American Politics

American Politics  » Hey! That was my idea!... Corporate Games for a Rainy Day

Hey! That was my idea!... Corporate Games for a Rainy Day

People occasionally come to me and ask about situations with their jobs or

within their companies. The primary question I hear is "What do I do

if...?" Usually, they got caught up in a turf war or game and have no idea

what to do next. Most of my answers come out sounding like a military

battle plan. However, the type of information I provide is a mutated form

of an MBA course taught in many closed-door, corporate management classes.

This series of articles, called "Corporate Games for a Rainy Day," is an

idea that's been shoved in the corner of my brain for quite a while. The

information consists of knowledge from corporate classes as well as

practical experience in a couple of corporations for which I worked. I'm not

going to pass ALL of my games on to you in these articles; however, I am

assembling an e-book that will provide you with a complete list of games and

how to deal with each. I'm sure that you'll either enjoy the reading or

send nasty notes because I'm giving away secrets to your employees.

Whichever you choose, at least I know that you've read it!

--- My Corporate America ---

I've worked in several HUGE corporations and start-ups as gopher, grunt,

engineer, and manager. The one thing I've found during this journey is

that---all companies are the same. You laugh? It's true!

* Corporate Organization Simplified

The company itself has one primary objective---to make money. It doesn't

matter how they go about making money, whether it be a product or a service,

the result is the same. Make a profit!

Within a company, departments are formed to support the direction of the

overall organization. Within each department, you have individuals who

lead, others who follow, and a few who simply get in the way. Each type of

individual is attracted to a group with which they feel comfortable or that

they can use to get ahead. This is where the problem begins!

Of course, it is good that people want to get ahead. They want to prove

their worth, move into the next higher group, and appear to be contributing

to the bottom line of the company. But, for one person to get ahead,

someone else has to fall behind. It is in the attempt to get ahead that

politics rears its ugly head and the games and turf wars begin.

* Politics Defined

In reality, politics is the self-governing of the free. It is a way that

people choose their own destiny and govern themselves to an ultimate point

or destination in their life. When applied to corporations, politics

represents an illicit method of getting things done; however, it is an

important element of corporate behavior that can affect your career.

To properly navigate through the morass of political tangles within a

corporation, you must have the political know-how to open the doors to the

elite groups of the company. The problem is that the road to attaining such

know-how is kept vague by many of those who have successfully traveled

through those doors.

Whether the company is large, medium, or small, there are the same people

with the same ideas and the same approaches to the same situations. The

advantage is that, once you learn how the general games and turf battles

work, you can feel at home regardless of the company!

--- Have any good ideas lately? ---

One of the more frustrating and least noticeable games is the "Steal the

Idea and Wait Six Months" game. It is a game in which you present an idea

that is turned down by your boss. In about six months, your idea comes back

to live in the body of another individual.

* The Setup

You have developed an idea that can provide support for or creates a

solution for some element of your company. You've thought about it,

researched it, and decided that you should be proactive and approach your

boss with an idea.

You put together a presentation and setup a meeting with your boss. He

tells you, however, that it will be a private meeting. You go all out and

tell him everything.

Once you're finished with your end of the presentation, he sits quietly for

a moment. You continue chattering to fill in the blanks. Once he's had

time to consider the idea, he essentially smashes it to pieces. You leave

his office, dejected, and let the idea go.

* The Assault

Six months later, you're sitting in a meeting held by your boss. He carries

on for a while and then presents this mutated version of your original idea.

At least it sounds like your idea, only it's less mature than when you

presented it. It's like he changed it and left out some key elements that

you had already presented. Suddenly, your boss hands the project to one of

your peers and tells her to make it work.

Over the weeks or months that follow, the idea takes shape, with input and

assistance from your boss. He provides the intricate details to your peer

that he had originally left out of "his" presentation. Eventually, your

peer presents your idea in a meeting in the same way you presented it to

your boss in the first place.

--- Solutions ---

Of course, this is frustrating, yet it happens time and time again to many

people in corporations. The best way to handle such a situation is to

accept it---the first time. But, when the second time comes around, you

should be prepared to handle yourself professionally.

Once you experience this situation the first time, your boss will probably,

privately, pat you on the back and give some type of excuse as to why he

handed your idea off to another person. You will then be given a different

project to block your time so that he will look as though he had "bigger

plans for you." At this point, you have five choices:

- quit,

- become a quiet worker-bee,

- report it to his manager,

- realize that you are now in a good brown-nosing position, or

- you can reverse the game.

* Quitting

When you first encounter such a game, it can be quite frustrating. No

matter how much you despise what has happened, don't quit! This is a common

game and it is not a personal attack. This is merely a situation that you

allowed to become out of your control. Learn how this game works as you

will encounter it again in later job opportunities.

* The Quiet Type

As for becoming a quiet worker in your position, it's too late. Your boss

knows that you have good ideas in your head and he will want more. If you

button-up and never devise ideas again, your chances of a raise will

diminish as will your longevity in that company. You will probably be

hustled into the worst possible projects simply because you won't play

anymore.

* Report to His Boss

This approach is never good under these circumstances. Again, the issue is

not a personal attack. It is merely a chance your boss saw to gain a few

points with his boss. Let it ride and don't go above his head for this

situation as you will only cause problems for yourself. Besides, learn from

it and figure out how you can gain a few points with your boss in this

situation.

* Brown-Nosing

As for the brown-nosing position, you are now in a good position to make

Today's Popular Articles

• A Culture Of Life

• The Coming Television Revolution

your way into the boss' good graces. Feed him some more good ideas, make

him look good, go for the gusto. You now have a chance to ride the wave in

right behind your boss. However, do you know which wave your boss is

actually riding?

One thing you have to realize is that your boss will not be in that position

forever. He could get promoted or laid off and even quit, leaving you to

fend for yourself. If you decide to become a brown-noser, you will end up

looking like an idea-less fool. Remember, you quietly gave all of your

ideas to him in exchange for grace.

* Reversing the Game

I've always seen reversing the game as a way of gaining a little bit of

control over this type of situation. You must always be professional, but

professional retaliation can be more ruthless than all out physical battle.

You need to plan any type of retaliation so that it does not come over as

being personal and so that you come out ahead.

The best reversal for this game is to come up with your next idea, plan it

out, and generate a solid, detailed, hardcopy report. Once it is complete,

place the hardcopy of the plan in your desk drawer. Now, prepare a

secondary "verbal" presentation of your plan, but leave out a few

non-trivial, yet not-so-obvious, pieces of the puzzle. Present this

verbal-only plan to your boss.

When your boss holds his meeting and hands your idea off to one of your

peers, have an impromptu meeting with that peer. Tell her how lucky she is

to work on the project and give her your original hardcopy. Tell her that

you were already considering a "very general rough" of the idea and would be

happy to consult if she needs any assistance.

--- What's next? ---

A key to this game is privacy. If your boss initially tells you that he

wants to discuss your idea in private, then you should get the idea that

you're in trouble.

I have no idea why six months is usually the time that passes before the

assault occurs, but that's the standard turn around time for the

resurrection of ideas. It appears that it has something to do with the hope

that everyone involved will forget about the original idea and move on to

other projects.

Also, an important side to this game, and others, is that of the "quiet

time" that ensues when you've finished speaking. This quiet time is created

to force you to continue your chattering to divulge other information that

you would probably have never told your boss in the first place. In this

situation, your best bet is to sit quietly as well.

Reversing the game is a professional way of maintaining your dignity,

keeping your place in the company as an intelligent individual, and allowing

your boss to build up some of his own personal glory. One important thing

to realize is that you want to oscillate between brown-nosing and reversal.

If you reverse too often, your boss will learn the pattern and he won't

trust you. You have to wait for at least two assaults before you reverse

the first time so that he does learn to trust you. Then, brown-nose for a

time or two before you reverse the game again.

The point is not to reverse too often so as not to ruin your relationship

with your boss. But, you don't want to be seen as an idea-less fool that

kisses up to the boss to keep your job.

About the Author

Edward B. Toupin is a published author and technical writer living in Las

Vegas. He writes e-books, print books, and articles for various markets. You can visit his Web site at http://www.toupin.com or contact

him at etoupin@toupin.com. Also, visit his online library at

http://www.toupin.com/lib_index.html