Workplace frustrations

A recent USA Today "snapshot" presented results of a survey to 1,200 workers listing their top five workplace frustrations. The results:

1. Poor communication by senior management about the business - 17 percent
2. Office Politics - 16 percent
3. Lack of teamwork - 15 percent
4. The use of politically correct language - 9 percent
5. Nosy co-workers - 6 percent

Let's break them down:

Poor communication about the business

One of primary benefits Barr Corporate Success brings is an immediate focus on identifying the top strategic objectives for a business, and, equally important - communicating and cascading those objectives throughout all levels of the organization. If you don't know how, we do. It's critical that front-line employees have the knowledge, mindset, culture, and tools to bring upper-level initiatives all the way down to customer relations. Front line employees want and need information, and to know what really matters and will contribute to their success by contributing to the company's success.

Office Politics

Politics are no more or no less than an expression of power struggles in poorly defined structures, confusion about objectives, and a lack of trust in co-workers. Teams must have the time, space, and structure to know each other, know what matters, and pursue it cohesively. Individual team members must be held accountable for behavior that divides and sabotages teams. Incentives must be geared toward rewarding all efforts that contribute to the success of the team in meeting defined objectives, even those efforts that are less visible, or harder to measure, and similarly, behavior that rewards the individual but damages the team should not be rewarded. It may sound complex, but Barr Corporate Success has simple, straightforward tools to align your company's systems with its goals, and eliminate the distractions of destructive competition, converting that energy into productive cooperation.

Lack of Teamwork

Teams suffer from a variety of ills, chief among them being a failure to understand that each team needs a diverse group of talents and styles to initiate projects, see to the details, and ensure results. Different work styles bring different strengths and talents. Barr Corporate Success has some amazing programs to foster mutual respect and understanding of what each team member brings to each project, and to the company's long-term goals.

Politically correct language

This listed item, in my opinion, reflects many people's frustration at having their intent misunderstood or mischaracterized. All of us have occasionally misspoken or made an offhand comment that flopped with the audience. When among friends, we speak freely, knowing that others will understand us, call us on something borderline, and give us the benefit of the doubt if we express ourselves badly. But in a business environment, we interact with a much wider group of people with whom we have less in common. That's why offering opportunities for employees to get to know one another on a slightly more personal level, through team-building exercises, can be groundbreaking. It's difficult to get much done if one is watching every word he says, or parsing everything another says, looking for something objectionable. Such an environment lacks trust and understanding, and is poisonous to cooperation. When teams know, understand, and trust each other, miscommunications and frustrations over word choices are much less of a problem -- because they're much more likely to be brought out into the open, and resolved very happily.

Barr Corporate Success has a team-building program that involves personalized assessment of work styles and personal interests, attitudes, and values. When a team sits down together, and understands one another's styles and driving interests, the team as a whole draws together and better appreciates the advantages of diverse talents and styles. Call 513.470.8980 for more information about DISC- and PIAV-based team-building programs.

Nosy Co-workers One person's nosy co-worker is another person's best friend at work. Again, It all comes down to lack of trust, violation of others' boundaries, and different styles. We can help.

It's inspiring and uplifting to know that these top work peeves can be easily solved with the right tools. Imagine how productive your company will be when those frustrations and distractions are out of the way, and every employee's attention is focused on achieving important goals with their teammates.