[Closed] Corporate Life - how do you survive it?

Senior people may well think youre after their job,

I decided I couldnt abide corporate shennanigans and being evaluated on face time and fitting in, rather than technical skill and delivery....so quit and went freelance.

best thing I ever did. I sell my tech skill into clients without having to give a monkeys about the long political game or sucking up to some slippery bastard who's standing on the shoulders of those he works with.

I work half the hours for twice the income now and can concentrate on my skills not the politics.

Anyone here who's risen up the ranks got any helpful pointers??

I like to do what I believe is right and prefer to be honest than a player

Lose this.

I worked in a "corporate" for 33 years and I don't think I have any idea what you are talking about. Pound-to-a-penny it's simple paranoia on your part. What makes you think anyone at a "Senior" level cares enough about you to like or dislike you?

Sadly in my experience it's more about what the top bods think of you that gets you moved up rather than hard work or actually being good at your job (obviously those things help too)

If you are too good at your job you'll find that you will be too valuable in that role and won't be moved up at all.

[i]I like to do what I believe is right and prefer to be honest than a player - not to the point of rudeness or total stupidity but certainly enough I think to stand out.[/i]

This.

It really does depend on the quality of your senior management but it's always worth while keeping in mind that intelligence/ability weren't necessarily reasons they climbed the ladder. In a lot of corporate enviornments i have worked in it's not your ability but your willingness to fit in and play the game that allows you to rise up through the ranks.

Whether you can do that which may well mean compromising and not necessarily being as outspoken/honest as you are now is up to you.

[b]I like to do what I believe is right[/b] and prefer to be honest than a player - not to the point of rudeness or total stupidity but certainly enough I think to stand out.

[url= http://www.all-acronyms.com/cat/7/FIFO/Fit_In_or_****_Off/1157368 ]Your advice, sir[/url]

Bureaucratic skills ... don't leave home without it.

In a bureaucratic world you either step on someone hard or being stepped on yourself. I am probably the latter as a lowly ranked maggot being squeeze ...

If you feel its important to say what you think is right, then how right have you been proven?
if you have a proven track record of being right then youll be noticed for good things.
If your strong views are not valuable then youll be stupid to keep thinking you are right.

[i]Anyone here who's risen up the ranks got any helpful pointers?? [/i]

I've not but I understand why and I understand how easy it is to go down that path.

I'll sum up if I can.

1. You said the word technical. That's a very bad word to use around senior management. Think big crayons and cloud pictures, now you're getting to their level of understanding.

2. Truth. Again, this is a bad word around senior management. Try 'Your Truth' if you like but it's a subject best avoided to be honest. Morals and honesty are not things that have a long lifespan at that level of the game.

3. Money. This is what matters. If you could sell your grandmother for 20p would you do it? If not then senior management is not for you.

4. Rudeness and Stupidity. Now you're getting it. These things work really well. Be really rude, and stupid. The more of these things you are, the more important people will assume you are. After all, unsuccesful people can't afford to be rude. And people who actually do any work can't afford to be stupid. I bet it's all making sense now,.

5. Arses. They're there to be kissed. Stop pretending you know more than your managers, you don't because they're in charge. If they say do it, a quick dob of the forelock and getting on it is the right thing to do. It's probably the wrong thing to do but your enthusiasm will be noted. And that's what's important.

6. Loyalty. The most important thing you can do to get on. Your boss could be saying it's time to eat diesel fuel and although you may have a vague incliing this is not right, just agree with him. He controls your wages rise and your prospects. If he knows he's wrong but you still agree with him, that's extra points.

7. Manipulation. You're freaking awesome at your job and you want to change the status quo. You could suggest things to your boss and he'll tell you you're an idiot (mainly because he didn't think of it). Bad plan.

OK, here's how to make it happen. Plant a seed. Suggest that method A of doing something might be a good idea but you really can't understand the options. Come the next day your boss will have applied his massive brain to it and will havew come up with option A because he's dead smart. He gets to be good with his boss, you get to be good with him, you get the job done that you want. It's what Charlie Sheen would call a winner.

8. Last one. Bullshit. This is what makes the world turn, trust me. If it sounds good, it doesn't matter in the slightest if it is rubbish, it sounds good and that's all that matters to the people at the top. If you want to sell an idea, make sure it has flashing lights, dancing girls and decorated llamas associated with it.

HTH.

In a corporation your job is to make your boss look good to his boss.

Your future depends on your boss's boss's boss realising you have these skills, thus enabling you to leapfrog up the ranks.

Then start the process again.

Anything else is just padding.

it is a choice.

In a lot of corporate enviornments i have worked in it's not your ability but your willingness to fit in and play the game that allows you to rise up through the ranks.

Senior managers are usually a safe pair of hands. If you want to get on you need to prove that you are too. Everyone says they don't do politics but the most successful do politics in a way that looks like they don't.

Funnily enough I left a corporate position to work in the public sector as I figured it would be more wholesome, I was not expecting an increase in political behaviour but that's what I found.

As with Stoner I'll be freelance in a couple of years time and selling my skills back to the sector without having to deal with all of the crap.

I think it's generally peers stabbing each other in the back, or just being very competative, sometimes to the detriment of the company, that is a bigger issue.

The trick is to do things how you want to do them, but make the management think they thought of it

I worked for JPMorgan Chase up until a few years ago and can't help but feel that you're reading your situaution wrong.

Senior management have nothing against you and there isn't some sort of overarching conspiracy against you. Rather, they don't even realise you exist.

HTH.

go work for a small company, 5 peeps when i joined, 14 now.

still no politics and BS as yet 🙂

Either freelance or work for a small company. It's the way to go.

I like to do what I believe is right and prefer to be honest than a player - not to the point of rudeness or total stupidity but certainly enough I think to stand out.

Me too though though maybe I'll temper that with saying that you have to bite your lip sometimes rather than actually saying what you're thinking if you've already made your pov clear and it's obvious that more senior people aren't going to change their minds.. Most of the time though I'll say exactly what I think and I'm told that that's seen as a positive in me by the most senior people I deal with. On that basis, I'd suggest that some companies are better/worse than others and that maybe you're just in one of the bad ones that values 'yes' people...

... by being the fittest!

[img] [/img]

ah, but remember TSY, it is not the fittest, but the most adaptable. 🙂

Brooses, meant to chip in on this a while ago, sorry for delay. I'm sure you will sleep better with my input... ahem 😉

FWIW, here's my top tips that work for me:

1) Do your job and do it well, don't worry about others except your 'customers' for whom you are doing the work. Inc. your boss (you don't have to do it the way they want, as long as they get the outcome they want)

2) be adaptable to change, accept it and find out how you can best support (not change who you are, but be prepared to adapt what you are doing - I see this alot, people get very precious about the work they do)

3) if you are not a natural politician, don't try to be. It will kill you. it almost killed me until I accepted 1 and 2 above

4) If you really don't like it, get out. I reckon I've a 5 more years, then like above I will sell my skills and knowledge back to them.

I tried to do the whole maneuvering thing, as it was what everyone did, and it made me miserable. Moved last year to focusing on just doing a really good job again and it felt great, and you WILL get recognized for it. Also, those that are shitty WILL get what is coming to them. It may take a while, but it does eventually come up and bite them on the arse. Normally when leadership changes. And that, is a lovely day. 🙂

HTH!
Kev

Lol at samuri

I'm SO glad I don't need to bother with all this crap . . .