HR state of mind

A common first question in meeting someone for the first time is asking where they work or what they do. How someone responds may situate them for us from a socio-economic perspective, but also gives us a quick read on how to relate to them. Working in Human Resources, I am particularly interested in how people choose work, and how work shapes people.

Sometimes people come to embody their role or work function. In the workplace, I am often referred to by my function rather than my name, i.e. "HR says," or "According to HR," or "I checked with HR." I don't mind, because I take it to be a reflection of authority and influence.

I think there are other subtle ways that working in HR has changed my outlook:

-I am always interested in how people end up in the work they are doing. There is preparation for some jobs, but there is always some element of chance or opportunity that results in someone getting a job.
-I may be more thankful than most for my own work, as I continually interact with job-seekers.
-I may be less impressed by aggressively self-promoting candidates, again because I am aware of the larger context of similarly qualified candidates in a competitive labour market.
-I may be less tied to retaining individuals in particular positions or even with the organization, because if the organization is well-structured (and properly funded), it can recruit others to fill the roles. In my view, departures create opportunities.
-I have become accustomed to dealing with confidential information about individuals, such that I forget that others hear rumours, deal with ambiguity, or resort to various methods to seek out information. So much is given to me or confided to me that I seek to do the opposite, to suppress what I know to maintain professional workplace interactions with everyone.
-I consider organizational impact of individual requests or actions, probably because I deal with the fallout of precedent-setting behaviour. Policies are meant to cover everyone, but often individuals seek to be the exception.
-I think about organizational culture and workplace morale, at my own and others' workplaces. Most people just live with it, but it's within the scope of HR to act on, implement, and better the workplace.

Friendships at work

As soon as you start a new position, or even before you start, scan the environment to see who your potential friends could be. A friend is a colleague who does not compete with you, can support you within the workplace, and who preferably is at the same or similar level as you. You will recognize a friend from those who are friendly to you - it may be the first person who makes you feel at home, or that you belong in the organization, and someone who makes you comfortable as a new employee. He or she is someone you trust. Trust may develop from the sharing of personal information or through someone who is attuned to your mood or picks up on your uncertainty in a situation and seeks to elevate your mood or to help. A friend is also someone who will step forward and volunteer organizational information or otherwise take time to help you when it does not benefit them to do so.

Having at least one good friend at work gives you a foundation to build other relationships, as the friend will introduce you to others and help you integrate into other social and professional groups. A friend can let you in on informal office policies or working standards, though you may reserve judgment for yourself if your friend has a different work ethic than you do. A friend is also someone you can spend breaks and lunch with, to deal with ongoing pressures in the working day.

It is preferable if the friendship does not create a conflict of interest. If either of you can gain professionally from the relationship, be careful of boundaries, and the impression of an advantage that either of you might have from association with the other. This may be particularly pertinent in male-female friendships or when there is a supervisory element. If you report to your friend in any way, be aware of leveraging your friendship for gain, as this puts your friend in an awkward position, and your credibility and individual competence could be questioned. If others raise concerns about fairness or transparency of decisions in which you benefit, it is possible that personal friendship has created (or created an impression) of partiality in your favour. In the short-term, this may benefit you, but it may become unsustainable under closer scrutiny.

If you are the one supervising your friend, or if you have influence over decisions concerning your friend, test your decisions for whether there was possibility of general application or whether the benefit was specific to your friend. Consider whether you are making decisions with your friend in mind. You can discuss with colleagues at your level to test your decision without using names. If you recognize that you don’t wish to say no to your friend, you likely need to establish and maintain a more defined professional boundary. Although it may be of organizational benefit that you are mentoring or grooming your friend for a higher level position or responsibilities, be aware that your attentions and focus are noticed by others. At the least, if your contribution to the organization is valued and you have limited time and effort, you may trigger jealousy in others not chosen for special consideration. In the worst case, you can be accused of favouritism and of denying others access to opportunities, even of abdicating your responsibilities to others or abusing your power.

If you are in a position of authority, be wary of ‘friends’ who seek to gain career advancement through promotion, recommendation for training or other opportunities, access to information, access to contacts, etc. There are some who will seek an edge on others by befriending those in positions of power to influence decisions concerning them. These people are not your friends, and it will take an effort to maintain neutrality as their efforts will be off-putting and you may be tempted to overcompensate in order to demonstrate their lack of influence on you.

If you are in a position such as human resources, choose your friends particularly wisely. If you work in a large HR group, you can generally have friends within HR. As it is possible, develop good rapport with everyone but be aware of your privileged access to personnel information and decisions concerning staff. Recognize that you have influence in the general realm and specifically to individuals. If you maintain impartiality, you will have the respect of others. Since you deal with all staff, aim to treat everyone with appropriate consideration based on the nature of the query or merits of the case, regardless of whether you personally find them to be likeable.

Keep the tone light with colleagues in the office until you have attained a level of trust. In some ways, you can test the boundaries of friendship and professional life by seeing how you are aligned on issues such as commitment to the organization, trust of management, view of other colleagues, career aspirations, etc. It is best if you can make a friend with a similar working view and professional standing as you, so that you can provide mutual benefit to the other in a cooperative way. Friends at work can influence your attitude and motivation, as well as giving you additional reasons to continue working with an organization or particular work unit.

In brief, choose friends who respect boundaries, who challenge your thinking, who allow you to say no to them, and who are able to be friends outside of the day to day work. That is, choose friends who you have a connection to beyond the workplace, so that you can relate on a personal level beyond the office.

Be aware of blurring of boundaries in relationships. While most of the productive hours of the day are spent at work it is possible to develop close relationships with colleagues. However, be aware of professional distance with respect to emotional and relationship needs of others. Aim to be someone who is a good and sympathetic listener but doesn’t seek to take the place of family or friends that people have outside of work.

Monitor the working relationships that you have, and continue to nurture them so that they are positive and constructive, as it is all too easy for those who work closely together to develop habits in how they relate to one another. Seek to have personal relationships in which there is some give and take. If you are continually supporting someone else, you may start to resent the other person for the unequal relationship. On the other hand, if you continually unburden yourself or rely too heavily on others, they may in time disassociate themselves from you, or become less available.

Friendships in the workplace, when professional boundaries are maintained, improve employee well-being. While not everyone seeks or needs to have close friends at work, a collegial environment in which there is a sense of caring and concern for the highs and lows of others results in a more unified workforce. It can be the basis for collaborative efforts, can assist in team dynamics, can improve employee retention, can be a foundation for external networking, can promote information sharing, and can allow for greater creativity and risk-taking.

The true test of friendships may be those you choose to stay in touch with, or who choose to stay in touch with you when you or your friend leaves the workplace. In some cases there will still be a networking and professional development aspect that will motivate both parties to stay in touch, but these in time will only be sustained if there was some genuine sense of friendship and mutual interest in sustaining the personal relationship beyond the professional.

That being said, if a friendship does not last when one or the other person leaves the organization, perhaps the course of the friendship has served its purpose, and was situational in nature, due to common need within the working context. In these cases, accept both the change and the benefit from the friendly chats. 

Show your appreciation to those who will mentor you, and evolve the relationship

A natural mentor is often your supervisor, but can also be someone with an interest in investment in the work you do, and who is willing to develop a professional relationship with you. A mentor is someone with greater experience who can impart general information but ideally would tailor their advice to your particular work challenges.

If your organization has a mentorship program, seek to have a mentor, as it demonstrates your desire to contribute and to improve and willingness to learn from others. At the least, it is an opportunity to learn from the experience of someone more senior in the organization, who has achieved a measure of success and internal recognition. If your organization does not have a formal program in place, you can express interest in having a mentor, ask someone to take on that role, or you can seek to develop informal mentoring relationships without a formal arrangement. There may be people in the organization from whom you seek advice for different purposes, and not all of them need have a strict operational focus. From various sources you can learn how to achieve work-life balance, how to network, how to manage time, how to prepare for presentations.

In some cases a mentor will seek you out, or have in mind to situate themselves to mentor you. This may be because they have taken it on themselves that they wish to give back to the organization, or have taken a particular interest in your area of work or in you, who they see as having potential for leadership or to positively influence within your professional sphere. If this is the case, and it is a positive relationship, consider yourself fortunate, and take advantage of this opportunity to learn.

As you enter into a mentoring relationship, consider what your needs are, and what purpose you would like to fulfill through the relationship. Review your mentor’s qualifications and strengths, and see what they are able and willing to provide to you. Whether formal or informal, it can be a good idea to establish a recurring meeting, at least to start, and from this there may evolve a natural, habitual pattern to discuss issues, or to create the opportunity to discuss issues outside of these established sessions as needed. Be prepared with input or topics of discussion relevant to your working reality, and with concrete examples which may be representative of issues you would like to discuss in terms of a better outcome. Your mentor may also be able to generate items of discussion or have specific lessons to impart to you. Keep an open mind, as experience they have that may not be immediately relevant may resonate later with you.

In an ideal mentoring relationship, the process will be its own reward, with both parties gaining new perspective from it as they consolidate knowledge, each giving and receiving in turn. As you benefit from the relationship, this will likely be a source of satisfaction, even pride, for the mentor. You will share your successes with your mentor. You can express appreciation and enthusiasm which will energize and sustain the relationship. You also show appreciation through active listening and by attempting to incorporate your mentor’s suggestions into your decision-making.

As the relationship deepens, and the two of you become able to anticipate one another’s reactions, you or your mentor may review initial goals or purpose of the mentoring, and refocus or redirect as necessary. It is possible to evolve the relationship, to seek a different approach, or to seek more or less involvement. If there is not a natural end to the mentoring relationship, there could be an easing off as you become more self-sufficient. Your mentor could then become an advocate in the organization, someone to provide a reference for you, or simply a trusted friend.

Having benefitted from mentorship over time, you can eventually consider how you will give back, and how you will seek to mentor another

Managing sickness

Managing sickness and work is not as straightforward as it might seem. As part of the benefits of your position, you may ‘earn’ sick time as you work, which accumulates and carries from year to year. You may receive additional compensation for not taking sick leave. It is a good idea to learn what the policies are for sick leave, and also observe how others use their sick leave.

There are times when you are fighting off the beginning of sickness and you are working, or recovering but able to return to work. In those times, consider whether there is some link to sickness and work. Have you become sick in part because you have been pushing too hard or have lost some balance in life? Have you been getting enough sleep, eating to nourish your body with the frequency and intake that sustains your energy and health, getting enough exercise to keep up your energy, and able to leave work when you physically leave the workplace? It is possible that stress is internalized and can impact on your health and well-being, so recognizing your response to work-related stress is the first step in managing it. Recognize what you do to relieve stress, or what you turn to while you are sick to support a return to health, such as a balanced diet, adequate sleep, even fresh air and quality time with family and friends. Sickness can be a catalyst that causes people to reset their priorities and ‘default settings,’ serving as a chance to restore work-life balance if work has taken a higher priority over your personal life.

Being sick is a time when job satisfaction becomes clear. If while you are well, you make an effort to motivate yourself to commute to work, it will become even more evident when you are not well that you might prefer another workplace or line of work. Remember how this feels when you do return to health, as much can be tolerated when you are well, particularly as you return to a routine and become caught up in the pressures of work again. From the distance of being at home, sick, you can have a clearer picture of the reality of your working life.

When you’re sick and contagious, but feel able to go to work, rather than go to work, be considerate and use your sick leave to make a full recovery at home. Take the time to consider how you feel about missing work - is it a good opportunity for a pause? Do you resent the time you spend away, knowing that you will need to take a break from ongoing projects? Do you feel you are not able to take time off, due to meetings and deadlines? These thoughts give an indication of how hard you may be working, or how much pressure you put on yourself or feel externally. Again, with the remove you have from work, consider whether your output and investment is worthwhile, and paying dividends back to your career progression.

Observe about how your colleagues adapt to your time off. Do they pick up the work they can, so that you will not be overwhelmed on your return? Do they communicate to queries from clients and others that you are away and will return, with a positive spirit or with resentment? Are those you supervise able to work independently and take accountability for their work? Does your supervisor manage expectations of clients? When you return, do your colleagues welcome you back, and ask after your health, and give you some breathing room to catch up, or do they immediately seek to return you to the busy status quo?

On another note, while you are on your time off, does your workplace contact you to give updates on work? Are you expected to monitor your voice mail, email, or phone into meetings despite being at home? If this is the case, you aren’t able to take a sick day, but you are in fact working from home for part of the time. There are times that will be busier at work, and if you take a prolonged period of time away, it is understandable that there may be some attempts to keep you in the loop of what is happening, but there should be some respectful distance to allow you to recover.

In some workplaces, employees take days which may be called ‘mental health’ days, which frequently fall on a Monday, or perhaps leading up to or following a long weekend. These are sick days taken when an employee may be not physically sick but may be worn out or overworked, and require the day off to recover some sense of balance. They may also indicate some discontent or disengagement with the workplace. If you find that you or your colleagues are taking these days, it may be a sign that the workplace environment itself is toxic, or unhealthy. This is a sign that something needs to change, and if it is the workplace that is provoking employee absences, observe whether there is anything being done to rectify the situation, or even if management monitors or is aware of the situation. If you or colleagues are obtaining medical notes for stress leave, or colleagues are taking prolonged periods from work on stress-related leave which is related to the workplace, it is important to note your own reactions and whether you are excluded from the same kinds of pressures, or whether you have become accustomed to an environment that is not healthy. Check with others who work in similar environments, or across different work units in your organization to obtain a sense of the reasonable standard for this work environment.

If you find you are negatively impacted by your workplace, consider ways in which you can mitigate the effect. Consider changing the time you spend at work, such as changing your start and end times during the day, which may result in more time spent working independently. There may be the option for a compressed work week, in which you will have some week days off in exchange for longer working days. You may be able to telework on occasion, or to work from other office locations or off-site. You could even consider cutting down to part-time hours. While you have made these changes, again see if the immediate workplace environment improves. If not, it may be time to consider moving on.

On return to work, be aware of the human resources policies for how to account for your time away. Is a doctor’s note required? Is paid medical appointment or paid sick leave available for medical appointments? If you have a continuing condition, your workplace is obliged to accommodate you. Let your supervisor know of any functional limitations you have, and whether they are temporary or permanent. You do not need to provide details of your medical condition or provide medical substantiation, but a doctor could provide information on what you might need to fully or optimally fulfill your job duties.

For a longer period of time from work, you may be on short-term or long-term disability, with a return to work program, and possible requirements for a fitness to work assessment. If this is the case, become well-informed on the policies and reporting requirements, and impact on pay, with support from your human resources department. 

Have an exit strategy (immediate, short-term, long-term)

Whether or not you enjoy your position, it’s always a good idea to have a back-up plan, or exit strategy. Despite personal success, and seeming stability of your position and that of the organization you work for, it’s important not to take your current status for granted.

This is not to say that you are constantly scanning for the next opportunity if you do not need to, or that you regularly take time from work to apply for positions elsewhere and go on job interviews, because that will mean you have divided attentions, and it will be distract you from committing fully to your current work, and doing the best you can in that capacity.

I do suggest that you nurture and maintain networks in your field, keep an eye on developments internally or externally, be attuned to management direction to anticipate changes in how personnel are managed, keep up the relevant professional association memberships and credentials, and update your qualifications through learning and training.

It is a good idea to diversity your professional experiences. Through part-time, volunteer, or contract work, you could have a secondary field that may generate income on the side, and could evolve quickly to full-time work. If you are able to sustain interest on the side in something that complements your full-time work or contributes to your work-life balance, it is well worth the energy and time. If you reach a plateau in your full-time work, or there is a hiring freeze or reduction in training budget, you can take the opportunity to take greater initiative and expand or take risk in your endeavours outside of work.

Your immediate exit strategy concerns an unexpected setback at work, and is tied to your financial preparedness for such an eventuality. Personal finance experts suggest that you retain an emergency fund that covers six months of your expenses, notwithstanding any EI or severance payments that you may receive on being let go from a job.

For a short-term strategy, this would be a career change or change in direction within the year, in which you have some time to plan. A short-term strategy could be created in response to a what-if hypothetical scenario, or it could be a means to plan what your prospective resume could look like within the year, if you work towards it. A short-term strategy addresses what might happen if you were asked to relocate, or were offered another position with a start date in a few weeks, or a few months. Having in mind a short-term exit strategy might also mean considering a temporary leave without pay for three months to under one year, and pursuing another endeavour that might mean not returning to your current position, or that might spur on a change when you returned.

A long term exit strategy can be your plan for retirement, early retirement, or a cut to a shortened work week or longer term period of leave without pay, perhaps to care for children, care for elderly parents, to take a sabbatical, or to accompany a partner relocating for work on a temporary or more permanent basis.  A long term plan can start anywhere from five years out into an eligible retirement age. It is something to plan for and keep in mind, and align with your overall financial plan.

Taking each timeframe into consideration lends itself to varying paths of reflection about your current work, and plays a part in determining your career plans. Having the security of an immediate back-up plan and financial resources gives you some freedom to take lateral moves or to try different fields of work, even to take on positions with less job security or of a temporary nature with an end date. Having a short-term exit strategy allows you to consider your flexibility to change career direction and to be open to opportunities that you may not have considered. It keeps you striving to develop other aspects of your professional life. A long-term plan is also important as it may keep you in mind of what you would like to accomplish over a career, and to plan your professional life in relation to your personal life.

The idea of the exit strategy is also to inculcate the sense that work is temporary, and is subject to the direction and decision-making ability of those with authority over you. In order to protect yourself, and also to keep yourself motivated to develop, continue to strive to earn your paycheck each week, and each new cycle. Even if it is not, think of your current position as being somewhat precarious, as sickness or disability in fact could change your circumstances, and should be planned for. 

Decide how high up in the organization you wish to progress

As you move into your chosen field, and take on progressive experience, you will take on greater responsibilities commensurate with higher levels of compensation. Usually as you move up, you will become responsible for directing the work of others, assessing the performance, making decisions on training, and taking on responsibility for providing a service or function, or for a unit within a larger group.

You may have been groomed for a higher level internally, meaning the organization has identified you and trained you towards this, or you may have applied, whether internally or externally. It is a good idea to do your due diligence before you take on any new position. Consider what you bring to the new position, and what you would prioritize to learn to best fulfill the new responsibilities. Identify the partners you will work with, and the stakeholders, or those who have an interest in the work you do. Reflect on the mutual fit between the new work environment and structure, and your professional and personal needs.

There is a difference between being a rank and file employee, and to being a supervisor or manager. The relationships you have with your colleagues can still be positive, but it will be wise to keep some distance, and to exercise discretion in who you confide in.

Within the organization, you will have access to new levels of information, and be asked to support larger corporate goals. You may be asked to interpret or enforce policy. This larger perspective can be very gratifying if you have moved up internally, and adds complexity to your decision-making process.

Further to this, consider the impact on work-life balance. As you move up in an organization, you will be able to delegate work, but you will have greater accountability for the actions of others, including their errors. It’s possible that your needs may be to earn as much as possible, but if you have attained a certain level of income that you are comfortable with, and do not anticipate significant needs in future that cannot be planned for, it is not unreasonable to do something of a cost-benefit analysis. Will the additional income and level of work be worth the time spent on the learning curve, and the lasting work reality? For example, more senior levels of employees may be expected to work overtime, and in some cases there is a culture of unpaid overtime. They may be required to travel, or to be mobile for short or longer term assignments, or to be connected and reachable outside of working hours, even if not physically in an office. They may not be able to benefit from flexible work schedules or alternative work arrangements. They may be called on to set an example for work ethic, organizational commitment, compliance to policy, and responsiveness and flexibility to the demands of senior management.

You may not recognize this while you are new in your career, but you will reach a point of stability, in which taking on a new position of greater responsibility will not be worth the expense to other areas of your life. If you do reach a point in which you have gained competence in the position, but in which you continue to struggle with work-life balance, it is possible to take a lateral transfer, seek a specialist or consulting role in which there may be less responsibility for human and financial resources, or to voluntarily move back into a role of lesser responsibility. These may all be preferable to seeking new employment in a different field, or to feeling compelled to resign or take a break to achieve balance. 

It is essential that the organization you work for has a purpose and values that you share

It is possible to look for a job by profession or field, meaning that you plan your education to learn the knowledge, abilities, and skills that will lead to a particular job or trade. It is also possible to seek a job, any job, in a company that interests you, and learn as you go from what they will offer to train you in. In most cases, job-seekers will look to apply what they can contribute and consider the work environment as they undergo interviews. Savvy job-seekers take into consideration the way in which the prospective employer treats them, will consider the employees that they see as they walk through the building in terms of demographics and diversity, will think about the ‘extras’ on site such as parking and lunch options, proximity to amenities, and will generally gain a sense of whether it is a productive workplace with friendly people, or whether people indifferently fulfill their duties and live for the weekend.

It may be that the career you seek has an intrinsic purpose which has drawn you to it, and if this is the case, there will not be a conflict. There are professions in which there is a social good served, or a way of contributing back to humanity, such as in medicine, teaching, social work, or public service. In progressing through a career of this nature, this higher purpose can sustain you through funding changes, external setbacks, or frustrations of bureaucratic processes.

In other cases, to determine the purpose of the organization, the company website should state the overall vision and mission, and through the program statements be able to show how the vision and mission are executed. Knowing the scope of the programs, the clients served, the stakeholders and partners involved, and who benefits from the work of the organization will also let you know more about the purpose, or raison d’etre of the company. Annual reports will talk about the direction of the company, and give some indication of the history, or original purpose.

For you as an employee, it is important to have some interest in the purpose of the organization, as you will reflect this in you interactions with people when you discuss your work life, and affect your reputation and credentials for future endeavours, employment or otherwise. As you work longer in the organization and gain more commitment to it, you will begin to be influenced by the company’s purpose, and become a spokesperson and representative for them in your personal and professional life.

It is not overstating the case to say that your outlook on life, and beliefs will change based on your employer. There is a significant difference between the public and private sector, government and NGO and non-profit/charitable organizations, large multi-national corporate and family-run local businesses. There is also a difference between a unionized and non-unionized environment, and between a place in which the employees invest in the company through share options, and a faith-based organization.

What is less evident is that organizational values that pervade the workplace are similarly important in retaining employees, and on whether employees are able to be productive and motivated.

Similar to the mission and vision, the values or guiding principles may be prominently displayed on a website open to the public, or they may be more quietly promoted through an internal site. These are sometimes in the format of employee expectations, but organizations with a bigger picture will also promote good management and people administration values. Organizations with a separate governance or that are monitored may also work on other principles, such as accountability to stakeholders, which for public sector include Canadian citizens, or for respect for diversity, or fiscal responsibility. Larger corporations may also seek to promote good corporate civic mindedness by sponsoring cultural events or social or educational initiatives.

At the working level, or the day to day reality of the individual employee, organizational values are important, and hit up against issues such as office politics, hiring practices, HR practices, formal and informal recognition of staff performance, training decisions, response to employee dissent. Consider whether there is a spirit of collegiality in the workplace, whether there is respect for all those who work there, and how people are treated who require accommodation or who request special consideration. Are employees generally entrusted with autonomy and to work independently or are they closely supervised? Is there an atmosphere of trust that employees will be able to manage and make reasonable decisions in context, or are there measures in place to ‘police’ the staff? In the communications that are sent to all staff, what is the tone? Are changes in policies and working conditions communicated? Is there an opportunity for input to changes that affect personnel? All of these give an indication of whether the organization views staff in a constructive way to build them up, or whether they would allow a more punitive environment that deals with those who would challenge the existing systems.

Besides the values which may be available in written form, consider whether those in positions of authority exemplify these or other values in a mindful way.