Rifts in partners
I am a senior at the firm I work at and since I am a partner there, I get to appraise the juniors. In my firm, the appraisal is done in pairs and I have never got along very well with my partner. My partner does have a tendency to show favouritism while I am more objective in my appraisal. As a result, we tend to disagree a lot. Just because you like a certain individual more does not mean that you give them a good appraisal unless they actually deserve it. He feels that I am being too critical and only look at facts and figures rather than the hard work put in by the employees. I don’t know who is right and what to do but this disagreement between us really bothers every time appraisal season comes. Please help me.
Ans: There are apparent differences in the style of functioning between you and your partner. Discussing about your way of evaluating can help him understand you better. There need not be a single evaluation parameter, you both can rate the employees individually and then average it out, or you can probably look for better alternatives for evaluation if it is causing too much of stress and discord between you both.
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Career conflicts
I’m a casting director by profession. I also produce movies and encourage new talent from the industry. One of my close friend’s father is making a movie and wants me as the casting director. However, I do not wish to get involved in this project. If I say yes, then I know I’ll hardly have any say in the casting since they end up casting from the family and use the movie as launch-pads for their own kids/nephews or family friends. Whereas, I like to experiment and get new talent on-board. How do I work around this situation?
Ans: You can start by being assertive and standing up for your beliefs. Work and personal relationships need to be kept separate from each other. You can state your conditions to work as a professional right at the beginning and draw lines as to how much interference will be tolerated by you from the other team members. Accommodating others view without your bias towards them involving the family members can help you look at the new actors in a neutral way. You can then judge them professionally and not under the impression of them being someone’s son or daughter.
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Looks shadowing hardwork
I am working in a multinational company in the audit department. I really like my job and plan to continue at this company as I see a lot of growth and improvement for me here. I have always been a pretty tall girl and have a model like figure and looks. Due to this, my hard work always gets overshadowed by my looks. I am always complimented on how ‘beautiful’ I look and every time I approach my young supervisor, he tells me that I should have been a model and not got into something as dry and uninteresting as audit. I don’t know whether this is some kind of harassment or bullying but I feel very offended every time someone tells me what I should be doing instead of what I am currently doing. Why can’t people see past the ‘pretty face’? How do I let people know that I am more than that and show them that I am serious about my work even though I have been nothing but dedicated and my growth curve has been steadily rising?
Ans: A change in perception towards these compliments can brighten your day rather than making it dull. If growth chart shows progress and few people can’t look beyond your looks then being upset about will only lead to your unhappiness. Keep working and excelling in your own way and do not let these comments affect your work performance.
