Up & Down - Trending Morale

So at any given time in a company you can take a snapshot of morale. It can be ugly, meh, okay, good or great.



The trick is to realize that you need to be in an environment where the average is good to great.

There will always be the people who are cranky. Apparently, for them their fuel tanks are running on fumes. And to be fair, there will always be the super perky people who you just want to strangle for being to cheerful.

But sometimes, you can't help an environment that has trended to a poor morale due to the company circumstances. Layoffs, off-shoring, closures.

So, what can you do?

Work to stay out of the drama. Keep your own morale at an even keel. Stay as positive as you can. I know that these are difficult times. As an individual, I can control my reaction to adverse conditions.

I choose to trend upwards in my morale. I choose to be positive in the face of adversity.

Tools of the Trade

We all have tools by which we do our jobs. Tools we love and tools that we hate. Admin Gal has a particular tool that she LOATHES with a vengeful passion.

Instant Messaging - the bane of corporate America!

Instant Messaging, by itself, is a benign program. Used to say 'Hi!', send short, fast snippets of information back and forth. Pass time with.

In the corporate environment, it has become the tool of the DEVIL! DEVIL I say! There is no nicety in Instant Messaging. No 'Hey do you have a minute?'. Worse, people write tomes in it. Send an email already!

The box just rudely pops up on top of whatever you are doing and demands your attention. Your status might be 'Busy', frankly few people actually pay attention to that. There are days when Admin Gal has 17 different conversations going at once. All relevant to her job.

Her boss insists that she stays logged in, he's allowed to make that request. Everyone else, needs to be very polite. The minute Admin Gal figures out how, she's going to develop an IM defense system that will destroy annoying people that are too rude and lazy to pick up the telephone.

Just because my status shows I'm 'Available', doesn't mean I'm available to you.

Never Assume

This is a delicate topic, but Admin Gal feel that it is necessary to address. When a floor has a single-room restroom that is convenient to the population and a larger multi-stall facility in an inconvenient location, it really is not appropriate to assume that it will be 'convenient' at your arrival!

If the floor people work on is busy and at capacity and the restroom facilities are limited, being polite has never made an ass out of anyone.

There is nothing more frighting when engaged in the restroom to have the door all but beaten down by a person who is not paying attention to niceties. Running into the door at full speed like a herd of rampaging elephants, does NOTHING for the expediency of any processes. For all rampager knows, the lock might give and all involved will be in for a rude surprise.

Admin Gal admonishes all to use some restraint when heading into rooms that might be occupied.

Printer Responsibility!

As Admin Gal passes the only color copier/printer on her floor, she is APPALLED at the lack of discretion used by her fellow employees.  There are print jobs going to the printer that should be done in black and white, church bulletins, pictures of jewelry lusted after, house listings, copies of pictures of peoples children, etc - there are some things I don't want to know about you.  All of this during working hours.  None of this should be occurring at all.

When a resource is limited, people should keep in mind that it is just that - LIMITED!  It shouldn't be burdened by personal jobs, thereby inhibiting others from getting actual work done.

Not to mention the cost of making color copies or print to a color printer.  Even though this is not coming out of the offenders actual pocket, SOMEBODY is paying for it.

So Admin Gal admonishes people to think twice before you print to a color printer.  Is it necessary?  Will it bog down some one else's job?  Think of someone else besides them self.

BTW, effective immediately Admin Gal will start recycling all non-job related print jobs she sees.  AND a code that only she know will go on the printer, so you will now have to come to her for your print jobs.  Try explaining little Joey's cute picture now!

Warning Signs

There are all sorts of signs – signs of the times, signs of impending doom, signs that explain things, signs of annoyance, signs that label – well you get the picture.

More often than not, people ignore the signs before them.  When a co-worker hauls off and punches another co-worker, everyone around them are perplexed at the ‘sudden’ turn of events.  Never mind, the slugger has been having on-going disputes with the sluggee, the sluggee might have also been exacerbating the situation, who knows.  Very few people had been paying attention to the signs.

As an admin, the sign we post for the general populace tend to be more of the literal variety.  We post signs regarding events, process, possible dangers, things that would otherwise negatively impact the general employee populace if ignored.

So, when an employee takes it upon themselves to ignore clearly posted signage about the broken door handle (on both sides of the door).  Placing the broken handle on the admins desk with the phrase ‘this is broken, you should get it fixed’… Or better yet, the puzzle look on their face when they use the the broken door, ignoring all signage because it can’t possibly apply to them.

Is it any wonder the admin walks away laughing hysterically?

Not In Your Job Description?

Okay people.  Didn't your mothers teach you anything?  When you take the last of anything, DO NOT LEAVE THE CARCASS MOLDERING FOR OTHERS TO DISPOSE OF!
Taking the last of anything and leaving the empty container is rude.  When asked the perpetrators are asked 'Why did you leave this garbage in the supply cabinet when there is a trash can next to it?' And their reply is 'It's not my job?'
SERIOUSLY!?!?!?!?!?!  What planet where they raised on?
It's not my job to play nurse maid to a bunch of supposed adults who should be able to pick up after themselves.  A word to the wise, it is EVERYBODY's job to contribute to a healthy environment.  If that means picking up after yourselves, so be it!
Lack of responsibility is a pet peeve of mine in the supply cabinet.  I expect a certain amount of maturity to be exhibited.  You take the last thing, you need to do the following:

1. Tell the person who maintains the supplies. (Yes, folks, that is ME!)
2. Throw away the empty containers. (This won't kill you, demote you, or demean you.)
3. Do not expect 1 & 2 to be done by others!

While this is not a difficult concept on paper, the actual application and implementation is apparently beyond the capabilities of mature adults who hold down jobs where multi-million dollar decisions are being made.
Or it could be I'm dealing with idiot savants.

Volunteerism

Admin Gal recently got to 'volunteer' at an event that her corporation was sponsoring.  On a whole, the time was rewarding and fun, aside from the heat and 'glow' that everyone was wearing.
All in all, Admin Gal fully supports corporate events that helps the community and the social causes that the company lives in.  The question arises, is there a line that can be crossed between social awareness volunteerism and brand promotion?  And wherein does that line be come work and not voluntering?
Here are the main points that crossed my mind as I thought about this issue:

1. While most volunteer events and experiences involve work, should the work required really be so closely tied to your actual job responsibility that you feel are working for free?  And should you be?
2. If your company is organizing the event, encourages 'Volunteers' to man every conceivable booth, gate, and other event staffing need, shouldn't they be paying employees for the time instead of taking advantage of a 'service opportunity'?
3. The guise of 'volunteerism' should not be code for promote, promote, promote the company while giving it a glaze of social relevance.

Admin Gal is aware that most corporations have parts of their companies that are devoted to the concept of 'doing good for the community'.  But at some point, what the employee does during this time really does have to benefit the community, not the corporate coffers.