[Souptonuts-updates] work advice

[Mike C. <mch...@br...>]

After 10 months of job hunting, a newly hired vice president of
marketing at a Colorado manufacturer needed less than 90 days to get
fired. He was astonished and infuriated that such an "incompetent group
of people" didn't recognize or appreciate his superior intellect and
expertise, which he clearly demonstrated throughout his short tenure.

Wasn't he the one who pointed out the inferiority of the business plan?
Didn't he demonstrate how meaningless the budget process was? Didn't
they see that the entire sales force was a bunch of mindless idiots who
couldn't sell their way out of a paper bag? Just because the company
showed a profit didn't mean top managers were doing anything right, he
was quick to assure them.

In criticizing his new employer, he made a fatal mistake. Newcomers must
take time to learn the culture of their new companies before trying to
make changes. This doesn't mean that you can't "hit the ground running."
After all, you have goals to accomplish. But if you start running before
your feet are firmly on the ground, you'll undoubtedly end up flat on
your face.

Six months later, the former vice president is still complaining (to
anyone who will listen) about that "idiotic Colorado company" which,
despite its incompetence, is turning a profit while he's pounding the
pavement again.

His eagerness to make a mark may have been partly due to his lengthy
unemployment. When executives and professionals suffer career setbacks,
they often want to prove to themselves and others that they're still
effective. As a result, they try to do too much too quickly, a plan that
can often backfire and worsen their problems.

"When you've been out of a job for a long time, many people try to make
up for lost time," says Blaze Konkol, a career consultant in Chicago.
"They have trouble accepting the reality of what their role is right
now."

Underestimating the Challenges

Almost two-thirds -- 64% -- of executives hired from the outside don't
succeed in their new jobs because they underestimate the challenges,
culture and politics of a company, say Dan Ciampa, a leadership
consultant in Boston. The vice president of marketing failed, in part,
because he didn't take time to learn how things were done at his new
company, build effective coalitions and create momentum for his vision.

A 52-year-old sales executive in Milwaukee, Wis., needed to find a new
position quickly after being laid off from a major consulting company.
Her situation led her to accept a position with another consulting
company she didn't entirely respect. She, too, made a major gaffe during
the first three months on the job.

After she delivered an effective sales presentation to a potential new
customer, her company's chief executive officer asked her opinion of the
meeting. Although the meeting had gone well, she impulsively said she
believed the firm's services weren't competitive in the marketplace.

The CEO, who built and was invested in the organization, was insulted
and infuriated by her remarks and told her that she "obviously" wasn't a
good fit, at the firm. She, too, found herself back on the job market.

Winning the Team's Backing

Building good relationships is an important aspect of making a
successful transition to a new executive position. When Owen Dougherty
became executive director of the Career Transition Center, a Chicago
faith-based organization that helps people find jobs, building a
cohesive, involved team was his first step.

Toward that end, he met individually with each paid employee (including
part-timers), his 22 volunteer coaches and the center's 20 board members
during his first weeks on the job. He believed the center functioned
smoothly, and he applauded staffers and volunteers for a job well done.
However, he wasn't complacent. He felt that expanding services and
increasing revenues and visibility in the community were important goals
for the center to achieve.

He knew he couldn't do it alone and had no desire to be a savior or
build a one-man empire -- he needed his team. Instead of criticizing the
center's processes and procedures, he aimed to influence change by
working through the people who were invested in those processes and
procedures.

Manage Your Emotions

Knowing and managing yourself well are central to starting a job on the
right foot, says Mr. Ciampa. This ability is sometimes called "emotional
intelligence." The consulting-firm professional needed more insight in
this area. If she had known how to manage herself better, she wouldn't
have described her feelings about the firm so bluntly. Instead, she
would have worn her "game face" and focused on the effectiveness of her
presentation.

"Sometimes the hardest thing about a job is learning to keep your mouth
shut at work," says Mr. Konkol.

It's also important to have people in whom you can confide, such as a
career counselor, therapist or a trusted friend (who doesn't work for
the company). With them, you can safely vent your frustrations and blow
off steam. When you're at work, however, you must behave like a leader
and a team player. You don't need to be a cheerleader, but you should be
interested in helping the company to achieve its goals. If you can't buy
into this concept, you're working at the wrong place. Regardless of how
much you need the money, you may be sabotaging yourself. When
co-workers, colleagues or employers become adversaries, the chance of
failure grows greater.

Mr. Konkol learned this after accepting a job as a human-resources
manager in Australia for his current employer. He, too, was eager to
make a difference, and he let others know when they made what he viewed
as mistakes. "My style was very direct," he says. "I had zero tolerance
for human error."

In hindsight, Mr. Konkol realizes that, rather than adapting to his
environment, he expected the environment to adapt to him. He pointed out
others' errors too quickly and, while he wasn't fired, his style created
unnecessary conflict. "You have to pick your battles and let some things
go," says a wiser and more mature Mr. Konkol. "Highlighting other
people's errors isn't always a good idea."

Wise Steps During First Days

To help others make successful transitions to new jobs, Mr. Dougherty
recommends the following:

  a.. Note what's right about an organization and show respect and
appreciation for people who have invested energy in it before trying to
make changes;

  b.. Get to know as many people as possible, and don't jump to
conclusions too quickly;

  c.. Frame your suggestions or ideas as enhancements (rather than
criticisms) and seek feedback from people whose support you need;

  d.. Identify opinion leaders and use their influence to advance your
vision and ideas.

When joining a new organization, don't forget your professional goals,
Mr. Konkol advises. Rather than focusing on what you don't like about a
new employer, remind yourself why you took the job and what you hope to
accomplish.

Reality Bites

In a difficult job market, a perfect job may take a while to come along.
In the meantime, you may need to take a position that helps you to pay
bills or re-enter the work force. You have the power to put this move
into perspective so you can meet those short-term objectives.

Eventually, you're likely to find the job you really want, says Judith
Lansky, a Chicago career consultant. But the process can become a
long-range career goal instead of an immediate one. During those
less-than-perfect employment periods, you still have to work and make a
living. Accepting this reality can make your compromise a more
meaningful endeavor.

-- Ms. Hirsch is a career counselor in Chicago, who has written several
books on careers, including "How to Be Happy at Work" (Jist Publishing,
2003).