Politics at Work

One of the hardest things for many technical managers to understand is the role of so-called "politics" at work. I've noticed that technical people pride themselves in their scientific thought and product development, but oftentimes they have a distaste for the "political" influences that affect the decision-making related to their work. What usually happens if you continue to ignore office politics? It's identical to the person in any group who is quiet and isolated--eventually he or she gets a lot of negative stuff projected onto them. This is not what you what happening to your career.

In my counseling practice, I encourage managers who are having difficulty with this issue to reconsider the word politics and reframe it. Perhaps it's better to see this issue as one of "developing positive relationships," or "building relationships." Better yet, "educating people about what I do." After all, how are your coworkers or managers to know the quality of your work unless you take the time to talk to them about it? This is not an optional move for successful managers.

The value of working on developing relationships at work may not be immediately apparent, and at first it will feel phony to develop it. But like any skill you can get better at it, and become more comfortable with it, and over time you can achieve the recognition you seek for the quality of your work.