Managing Up

8The Harmonizer

“The most important single ingredient in the formula of success is knowing how to get along with people.”

—Theodore Roosevelt

 

Real‐Life Story

Allison thought she had hit the jackpot when she landed her first job out of college. She was working with a small team, had flexible hours, and what seemed like the best boss ever. Allison's boss, Bill, was kind and friendly, and didn't micromanage. He mostly stayed in his office, but kept his door open and was available to talk whenever his staff had a question. Even when Allison showed up late after only two weeks on the job, Bill seemed more concerned about her well‐being than about her tardiness.

However, after a few months, Allison started to become frustrated with Bill. She had noticed some inefficiencies in her team's work flow and brought them up to Bill with a number of solutions. She expected to be praised for her analysis and problem‐solving skills. Instead, Bill responded with gratitude but said that he was satisfied with the team's work and that some of her ideas may be outside the technical guidelines. A few more weeks went by and Allison started butting heads with the team leader, Margaret. Margaret seemed under‐qualified for her position and didn't motivate the team. Allison decided to meet with Bill about her conflict with Margaret and suggested rotating the team's lead position to allow different people to gain leadership experience. Bill was nice but quickly came to Margaret's defense and said ...