Friday 25 April 2014

Alberta’s Worst Boss 2014

Some great entries to this year’s competition, here are a selection of the best stories:

The boss that told a female employee whilst eating his lunch that he likes working with women because they are hard workers. Pausing to take a large bite of his sandwich he blurted out, "Because women have more to prove".

The boss who when asked by a direct report why his performance marking had been downgraded from very good to poor after 2 months, replied "I don't have to explain myself to you I'm your boss".

The boss who told his team he had some good news and some bad news, the good news was he had got a new job, the bad news was that they were being laid off.

The boss who appointed a manager to a new position, relocating them and their family from Cranbrook to Calgary and then fired them within a week of taking up the post.

The boss who was supposed to the Supervisor of a transport maintenance garage but was discovered by his Area Manager to be also working in a nearby Fast Food diner having already clocked in for work at the garage. This came to light when co-workers complained to the Area Manager that the Supervisor was only ever on site at the beginning and end of shifts. The Area Manager visited the garage to meet with the Supervisor couldn’t find him so went to get a coffee and wait, you’ve guessed it, who served him at the diner? The missing Supervisor!

The boss whose idea of motivating female employees was to pat them on the bottom when passing them in the office. When challenged on this his response was “It’s only my way of motivating them”.

The boss who berated his team for not finishing the recoating of the inside of a furnace and took it upon himself to finish the job. He entered the furnace, shut the door and began the recoating – only to find that he had recoated the door and now couldn’t get out.

The boss who was caught on site putting garbage bags filled with empty beer cans in the back of his truck. When challenged about his reported drinking at work claimed he’d been set up and they weren’t his.

The boss who went home early on the day his team were due to be told they were being laid off leaving his co-worker to break the bad news.




Chart courtesy of the Office Team


The names of the bosses and the story tellers have been omitted to maintain confidentiality, winners of the competition have been notified separately.

Tuesday 22 April 2014

Saying No…

Jane's latest thoughts about "Saying no ..."

"I have just read an extract from the Michael Clayton Book simply entitled “The Yes No Book”.   It made me think about how many times as managers do you actually say no to something?

The word “no” is seen as being uncooperative, negative and unhelpful.  I know that managers that I have coached and worked with in the past have actually had a fear of saying no.  They would continually take on work even though they did not have the capacity to do it well.  This ultimately led to strain and stress, not just on them but also on their teams.  As the work very rarely, if ever, stays solely with the senior manager. 

When we discussed and looked at why they did not say no it was wrapped up in not wanting to appear unhelpful or not wanting to seem as if they couldn’t cope.  I have to say that this attitude pertained more to the women managers that I worked with than their male counterparts.

Michael Clayton has a new spin on the word no; he sees it at an acronym NO meaning Noble Objection, and as Michael says how can anything noble be negative.   If you want to get more information about the book then I suggest you go onto the Michael Clayton website at www.mikeclayton.co.uk.

The main issue for me about the word no is how many managers are unnecessarily burdening themselves or their teams because they have not learnt the art of saying no, (another book I think).  If you see saying no as being empowering and learn to use it in the right way then this is a small word with huge impact.  It will let people understand your point of view more clearly and probably earn you a little ‘street cred’ or should I say ‘office cred’.  One thing is for sure your team will be eternally grateful and they will also see you differently as a manager.  I think the real art is ‘knowing’, when to use it and to not over-use the word.  When all is said and done you don’t want to disempower or weaken the ‘Noble Objection’.


If you have a fear of saying no you might want to start off by softening the blow with “…not at the current time…” or “…we do not have the capacity at the moment…”  I’m not sure if Michael Clayton would approve but at least it is a start.  In my opinion, having worked with numerous managers from first line to senior levels, understanding how your yes/no decisions impact not just on you but also on your team will give you the insight into why using the  noble objection is a skill that you should aim to master."

Tuesday 15 April 2014

Alberta's Worst Boss Contest


We've had some great entries to our "Alberta's Worst Boss 2014 - the worst boss you've ever had" contest and as we're having so much fun reading them we've decided to extend the deadline until 5.00pm Tuesday April 22. So if you haven't entered yet send your "Worst Boss" story to office@bluegem.ca and you may win one of our great prizes.


Tuesday 8 April 2014

‘Sorry Skirt’ culture

Jane's latest thoughts from the dentists surgery. 

"It’s amazing what articles you can come across whilst waiting in the dentist surgery.  In a back issue of Grazia magazine I was intrigued by a debate which was sparked by a comment from Liv Garfield, the recently appointed chief executive of Severn Trent ( a UK Water Company and part of the FTSE 100 index).  In this appointment, Liv Garfield has joined a very exclusive club of women bosses in FTSE 100 organisations, being one of only four women to have achieved this status.

On gaining this undoubtedly hard earned position Liv Garfield, according to Grazia magazine, stated that, ‘to do well in business, you have to ignore the fact that you are female.’  The argument is then taken up by two female business women Amy Molloy (author and entrepreneur) and Helena Morrissey (CEO of Newton Investment Management and founder of the 30% club).

Amy agrees with Liv Garfield and feels that women need to be ‘gender neutral’ in the workplace.  Amy then goes on to discuss the female traits that she leaves until she gets home and those include being gossipy, broody and emotional.  I have to admit that with this description of female traits, it is little wonder that Amy wants no part of it in the workplace.  Amy’s role model, in business, was her father who taught her to leave her personal life at the office door.  I am never totally sure how possible this actually is.  Do people really compartmentalise their lives in such a way that work is work and home is home, or is there a tendency to have a little cross over or leakage of one into the other? 

The one area that I totally agree with that Amy addresses is the propensity for women to over apologise.  This has been a subject or a CiPD study described as the ‘Sorry Skirt’ culture.  The apologetic nature some women have has been attributed to why they find themselves lagging behind in the area of senior management positions.

On the other hand Helena Morrissey fights the corner for women holding onto their femininity in the workplace as, as Helena states, it brings ‘real diversity’ to an organisation. Helena does not see being good at your job, being strong technically and developing oneself as being anti-female.  She recognises that these attributes are essential no matter what gender you are.  Helen contends that women are pressurised to conform in the workplace and that no-one would dream of telling a man to be less male in order for him to succeed.   I have to say on this point I agree.


When it comes down to it, surely the issue is really about being able to bring something new and unique to an organisation?  Essentially being able to be yourself and to bring the expertise required to do your job well and to succeed.  I do not believe that women have to stop being women in order to be successful.  There are a few things that maybe women need to work on, such as the over apologising.  However, being female and feminine is not something that should be looked down on or frowned upon.  The terms leader and woman are not mutually exclusive, we just have to get organisations to recognise that."

Thursday 3 April 2014

"Worst Boss You've Ever Had" Contest

Next week we will exhibiting at the HRIA Conference at the BMO Centre in Calgary (Booth 217), on April 9-10. During the Conference we will be running the "Worst Boss You've Ever Had" Contest, with some great prizes. All you need to do to enter is send a short video of yourself telling the story of the 'Worst Boss You've Ever Had". 


Don't worry you don't need to give the persons name just explain what they said or did to get your nomination. Entries to office@bluegem.ca, winner will be announced on Friday April 11.


Tuesday 1 April 2014

Onboarding Checklist

In the last in our series on on boarding new leaders we look at a practical checklist that can be followed to help make on boarding successful. 

In their book The Total Onboarding Program; George Bradt & Ed Bancroft outline a detailed approach for bringing new employees and recently promoted employees up to speed in much less than the regular time and how to inspire and enable new employees to deliver better results faster on the job. These principles are easily adaptable to new leaders too.

Align: Organizations must agree on the need for a new team member and delineate a clear role.
Acquire: Organizations have the responsibility to identify, recruit, select, and bring in the right people to join the team.
Accommodate: Organizations must give new team members the tools they need to do the work.
Assimilate: Organization must help new team members join with others to work effectively.
Accelerate: Organizations must support new team members and their teams’ efforts to deliver better results faster.


Set out below is a quick checklist of some key points to consider as part of the
onboarding process to get your new leader up and running as soon as possible and avoid the pitfalls identified on page 2 of this guide:
Obvious but often overlooked - Administrative/hygiene factors to address:
 Parking permit
 Company ID
 Paychecks
 Enrollment in benefits programs
 Family relocation concern
 Workplace familiarity – washrooms, restaurant, Health & Safety requirements
 Introductory announcements
Building Relationships
Guide the new leader in building robust relationships with:
 The person to whom the new leader reports
 Key company & union leadership
 Internal stakeholders
 External stakeholders
 Direct reports
 Indirect reports
Understanding Culture
Advise the new leader on:
 Employment sector e.g. Oil Sands, Construction, Servicing
 The company vision, values and strategy
 Company culture (current and aspirational)
 Unit culture
 How the leader’s role integrates with, or challenges, the existing cultures
 Assessing the situation in which the new leader will operate
Achieving Results
Dialogue with the new leader about:
 Organizational goals
 Stakeholder expectations
 Creating integrated, aligned performance goals
 Communicating performance goals with the person to whom new leader reports and direct reports
 Quick wins