would we do more, if she doesn’t want whatever reward she might get for doing more?

      If my boss wants me to produce more than the person next to me, who gets paid the same amount but isn’t as good at their job, then they can pay me commensurate with my output.

    • Tina says:

      08:29am | 19/10/11

      No, Fran, you are not my supervisor. That position is already taken by the CRO of one of the largest companies in NZ.

    • Fran Smith says:

      08:29am | 19/10/11

      @ MRat - or, more likely, Tina is the sort of employee who wastes time by surfing the net instead of WORKING. This sort of employee (like all smokers) leaches off their fellow employees by not carrying their fair share of the total workload.  No sympathy here.

    • Ben C says:

      08:33am | 19/10/11

      @ Fran

      Every workplace budgets for less than 100% productivity. It’s a way of spreading work so that people aren’t 100% productive for 4 days of the week and have no work to do on the fifth. If you were our supervisor, you’d be seeing an empty office/factory on Friday because there’s no work to do.

    • Scarlett Street Rocker says:

      08:44am | 19/10/11

      @Fran - Seig heil!
      @Tina - Cool!

    • Babe in the Woods says:

      08:45am | 19/10/11

      @Fran, are you trolling here?  I would imagine that Tina is like many of us.  We have a job to do and are expected to be professional and responsible enough to get it done.  I do that and would imagine people like Tina and Mahhrat etc do too.  How about you take a break and have a cuppa.  Might settle you down there.

    • subotic says:

      09:03am | 19/10/11

      @Fran Smith, WINNING. Give it to her girl!!!

      If only Fran was a prison warden and Tina was an inmate.

      Tarrantino, we may have a movie here….

    • Jem says:

      09:37am | 19/10/11

      @ Fran

      Let me get this straight - you don’t have a job.  You must not have anything productive to do with your time.  This is self evident since you’re here abusing other people.

      What a waste of space, go out and do something called WORKING. instead of wasting time surfing the net.

    • dancan says:

      10:02am | 19/10/11

      Haha Fran.  You must be such a bad manager (if you are one at all), completely process driven rather than outcome driven. 

      “If you’re here for 8 hours you must work all 8 hours! Process, process, process”!!

      I can only imagine how inefficient your office must be.

      On reflection though I wonder is Fran is actually Stan and he’s trolling

    • Tanya says:

      10:35am | 19/10/11

      Fran needs a cup of tea and a litte lie down.

    • egg says:

      03:43pm | 19/10/11

      @fran smith, do you honestly think smokers get special treatment? like we get to waltz out of the office every 2 minutes while you poor non-smokers have to do all the hard work?

      we smoke when we have our breaks. everyone has a break - smokers and non-smokers - and you do what you want with them. i smoke. i don’t see how that’s leaching anything from anyone (apart from life from my own body, but that’s none of your concern).

      also, recent studies suggest that coffee breaks take twice as long as ciggie breaks. so hurl your unjustified anger elsewhere.

    • Michael says:

      04:42pm | 19/10/11

      Hi Fran how’s your day?

      Some people have the use of the internet during work hours to research things, as an act of preventative management as opposed to reactive management, the employer may allow an amount of leeway for personal use of internet whilst working ie checking emails or checking in with a spouse etc which may be via Facebook or Twitter or even old MSN messenger if that’s still around.

      The reason an employer might do this is the knowledge that at some stage people will err and use the ‘net for personal stuff, you don’t want to lose your million dollar baby because of an impractical rule founded in mistrust, but you can swallow losing an hour or so a day if the person is your golden goose so to speak, or one of a gaggle of golden geese.

      Happy geese lay many eggs~ by me as far as i know :p

      Thanks for sharing you views, i enjoyed reading them. smile

    • acotrel says:

      06:48am | 20/10/11

      @Fran
      In some of the factories of our now defunct manufacturing sector, the best quality products were ‘foreigners’.  It depends how you view them.  When they are being made, workers exercise extreme levels of care.  It is a good habit which often carries over into the manufacture of the organisations product

    • old fart says:

      07:42am | 19/10/11

      I work in a very small team for which I am responsible. We use a very specialised data base designed by the staff and built by a programmer to do exactly what we want it to. Its a living document and gets abilities added to it all the time.  Although I am the “manager” I dont manage my staff. They are adults who dont need managing. I am there to facilitate their efforts for which they are recognised. 
      I made it a point to be able to do all their tasks and I am not to proud to do them as required.  we are so small that management above forgets about us or lets us do our thing unhindered.  Whatever it is, it works. I have the lowest staff turnover rate in the building, 2 people in 11 years to promotion and a third to retirement. 
      We are happy, we do what we do well and we are proud of what we do and provide.  Did I mention that we are public servants?

      Reply

    • Jaded says:

      10:34am | 19/10/11

      Can I come work with you? Sounds ideal!

    • scumbag says:

      12:22pm | 19/10/11

      Wonderful old fart, you do realise of course, that your very small team aren’t instantly within level eyesight at first, which most people of average height, say around 170 cm, expect to interact to. The public sector is to be congratulated for having adhered to the Discrimination Act when employing poeple. You have the lowest staff turnover rate. That’s a given. Don’t let management above, (they’ll always be above), forget about you just because you’re small. Keep up the good work. One day…..

    • acotrel says:

      07:32am | 20/10/11

      @old fart
      It seems that sanity prevails in some workplaces !

    • Michael says:

      09:21am | 20/10/11

      Exemplary! smile

    • palone says:

      07:39pm | 20/10/11

      Old Fart, what did you do to make the rest of the team leave. You said that you are responsible for the small team, so I gather you are not easy to work for and the rest left. Why? You can’t leave us hanging like this.
      You threw that “lowest staff turnover” in as a get-out, didn’t you. Crafty old fox.
      We all still luv ya though.

    • Anna C says:

      07:45am | 19/10/11

      Employers should reward initiative more.

      Reply

    • Tell It Like It Is says:

      08:23am | 19/10/11

      How about getting rid of unions and shipping off all the leaders to places like Africa, China, India where they MIGHT actually serve a real purpose instead of self-serving.

      Reply

    • Paul M says:

      12:24pm | 20/10/11

      No need to ship them off. After a few years, Australia would resemble these places closely enough that there’d be no difference.

    • Ricky says:

      08:45am | 19/10/11

      I think the most important aspect in every job is going to work and knowing you wont get bored within 5 minutes of what you are doing. I had numerous jobs that I hated and I have now found a job that I enjoy because it has balance between:
      -Social
      -Work
      -Having a joke with colleagues
      -Private time
      For me having these aspects in a job is very important as I want to go to work, do my job, have a good time with my colleagues and then have enough time to get home, relax and wind down ready to begin the next day. You can’t let a job control your life.

      Reply

    • Fran Smith says:

      08:53am | 19/10/11

      Tina, by your own admission, and by the time stamps of your comments, you’ve been here since at least 07:18 and are still posting as of 09:29, all the while pretending to work. That’s over 2 hours you’ve wasted. Get back to work! Stop wasting your employer’s money. I guarantee you that if you were my direct report, you’d be up on a final WW right now.

      Reply

    • Jem says:

      09:42am | 19/10/11

      Wow, Tina starts work at 7:18am.  That’s dedication.  You dont’ cat ch me at work before my required 8:30am start time.

      Fran, unless your’e stalking Tina, you don’t know her start time.  You don’t know if she is on a day off, on leave or doesn’t start work til midday and finishes at 9pm.

      Why don’t you go find something more productive to do with your time than track other posters’ time stamps and make nasty remarks. 

      Go get a job.

    • Tina says:

      10:03am | 19/10/11

      You seem quite obsessed with me. You dont happen to be the exwife of the guy that I met last weekend and asked for my number and was so sweet that I went for dinner with him yesterday? But I cant picture him ever having been married to such a terrible person…

    • Gomez12 says:

      10:11am | 19/10/11

      Fran,

      Since you don’t have a job (judging by your postings - apparently that’s what we do now) How could you have any direct reports?

      In fact, stop leeching off the taxes of actual workers and go out and get a job instead of pretending you have any idea what you are on about.

      ALL workplaces where employees are sitting at a PC all day long allow “reasonable” use of the company e-mail and internet for personal use - it’s in our contracts. So how about you get some friends to chip in and rent you a clue before mouthing off at someone who in all probablility is working with in the confines of their contract with their employer. - Or you could go get an employer, read the contract, sign it and GET TO DAMN WORK - slacker.

    • Steve Perry says:

      10:16am | 19/10/11

      This is hilarious!!

      I think the funniest part is that Fran seems to think it is any of her business how a complete stranger spends her time…

      Keep up the good work Fran!

    • MadKat of Mebourne says:

      10:23am | 19/10/11

      obviously Fran doesn’t work and needs a hobby -

    • James1 says:

      10:25am | 19/10/11

      “I guarantee you that if you were my direct report, you’d be up on a final WW right now.”

      Unless of course you are too busy stalking people on The Punch to be writing up reports…

    • The righteous one says:

      10:32am | 19/10/11

      isnt there a law against cyberrbullying now?  I would be careful fran it could be construed as harrassment

    • Tubesteak says:

      11:52am | 19/10/11

      Fran is obviously stuck in the dark ages where all jobs are mindless drone repetitive monkey jobs where all you do is fill out the same TPS report every day and “performance” is measured on how may you do every day.

      The world has changed, Fran. Jobs aren’t like that anymore.

      If Tina is getting her work done in an acceptable timeframe then there’s nothing wrong with whatever she does outside of time.

    • Shane says:

      12:48pm | 19/10/11

      wow, get cyber stalky much Fran? get the stick out of your butt already. heard of multi-tasking?

    • acotrel says:

      08:09am | 20/10/11

      @Tina
      ‘the guy that I met last weekend and asked for my number ‘

      Get him out to lunch !

    • subotic says:

      09:07am | 19/10/11

      I’ll keep it short and sweet.

      Family. Religion. Friendship.

      These are the three demons you must slay if you wish to succeed in business.

      Nice people finish LAST in the workplace.

      Reply

    • Wickerman says:

      09:17am | 19/10/11

      I agree with the author, Mahrat & Ricky. Being a team leader myself, my observations over the years, there are three areas that I like to work on:
      1. Workload - the level & type of work. Don’t overload & keep them interested.
      2. Tools - give the team access & power to perform the tasks. Whether it be say a laptop with a wireless modem, dual desktop screens, taxi card etc.
      3. Remuneration - not just money, but recognition, security & confidence.

      Other suggestions:
      1. Stand up for (defend) them or don’t make them scapegoats. The failure of the team is your (as team leader /manager) accountability.
      2. Monthly or fortnightly informal Fridays drinks or pizza go down really well. Gives the team to vent steam.

      Reply

    • Fi says:

      01:09pm | 19/10/11

      Wickerman, I agree with this if you are a team leader or manager.

      It is worth reiterating.

      * Manage your team’s workload. Two-way communication is vital here. Listen to your team.
      * Ensure goals are realistic.
      * Support and defend your team to others. Accept responsibility as TL or Mgr and be accountable. Manage the issues within the team. This is a big one to me.
      * Informal drinks, pizza, morning teas and lunches go a long way, particularly after demanding projects completed or even just a crazy week. A small but well received thank you for your work. A bonus is even better!
      * Tools and training. I expect it and so should my staff. Fight for your staff to get these.
      * Money. Remuneration may not be entirely in your hands but a well written performance review will definitely assist, as well as words in the right ears.

      And on internet usage, provided within company terms, I have no issue with people being on the net. Our team is outcome driven. As long as that is met, I’m cool.

      Flexibility is another big one for me. No clock-watchers. If you’ve got something on, take the time; if you’ve done your job and there’s nothing pressing, take an early mark; need a long lunch - take it. As long as the job is done and the expectations are not unreasonable on both sides.

      I work in the private sector by the way. Our staff turnover is zero in the 4 years I’ve managed the team.

    • mick says:

      09:28am | 19/10/11

      I agree with all of this.  One area which breeds mistrust is always that of fair pay.  When management take huge pay increases whilst at the same time refusing to even give CPI increases to workers there are tensions created which can ruin any workplace.  The recent 70% increase in pay by Qantas CEO Alan Joyce put the last nail in the coffin and this type of hypocrisy needs to be avoided.

      Reply

    • Knemon says:

      10:33am | 19/10/11

      As a self-employed private company director for near on 30 years, a few basic things I believed in were - most importantly was trust, staff were given time off when they needed it without affecting their entitlements, in return, if needed, they would work unpaid overtime to catch up, it was give and take which worked fine. All staff received profit share, which worked as an incentive, Christmas bonuses were also the norm. Basic lunch essentials were supplied free in the lunch room, after hours alcohol was also supplied free (until PC bullshit lawyers advised against it). Senior staff were preferred over juniors, they had a better work ethic, all wages were negotiated and were well above award rates. I highly respected all staff and I believe this was reciprocal, overall retention rate was high.

      The only problem I had in later years was with junior staff and the time they spent during work hours on social network sites like Facebook, I never once blocked it, I just explained that they were being paid to do a job and their job description did not include social networking, so don’t let me catch you using it during normal office working hours, feel free to use it all you want in your lunch break and after hours. Overall it was a happy and friendly working environment which I miss greatly.
      :-(

      Reply

    • LJ Dots says:

      11:44am | 19/10/11

      Sounds like a good work environment you had there Knemon, I like the flexibility and ‘give and take’ attitude,  let me know if you get another start-up company going.

    • Markus says:

      12:09pm | 19/10/11

      That’s the problem from the other side of the coin.

      Trying to offer a flexible work environment will inevitably see at least some employees exploit it, and current IR laws are at such a point where it is almost impossible to fire even the most inept employees without making yourself or your company vulnerable to legal recourse.

    • Direct says:

      10:45am | 19/10/11

      I just want two hours a day where no one is allowed to email me, phone me or interrupt me in any way, so I can actually get some work done. When you’re trying to focus and work on something important, but you’re constantly interrupted by urgent but unimportant matters, you naturally lose focus and tend to spend time doing non-urgent, unimportant stuff, like posting comments on the Punch.

      Reply

    • Posh Bingo says:

      11:03am | 19/10/11

      Be nice to workers ! Sack all workers ! Support The Coalition only!
      Labor Government should hold elections annually and Coalition Governments should hold elections each century only.

      Reply

    • bushy says:

      11:06am | 19/10/11

      I work in the public sector. Have to say the longer I am there the more disappointing it is. Sick and tired of Adminstrators being promoted to team leaders and managers without having to undergo retraining to understand how to be effective in the role

      Reply

    • Tanya says:

      11:22am | 19/10/11

      Work is to fund your ‘real life.’ Without it, the number of good times are limited. What is important, is a job that gives you work/life balance.  I have the best job in the world, I.T Business consulting. It is constant variety and exposure to so many industries and government agencies - new clients, existing clients, creative approaches, travel and the opportunity to learn from some of the best brains in the business. We also have bench time in between projects where we can undertake courses and research and there is quite a relaxed attitude with regard to how that time is spent. Timeframes can be tight around delivery however the flexibility in consulting means you don’t mind putting in the additional hours when required. 

      A lot of dissatisfaction in people’s working lives is the direct result of the mindset with which they approach their work. In team environments you juggle a variety of personalities and I have learned over time that I will not always get my way regardless of whether I’m right or wrong. But I operate on the principle that if I have given my professional opinion and it isn’t accepted, I’ve done my job. There is no reward for getting hung up.

      Reply

    • Wynyard says:

      11:32am | 19/10/11

      You clearly have never fronted a court, having to prove that you have provided a Safe System of Work for your employees to operate by. Legislation dictates this provision, and if you sleep soundly without it…Good luck.

      You need a fallback position when managing to cover the minium standard whatever it may be…Some industries and workplaces need to be run tightly through Standards and Procedures to keep the focus where it needs to be and to reduce risk in its many forms.

      All for the democratic approach but even that is, and should be structured.
      I have never met a person that comes to work, intent on doing a bad job, Understanding the business and its risks is primary. Then providing clear direction and responsibilities is the key to a good start.

      Reply

    • scumbag says:

      12:35pm | 19/10/11

      David Brent, whose shoes have leather soles, a phonetic singular metaphor for his own,  also have steel toe caps. These are for kicking employees up the arse, in case they get too smart, i.e, a threat to his level of competency. It’s curious though, that some of his employees want be just like him.

      Reply

    • Happy as Larry says:

      12:49pm | 19/10/11

      I have just started working for a great company in a great team. They really walk the talk. We are given the option to work one extra hour a day in return for a 9 day fortnight. So I have every second Friday off, on the Friday I work it’s beautiful and quiet as half the staff are away (50% one Friday, 50% the next Friday). No one books meetings on Fridays as half the staff are away so you get so much work done on that day. It’s a clever management team that can see that we are probably more productive for our 9 day fortnight.
      My team is close knit and happy to help each other out - skills are shared and ideas sought.
      We have a gym onsite, yoga classes in the boardroom, incentive programmes (annual bonus) and a variety of smaller ‘on the spot’ rewards which you can give/receive any time.

      Reply

    • Kika says:

      12:54pm | 19/10/11

      3 things - Trust, Communication and Equal pay for Equal work.

      Reply

    • worker on a lunch break says:

      12:56pm | 19/10/11

      they could just try, occasionally to say “thank you” to their employees for something instead of only criticising when somethings wrong. two way street

      Reply

    • Aitch B says:

      01:30pm | 19/10/11

      Absolutely!!

      It costs them nothing and it improves morale no end.

    • Peter says:

      03:41pm | 19/10/11

      That assumes they can tell how things are going before a disaster.

    • 19th Century Industrialist says:

      02:31pm | 19/10/11

      I really can’t see what all the fuss is about.

      Reply

    • subotic says:

      03:00pm | 19/10/11

      @19th Century Industrialist, WINNING!!!

    • Tory Bullshit For PM ! says:

      03:25pm | 19/10/11

      kiss upwards and kick downwards

      Reply

    • marley says:

      06:11pm | 19/10/11

      I see you’ve worked for the APS.

    • CJ says:

      03:51pm | 19/10/11

      Festival of Obvious Ideas #6:
      Re-lead the page with something less dull already.

      Reply

    • Ben says:

      05:41pm | 19/10/11

      ...and pay them fairly! if the company is doing well, that’s not all down to you, so give your workers a share of the spoils in the form of bonuses. it’ll also lead them to actively pursuing ways to help the company do even better, which will pay you back in the long run.

      Reply

    • Markus says:

      08:52pm | 19/10/11

      I don’t agree with that one.
      Unless of course the workers also agree to take pay cuts during losses and lean periods. I don’t see many taking that up.

    • Kika says:

      04:28pm | 20/10/11

      Markus - my company does rewards like shares and cash bonuses. When we don’t do a good year, the ‘pool’ for these sorts of things is smaller. We all accept that. It stinks, but it’s fair. And we do all work harder because it affects our KRA’s and THUS our bonuses. A win for everyone.

    • Ben says:

      05:12pm | 20/10/11

      markus i wasn’t advocating pay increases, only bonuses. naturally when the company is going through tough times those bonuses would be small or non-existant. also there’d have to be some mathematical solution to it not just the bosses opinion, like what’s happening now with qantas posting a $250 billion profit for the quarter but saying it can’t afford pay rises.

      that’s fantastic kika, i wish all companies did that. actually here in japan they do, and guess what the economy is even stronger than australia’s even without any primary industry to speak of; everyone is paid well so everyone has money to spend, which further benefits all companies.

    • ;o) says:

      09:48pm | 19/10/11

      Tina is Frans alter ego LMAO

      Reply

    • Sol says:

      09:53pm | 19/10/11

      When my friends ask me what its like working for Telstra I have a standard response.” Its everything I thought it would be ... but hoped it wouldn’t”.

      The worst managed company in Australia.

      Reply

    • Utopia Boy says:

      10:27pm | 19/10/11

      So that’s what the worker wants is it? Well, let’s look at it from another perspective:
      I hired you. I pay your salary, for which I am taxed. You are too damned lazy to pick it up yourself, so I even put it in the bank for you.
      I pay some of your superannuation.
      I pay insurance to protect myself from you when you negligently injure yourself on premises owned by me.
      If I have to send you away for a trip I pay for your travel, accommodation and meals. Apparently you need extra for meals because you don’t eat at home.
      I give you a minimum of four weeks paid holidays per year, and probably a week worth of public holidays (or overtime if you have to work).
      If you decide to have a baby or get preggers at the work Christmas function (paid for by me), that suddenly becomes my problem and you expect maternity leave, leave for doctors appointments, sick leave, pre natal classes etc etc.
      I give you an indexed salary increase every year even if profits are down.
      I provide induction, OH&S and Career Development Training (that MAY have something to do with your employment).

      Now you want ME to listen to YOU?

      How about this:
      Sit in your f&%king cubicle, get off Facebook and MSN, and do your job. Stop making private phone calls on my time.
      Stop jibbering to Kylie from accounts.
      Stop sucking up to my son (he’s getting none of the business when I retire anyway).
      Stop sending junk emails around the intranet.
      Stop ordering $5 pens when a 5 cent one will do the same job.
      Stop coming to work still pissed to the eyeballs.
      Don’t expect me to believe you are crook the Thursday before the long weekend.
      For Christ’s sake iron your shirt and have a shave before coming to work. Don’t park in my parking space; you are not the Director.
      And you can call me Mr Smith. I have no desire to become familiar with you outside of the work environment, so let’s keep it a bit formal shall we?
      And get a haircut hippy!

      Reply

    • Kipling says:

      11:32am | 20/10/11

      OK, so, I am available for hire and you are gonna love it. Pay me cash in my hand, promptly please at the agreed payment time.
      You don’t have to pay insurance for my negligence, in fact, that is an entirely misleading comment, either you have been mislead and subsequently ripped off or you are being misleading. Workers compensation is to pay for genuine injuries associated with me performing the duties you hired me to do but apparently failed to protect me from the risks. EIther provide a safer environment, or STFU about the insurance costs and cough up.
      If my trip away enhances YOUR business then why would it be expected that I pay for the trip? That is simply stupid… Of course you pay for me to go away for YOUR business grow up. Regarding your “extra meals” comment refer to grow up statment and please follow said direction.
      You are required to provide annual leave and, NEWSFLASH, you are not in isolation in this, it is a fairly standard employment practice. Public holiday overtime is called PENALTY rates, look that up sometime for your own education sake to understand why a PENALTY should apply. Conversely, organises YOUR business to operate within the generally accepted hours so that no penalties need to be applied. That is entirely up to your management skills in planning.
      Curiously enough, I am not sure that I am able to get pregnant at your work Christmas party and also need to shave before work….Of course, are you only objecting to people who “decide to get preggers at your work Christmas function” or people in general who decide it might be practical to start a family?
      Do you seriously object to paying your workers sick leave, that says a lot about you and how you want to run your business really…
      Funny thing that salary increase being indexed. I note you made no comment about the same MINIMUM increase when your profits are booming, presuming you run things well enough to make a profits at some point in time.
      Training would seeminlgy be a good practice to ensure that YOUR staff do the job the way that YOU want them to. If said training does not have anything to do with your business why the hell are you paying for it?
      Of course, given I have a fairly thorough list of things you don’t want me to do in YOUR time, I hope your training regime is pretty thorough so that I am able to get some insight into that which you actually want me to do.
      Please ensure that my tasks required in “your time” are well planned out and costed appropriately.
      Please ensure that my f@%king cubicle is appropriately prepared for me to sit there and get on with my job. Perhaps your admin could do their job and provide my pens and other associated stationary needs.
      Please ensure that my lunch break is, in fact my lunch break. Do not ask me to work during my time, as I work hard during your time.
      If I provide you a Dr certificate for ANY day I have off I will expect you to honour that, regardless of your belief system…
      Please provide me with parking to ensure that none of YOUR time is wasted by me having to find a space and then go and check that I am not time limited. Otherwise, please sign a contract ensuring you will pay my parking fines, then I am all yours…
      Since you hired me for my services, please respect my professionalism in dressing appropriately and applying appropriate levels of hygene as required by the job. Otherwise, why did you give me the job?
      Get a haircut? That is the sort of direction that would encourage me to grow even longer hair. That is none of your business and it is certainly not something you pay for in my salary. If you don’t like long hair, don’t employ people with long hair. Of course, also remove any of the dishonest garbage your business no doubt applies about EEO principles. Clearly they are a lie.
      Now, once you have worked out generous recompense and made the job description clearer (as in what needs to be done) I am more than happy to come work for you and help your business make the profits you obviously deserve.
      As to listening to me. I don’t give a toss if you don’t, however, don’t be surprised if your profits don’t match your expectations. I can work to the rules exactly as you lay them out, provided you pay for the services…

    • Kika says:

      04:36pm | 20/10/11

      Holy Dooley Utopia - how do you expect employees to respect you and their jobs when you treat them like that? They are people. Not monkeys. If you want slaves, go get yourself some. You may end up in jail. But good luck!

    • palone says:

      07:47pm | 20/10/11

      Utopia boy. You are not supposed to employ a worker who doesn’t shave, (that’s horrible), doesn’t iron his shirt, (grub!), and then still gets pregnant at the office xmas party. What a strange business you are in.
      Apparently you have no problems with him/her getting “familiar” with you ‘inside’ of working hours.
      How’s the dole stretching, Utopia Boy?

    • Utopia Boy says:

      02:42pm | 02/11/11

      @ Kipling - thank you for your time in applying for the position. The reason you didn’t get the job is because you seem to think you have rights to everything. I can see you starting as the office boy and thinking you can solve all the business problems we have within a week, and you would probably spend most of the day tethered to the water cooler.

      @Kika - you don’t get the job because you think you are above the requirements of the position. When you work in my organisation you are expected to achieve goals.

      @palone - no job for you because you are just a little too mouthy.

      Seriously folks, get a grip. Understand employment is not a right. You are employed because of your skill set. No other reason.

      Due to the economic downturn, I will be unable to give you any overtime, and am going to terminate all contracts in November and rehire in January. Check the fine print and you will see I am not liable to pay you ridiculous redundancy packages.
      If you’d like to work here again next year, I am offering each of you 75% of your current salary.
      There will be no Show Day holidays, Melbourne Cup parties and certainly no Christmas parties - you can all thank Kipling. In fact, there is to be no social committee at all. I am sick of these things cutting into production time.

      On behalf of the management I’d like to wish you all a Merry Christmas, and a prosperous new year.

    • Steve Perry says:

      10:41am | 20/10/11

      You are damn straight we want you to listen to us. We come in everyday and put up with your heavy handed ‘managerial’ bullsh*t and get treated like second class citizens for what? For you to go off at us for having a bit of a chat? For us to be treated like crap when we are crook?

      You go on (and on and on and on) about how much you have to pay for - if you don’t want to pay for it - get out of business. Suck it up princess, that’s part of running any sort of business.

      Also, if people are coming into work pissed or chucking sickies before long weekends or coming in unshaven and needing a haircut, I would say that is completely your fault. Your employees obviously don’t respect you, and lets face it, by the sounds of it - why the hell would they? You sound like an absolute prick.

      Just remember one thing - you cant run the business on your own. If you could, you wouldn’t have employed anyone. So go ahead and sack all the people that work for you, but good luck on replacing them and saving money…

      Reply

    • chuck says:

      01:55pm | 20/10/11

      Close down all manufacturing and PS departments. Subcontract to S Asia and China, sell of the farm to the highest bidder and live of the interest from all those savings at least until it runs out. Oops - we seem to have done most of that.

      In my experience it was absolutely amazing how poor the people skills were especially at the middle management level which was a convenient buffer for senior management to continue whatever they did in meetings.

      Reply
 
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