I’m writing about this again. Because I strongly believe in it; because I’m seeing it happen more often than it ever happened before. Or maybe I’m just more observant & this time I am not going to blame social media alone.
It is we – who are both the source and the solution providers. I’ve witnessed people be rather unforgiving and doing their part in spreading negativity. When unsatisfied with a person or unhappy with an action, there is a chance people talk about it to everyone except the person they have an issue with. Excuses like ‘That is how the person is’, ‘I don’t think things will change’ and ‘It’s too much effort,’ come up as excuses for doing so.
If an employee is unhappy with their co-worker; they go and talk about it to their peers, their managers, their HR, everyone except the person they are complaining against. All in hope that someone else will solve the problem for them. Often, all they really want is to crib more than find a solution. Sometimes the one blamed never hear about it. So how does he fix it? I don’t know. I don’t know how someone fixes a problem they don’t know about.
I loved the bit in ‘Work Rules’ where Laszlo Bock talks about the first time he complained about someone on an email and his manager promptly copied that person, forcing a conversation and thus quick resolution of the problem. Transparency does that.
I remember a few years ago the big thing in HR was creating a more humane workplace. I didn’t realize the importance then but I do now. I do hope this post pushes you to look closely, maybe come up with innovative ways on how to make your workplace more positive by encouraging conversations that help solve problems vs letting them brew.
The HR Business Partner Story 