BLOG
(1). The guy on the sales team that’s really good on Excel, but really bad with people.
“Oh, that’s Ron over there. He’s a real numbers guy, so we rely on him for almost everything. His cut? Well…it’s not like he’s bringing in business, so….”
(1). An unnecessarily long and painful process requiring co-workers to “anonymously” highlight each other’s shortcomings to management. While many people graciously decline to say anything too damaging, some use the review as an opportunity to settle personal scores or to climb the corporate ladder in the traditional way (i.e. by crushing their co-workers).
“Okay, team. It’s time for 360 reviews again. You need to ask at least 10 people and, remember, I don’t really read these things, so feel free to say anything you like.”
(1). The awkward discussion you have after a pitch with a prospect to figure out why you didn’t win the business (read: why you suck) so you can “do better next time”.
(2). The meeting that happens after a big project is completed, where everyone gathers round to discuss who will be the scapegoat for everything that went wrong.
“Listen guys, doing a post-mortem is a solid way to figure out what we did right and what we did wrong. I mean, Jerry dropping the F-bomb a few times didn’t help, and Lisa, breaking down crying in the middle of the meeting when your GoToMyPC froze probably wasn’t great either. You know what, on second thought, maybe we don’t need to do this…..Jerry and Lisa, can you come to my office for a minute?”
