"Harmony in the Workplace"
The secret of all victory lies in the organisation of the non-obvious.
~Marcus Aurelius
Update:
Following the success of our first round of Complimentary Breakfast Workshops, we were overwhelmed by the response to our "Harmony in the Workplace" series of Complimentary Breakfast Workshops (see below in the paper). They were not only well-received, but also over-subscribed!
We are scheduling a further series of workshops later this year in most Australian capitals, and New Zealand. Check back later for dates (October and November are planned), or contact us here for a personal invitation.
We are scheduling a further series of workshops later this year in most Australian capitals, and New Zealand. Check back later for dates (October and November are planned), or contact us here for a personal invitation.
When I first started writing this short paper, my working title was "Teams, Team Members and Inter-Team Relationships". It didn't take me long to realise that this lacked a certain "zing" (I'm not slow!) So I started hunting for other ways to describe what I'm talking about. As you'll see if you read on, my aim is to describe the importance of having:
Hunting through the thesaurus for some words that better describe the focus of this piece, I stumbled on "harmony"."Harmony in the Workplace" sounds to me exactly what it is we're all seeking. But I'm not talking "harmony", in the usual sense (that everyone in the workplace likes, and works amicably with and beside, each other). Rather, "harmony", in the musical sense (where each individual and group plays their own particular musical strain, which, when blended with the sounds made by every other individual and group, yields an outcome much more profound, exciting and satisfying, than any part taken on its own). Think Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture", maybe Simon and Garfunkel's "Scarborough Fair", or perhaps Guy Sebastian's "Like a Drum" (it's okay, you can add your own musical choice here, but hopefully you get my point)!
OK, that was a long-winded introduction to a very short paper which is - surprise, surprise - intended to interest you, and have you invest some money, in strategies intended to achieve that "Harmony in the Workplace" thing!
One of the triggers for this article was another paper I read recently which (to over-simplify) suggested that organisations which rely on Myer-Briggs (R) (or Myer-Briggs Type Inventories - MBTI (R) ) have got the game wrong. In short, it argued that people are social animals. To try to pigeon-hole them and get them to work in a way that is based on their "MBTI (R) type" - defined by four letters - is simplistic and a recipe for failure.
I agree with the basic premise of the paper, but not the direction that the author leads us. While I'm not personally a huge fan of Myer-Briggs (R) , it has its place, like most of the many stand-alone or derivative "personality-type" tools. However, (and here's the first pitch), such tools are indeed recipes for failure if you make some of the common assumptions in using them.
Our approach to "Harmony in the Workplace" - as I've defined it above - includes the use of appropriate personality instruments (including our own preferred tool, the BelBin © Team Role system) but it seeks to do so in a way that covers each of the key organisational bases in an organisation. Importantly, it avoids the "one size fits all" and "right today, right forever" fallacies.
Specifically, "Harmony in the Workplace" is dependent on a string of challenging considerations which, for most of us, are almost impossible to get right all the time. Indeed, research is compelling that in almost every recruitment situation, we get a sub-optimum result!
I'm talking about:
- A good understanding of what the job is and does;
- The right person in each job;
- The right balance of people in each work group; and,
- Each work group contribute cooperatively and collaboratively to organisational goals.
Hunting through the thesaurus for some words that better describe the focus of this piece, I stumbled on "harmony"."Harmony in the Workplace" sounds to me exactly what it is we're all seeking. But I'm not talking "harmony", in the usual sense (that everyone in the workplace likes, and works amicably with and beside, each other). Rather, "harmony", in the musical sense (where each individual and group plays their own particular musical strain, which, when blended with the sounds made by every other individual and group, yields an outcome much more profound, exciting and satisfying, than any part taken on its own). Think Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture", maybe Simon and Garfunkel's "Scarborough Fair", or perhaps Guy Sebastian's "Like a Drum" (it's okay, you can add your own musical choice here, but hopefully you get my point)!
OK, that was a long-winded introduction to a very short paper which is - surprise, surprise - intended to interest you, and have you invest some money, in strategies intended to achieve that "Harmony in the Workplace" thing!
One of the triggers for this article was another paper I read recently which (to over-simplify) suggested that organisations which rely on Myer-Briggs (R) (or Myer-Briggs Type Inventories - MBTI (R) ) have got the game wrong. In short, it argued that people are social animals. To try to pigeon-hole them and get them to work in a way that is based on their "MBTI (R) type" - defined by four letters - is simplistic and a recipe for failure.
I agree with the basic premise of the paper, but not the direction that the author leads us. While I'm not personally a huge fan of Myer-Briggs (R) , it has its place, like most of the many stand-alone or derivative "personality-type" tools. However, (and here's the first pitch), such tools are indeed recipes for failure if you make some of the common assumptions in using them.
Our approach to "Harmony in the Workplace" - as I've defined it above - includes the use of appropriate personality instruments (including our own preferred tool, the BelBin © Team Role system) but it seeks to do so in a way that covers each of the key organisational bases in an organisation. Importantly, it avoids the "one size fits all" and "right today, right forever" fallacies.
Specifically, "Harmony in the Workplace" is dependent on a string of challenging considerations which, for most of us, are almost impossible to get right all the time. Indeed, research is compelling that in almost every recruitment situation, we get a sub-optimum result!
I'm talking about:
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Understanding and defining the job role
So often we create jobs to do what we "think" we need done. Even if we get it right initially, the job changes. If we can't get it right, how can we expect the new hire to do so? Recruiting the right person for the job You need several libraries to hold the collective "wisdom" of the best way to recruit staff. And more often than not, the outcome is a compromise - usually disappointing in at least some respects, and a downright failure in others. Ensuring the proper balance among, and the proper "synergies" between the people in the work group or team "Team work" is something that trips lightly from our lips, but few of us understand what that really means. Even fewer know how to achieve it in practice. Ensuring the same balance and synergy between the many and varied "teams" within the organisation How do your teams deal with one another? Are they competitive? Mutually supportive? Passive? Aggressive? Many of the same considerations relevant to individuals within a team, and the mix of individuals, apply just as - and sometimes even more - critically, to the teams within your organisation. |
None of these issues is easy, and indeed none can be fixed overnight with quick and easy panaceas and management consultants selling "flavour of the month" solutions. But there are tools and approaches which you won't necessarily read about in every management newsletter.
We'll be exploring these at our series of "Harmony in the Workplace" complimentary Breakfast Workshops. Not only will we be aiming to identify for you the problems and pitfalls, but we'll show you some of the practical strategies that can be used to move more towards a "Harmonious" workplace. And we'll give you the chance to get "hands on" with some of the tools that we use.
We'll be exploring these at our series of "Harmony in the Workplace" complimentary Breakfast Workshops. Not only will we be aiming to identify for you the problems and pitfalls, but we'll show you some of the practical strategies that can be used to move more towards a "Harmonious" workplace. And we'll give you the chance to get "hands on" with some of the tools that we use.
For dates and other details of all coming Breakfast Workshops, add your details to the form here and simply click "Submit".