Archive for the ‘Independent National Studies’ Category
Survey: Boss Behavior Causes Rampant Worrying
15January 2010
Workplace Expert, Author, Provides Career Tips for 2010 and Beyond
SANTA MONICA (January 13, 2010) — According to a new survey released today by national workplace expert Lynn Taylor, author of Tame Your Terrible Office Tyrant –TOT (John Wiley & Sons), U.S. employees spend 19.2 hours a week (13 hours during the work week and 6.2 hours on the weekend) worrying about “what a boss says or does.”
The national study was conducted by an independent global research firm and commissioned by Taylor’s firm, Lynn Taylor Consulting, which offers workshops on how to humanize the workplace for increased productivity and profitability.
Taylor said, “The study illustrates the tremendous drain that a manager’s words and actions can have on the minds and work product of its most valued asset – people – at a time when companies can least afford the loss. Particularly during this period of high unemployment, bad boss behavior can go into overdrive – distracting employees from the work at hand.”
“Conversely, the survey suggests that greater interpersonal sensitivity can significantly boost morale and help a company thrive,” Taylor said. She advises managers to go the extra mile by showing interest in the team’s well-being. “Employees’ careers are not on hold, even if major corporate initiatives are,” she added. Taylor said that spillover anxiety on weekends of 3.1 hours a day further underscores how critical the boss/employee dynamic truly is.
“Employees should take the initiative in 2010 to build their own human relations skills,” Taylor said. She added, “Tackle issues early on with diplomacy and deploy good ‘parenting skills’ in the office – without patronizing. Use positive and negative reinforcement; provide positive role modeling; humor; and set limits to unreasonable demands with tact, showing the benefits of an alternative compromise.”
The U.S. study was based on telephone interviews conducted with 1,000 respondents 18 years of age or older. For more information, visit www.LynnTaylorConsulting.com and www.TameYourTOT.com or call 1-800-454-0083.
About Lynn Taylor Consulting
Lynn Taylor is the founder of Lynn Taylor Consulting, which advises companies on how to humanize the workplace. A nationally recognized workplace expert, dynamic speaker and acclaimed author, Taylor is the author of the book, Tame Your Terrible Office Tyrant™(TOT); How to Manage Childish Boss Behavior and Thrive in Your Job (John Wiley & Sons, July 2009).
Make 2010 Bad Boss-Free in Your Company
14December 2009
If you run a company or department, or are an HR professional, the thought has probably crossed your mind: how can you boost morale in 2010 after a tumultuous year? I can offer at least one solution. TOT proof your company, and make it safe for success.
Yes…aim to tame the Terrible Office Tyrant (TOT) behavior that lurks in your offices, reducing it at times to a corporate playpen, rife with sandbox politics. Toddler behavior in the boardroom (tantrums, demanding, stubborn and self-centered behavior) costs you. These are some of the 20 traits in my book that many business leaders consider required reading for their managers.
I can also address the topic at greater length in a lively speech for companies and organizations. A preview is available at various sites: LT Speaker clip site, Lynn Taylor Consulting and very soon on YouTube with keywords Lynn Taylor, Author, Speaker, TOTs. You can also contact: 1-800-454-0083.
2010 must be the year of “what’s in it for us,” not “what’s in it for me,” if our economy and businesses are to rebound. P.S. a surprising new sector can help you ratchet down tension with their years of wisdom and corporate savvy. See more on “Gen U”as I call them - Generation Unretired (featured in BusinessWeek) - and read why, at the TameYourTOT.com blog and at another website of Lynn Taylor Consulting’s: www.GenerationUworkforce.com.
Finally, let’s hope that these boss antics are not happening under your nose, but for the sake of levity during the holiday and some helpful awareness, here’s what some some employees reported recently in a national survey, not unlike that shown in an existing, similar YouTube clip!
Bad Boss Behavior Is Dragging Your Company Down
9October 2009
Many leading experts are emphasizing the importance of a psychologically healthy workplace for a company’s success. This may be more difficult to achieve now than it used to be.
National surveys commissioned by my company, Lynn Taylor Consulting, and conducted by an independent global research firm show that bad and childish boss behavior rose 50% in the period from 2004 to 2009.
This kind of behavior can increase stress in the workplace and lead to employees’ distraction, decreased motivation and even long-term health problems, the ultimate result being drop in productivity and profits. Readers’ conversation on my BusinessWeek blog shows it to be a matter of great concern among employees.
This study and other extensive research encouraged me to write a book, Tame Your Terrible Office Tyrant™ (TOT); How to Manage Childish Boss Behavior and Thrive in Your Job (John Wiley & Sons, July 2009). The book offers tips on “parenting” unruly managers who resemble tots in their Terrible Twos. Even more importantly, the book advises CEOs on how to “humanize their workplace.” Senior management has the most power to implement change that would establish an employee-friendly corporate culture with management/employee relationship based on trust, understanding, and mutual respect, creating a better workplace climate and improving overall performance.
Rather then managing an assorted collection of people united just by material interest, CEOs could be leading a tight team united by a common purpose where everyone is motivated to contribute their maximum. TOT-proofing a company would be a major step towards achieving that goal.
Employee “Stress Tests”: Invest Now in Human Capital
12May 2009
The recent banking Stress Tests just revealed that an infusion of $74.6 billion in capital will be necessary for banks to withstand the recession. Shrewd managers might be well advised to follow suit with their employees and conduct a “stress test” of their own.
The goal? To similarly determine how their staff is withstanding the recession, the downsized workforce and the oversized workload. I can’t think of a better way to “invest” – only it’s investing in invaluable human – not banking capital.
Performing a “wellbeing audit” of employees is not a costly, timely or complex proposition. By proactively checking in with your team, keeping an “open door” policy, being a good listener, and letting the team know that it’s okay to make mistakes, you’re off to a very good start. A humanized workplace versus a sanitized workplace is a lot more enjoyable for everyone.
Recently, in the Society for Human Resource Management’s publication, SHRM Online, we explained why it makes good business sense to reach out to your team, especially during difficult times. The alternative is fear and mistrust – an environment that encourages what I call Terrible Office Tyrants™ (TOTs).
From a future recruiting standpoint, when we’re in recovery mode, every resume will become a valued commodity. Employees (and customers) have long memories, and in every industry there are key players that somehow make the field very small: good to remember if you’re in a recruiting capacity.
Imagine a workplace that becomes so “efficient” and de-humanized that you walk past the conference room and witness an apparition of robotic staff winding up with: “LOL”, “Well, IMHO…”, “K”. You walk down the hall, and a colleague apologetically bumps into you, gasping, “OMG!” (P.S. Did you read that as letters or three words?) Let’s hope for a more humanistic style of management before this happens!
National studies commissioned by Lynn Taylor Consulting suggest that the recession has created a lot of pent up tension from overworked staff – which will hopefully ratchet down soon. When the rebound occurs, employees will be sure to seek those environments that invest the most in collaboration and human capital. Will that be yours?
