Company politics

Question posted in Business Services - Other on 09 2009
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I was recently asked how I deal with office politics with the indirect question of Catty Cliques.
 
 
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I was applying for a Regional Sales Management position where I would have 10 outside sales people and 5 customer service people reporting to me - I answered that I deal with it head on and that if it occurs frequently then there is a management problem within the company. When this type of crap happens it's typically because the hiring manager did not interview the prospective employee correctly to ensure a fit into the "culture of the company". Furthering it, a company that is aware of a hostile work environment is setting themselves up for potential lawsuits by not addressing it swiftly and immediately. This would include the catty girl crap that every office is plagued with from time to time. I've been in Executive Level positions for the last 15 years so typically it doesn't bleed up to me but I would be remiss in stating that I haven't felt the effects of it while climbing the corporate ladder. The interviewer continued that the company's customer service department was comprised mostly of young ladies aged 19-25. He was curious as to how I would deal with the "nonsense" that sometimes occurs in his customer service department. I stated that I am intuitive enough to pick up on the "attitude" and will typically nip it in the bud by asking "What's going on? I'm sensing some tension." Open and direct communication usually will kill the tension. My experience is that these scenerios are resolved by a mutual understanding of expectations and limitations. The catty stuff that exists through jealousy is something that can not be fixed. The person with the problem should either be transferrred or terminated depending on the size of the company and assuming all appropriate steps have been taken to resolve the "problem"

09/15/2009
 
 
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