28 March 2008
The irritations of office life
Incompetent managers exasperate Canadian workers.
What irritates you about co-workers? Loud phone conversations, playing “Space Invaders” on their laptop or hogging the best parking space?
Global pollster Angus Reid tells us what bugs the 1,077 surveyed Canadian workers the most.
Incompetent managers are number one gripe
At the number 1 spot comes incompetent managers, followed by negative colleagues – particularly people who whine without taking action over problems. Oh yes, and also poor office communication.
Irritants topping the list, such as managerial incompetence, suggest the problems at work are due to deeper systemic issues.
Mario Canseco, director of global studies at Angus Reid Strategies, thought people would only complain about the small irritants, but they complained about the big ones too.
Irritants topping the list, such as managerial incompetence, negativity and apathy, suggest the problems at work are due to deeper systemic issues.
Poor meetings also give big cause for complaint, with 2 in 5 people irritated by “meetings that go nowhere."
Have your say
What are your tips for dealing with an incompetent manager, negative colleagues or people who refuse to take action to fix their problems? What about a further beef – hypocrisy? Would more open communication counteract that nuisance?
How many of your colleagues would say your organization has “poor office communication”? Paradoxically, internal communication departments are not always the best communicators. Ever heard the old adage about the cobblers children being the worst shod?
Discuss these issues with other comms practitioners by joining the Internal Comms Hub members' group on the Communicators' Network.
Other recommendations:
How CUCBC transforms managers into communicators
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