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The Importance of Communication’s Role in Preventing Bias-Based Discrimination at Work

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If you ve ever been in a position where you need to job hunt, you may be familiar with some of these questions that could have run through your mind during the process.

What kind of people will I have to work with? What if I don t fit in there? Will my manager give me time to settle in? – the list goes on and you likely never got the answers to these questions until you actually joined the job and worked there yourself. 

While figuring things out along the way has been the norm so far, the world is changing and people just don t have time or the resources to end up in the wrong job or in an environment that isn t suitable for them. 

So, what s the solution? For starters, it would be nice to have an idea of what your workplace really looks like before you step in. To do that, you need to first understand what s important when figuring out if a company is right for you.

So, here are some factors you should keep in mind when choosing the right place for you to work and grow in – let s get started!

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Communication is Open and Transparent

Very often, you d notice that most of the workplace bias happens through comments and remarks that seem innocent, but always have subtle meanings to them. Those back-handed compliments and patronizing remarks are what lead to hostile work environments, where some people are forced to feel out of place.

The feeling of “unbelonging” will naturally make people feel a significant amount of what s known as Imposter syndrome , which will inevitably affect their overall performance in the long run. 

So, how should these problems be tackled in the first place? To begin with, the manager or head needs to be vocal when it comes to addressing such issues.

Instead of sweeping things under the rug until it blows up in a huge way, it s important to address the small issues as and when they take place. Very often, people hate confrontation, especially when it comes to topics such as workplace discrimination. 

When there are open and transparent conversations around these issues, and the existing problems are addressed and dealt with immediately, the space automatically becomes less toxic and more equal for everyone present.

All it really takes is some honesty, openness, and decency to tackle such issues before they lead to bigger problems. 

Everyone Has a Voice 

As much as it s important for those who are running the company to be vocal about their beliefs and values when it comes to equality, it s also important for the employees to be given a voice, and a chance to speak up for themselves when needed. 

For example, there are some companies where it s almost impossible for a fresher or new employee to voice their opinions or even share their concerns about issues relating to them or their jobs. Such an environment will not only make an individual feel stifled but will also restrict them from openly talking about any bias they may have faced. 

Though this isn t always the case, there is some truth behind the fact that bias-based discriminations at work take place primarily because the affected individuals don t have a voice or a situation where they can safely discuss these issues.

Very often, they feel like talking about these problems may end up adversely affecting them, and free speech automatically becomes an impossible solution. 

These are serious issues, and can greatly affect one s mental health, especially if they re unable to leave the company and shift to a new one. This may happen if the person has had to travel a long way, find accommodation, and spend a lot of money on relocating to the new place, because leaving it immediately will not be feasible. 

That is why it s important to know what the workplace, culture, employees, and management is like before stepping into a company. For instance, using sites like JobSage will help people make informed decisions when joining a workforce because they can read about the first-hand experiences of people who have previously worked in the same environment. 

Problems are Discussed

No matter where people come from, it s safe to assume that everyone grew up with certain stereotypes in their minds. However, as adults, individuals need to work on these issues and break free from them to avoid unconsciously treating people differently or showing bias, especially at work. 

It s important for employers to be vocal when it comes to educating their employees on the need for equality and unity in the workplace. Assuming that these are things that everyone already knows is usually not a good idea, because some individuals may be biased without even realizing it.

Through open conversations that discuss these problems, most companies will be able to set some ground rules and prevent anybody from being discriminated against in the workplace. 

The post The Importance of Communication’s Role in Preventing Bias-Based Discrimination at Work appeared first on Jobacle.com.

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“How Do You Define Success?” Tips & Example Answers
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3 Types Of Questions You Should Ask At The End Of Job Interviews
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3 Types Of Questions You Should Ask At The End Of Job Interviews

3 Types Of Questions You Should Ask At The End Of Job Interviews

There are three types of questions I teach all of my career coaching clients to ask when they are in an interview. These three questions are especially important when you’re in those final stage interviews with higher-ups. If you ask these critical questions, you are going to be seen as more intelligent, more engaging, and the candidate who will give them the return on the investment they’re looking for if they hire you.

At the end of your next job interview, make sure you ask the following three questions so you can stand out as the best candidate for the job.

1. A Connection Question

When you get to the end of the interview and the hiring manager says, “Do you have any questions?” the first type of question you want to ask is a connection question. This type of question allows you to ask them about their experience at the company. Here are some examples:

  • How did you get your job here?
  • What do you like most about working here?
  • What’s the most impactful part of your job?

I particularly like the connection question around how they ended up in their job and what they like most about it because it gives the hiring manager a chance to talk about their own professional journey and people enjoy sharing that.

2. A Question About The Company’s Challenges

Man asks about the company in a job interview

The second type of question you want to ask should be about the company’s difficulties and challenges. Here are some examples:

  • What is the greatest challenge your department will face this year?
  • What do you think is the biggest challenge the company will face this year?

Then, you end the question with this:

  • And how will the role that I am interviewing for help overcome that challenge?
  • And how would the job I’d be doing positively impact overcoming that challenge?

By asking this type of question, you’re saying, “I get it. You’re hiring me to solve problems and alleviate pain. So tell me about the big challenges.” In fact, I’ve even coached people to say:

  • Can you tell me the one thing that’s keeping you up at night with respect to the business? And how will the job that I’m doing help with that?

No matter how you phrase it, this type of question lets the hiring manager vent and talk about what concerns them, and it also gives you the framework of what you would need to do in order to succeed in the role.

3. A Question About Next Steps In the Process

Woman shakes hands with the hiring manager before a job interview

The third and final type of question that is so important to ask in a job interview is about the next steps in the process. Here are some examples:

  • Can you tell me what the next steps in this hiring process process are?
  • Can you tell me what I can expect going forward in this hiring process?
  • Can you tell me how you feel about me as a candidate for this role? And is there anything else you feel I could provide for you that would help me stand out? Because I’m really interested in the job.

This closing question is all about you getting to the bottom of what to expect (managing your own expectations), and the hiring manager should be able to frame that out for you.

I’ve given you a few different examples of how to ask these questions because everyone has to find their own voice. So, at the end of your next job interview, remember to ask these three types of questions (we’ll call them the three Cs), and ask them in a way that feels right to you:

  1. Connection question
  2. Challenge question
  3. Closing question

When you ask these questions consistently, you’re going to see much better results from your interviews. I guarantee it.

Good luck, and go get ’em!

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Dealing With Uncertainty: 3 Stand-Out Capabilities You Need In Every Team
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Dealing With Uncertainty: 3 Stand-Out Capabilities You Need In Every Team

One of the biggest issues in managing large, complex, or high-profile pieces of work including change and transformation projects is that you have to continually be on the lookout for, what I will call, half-baked problems or early warning signals that indicate challenges may be on their way—this while simultaneously leading, building, and delivering what is in your remit right now.

If you are a change project leader or tasked with leading and delivering big change in all or a part of your organisation, while balancing your many (read many!) day-to-day activities, you must also balance monitoring for early warning signals.

What do I mean by early warning signals?

As an example, any activity, new piece of information, or behaviour from a senior stakeholder that catches your attention because the information is at odds, surprising, or inconsistent with your current understanding of the context (and details) of your transformation work.

For instance, if there is a sudden change in senior leadership in the organization, pay momentary attention and ask yourself, ‘What does this mean for the transformation work in my remit?’ The answer decides if there is impact, no impact, or a need for action by you, such as continuing to monitor closely.

Early warning signals are one of the best sources of information on potential problems, risks and threats to your work’s success. Signals are indications of potential, unexpected change that might hit your work, project or complex activities. You need to monitor the horizon continuously to know what might be coming ‘down the barrel at you.’

What To Do?

Team meets at work

So, what to do when you are so busy with your day job to also fit in this extra layer of horizon scanning or monitoring?

If you are able to and your budget allows, surrounding yourself with a team of capable colleagues will help you build additional capacity to get the work done and to help monitor these half-baked problems and early warning signs.

It’s important to work out how to monitor what might be coming at you and your project because being prepared will mean you will likely nail anywhere up to 9/10 problems and mean you will rarely be caught off guard.

While not 100% fail-safe, monitoring the horizon for early warning signs of what might be coming means you stay more in control of your project overall and are able to reassure your stakeholders and sponsor of the same as well.

Stand-Out Capabilities You Want In Your Team

Team members discuss a problem during a work meeting

In my experiences in the trenches working on distressed or big complex projects in multiple industries, where uncertainty rules, there are three recurring stand-out capabilities in people I have worked with that can make a difference to your success including pre-empting half-baked problems. You may want to read more about distressed projects and teams by reading my blog post “6-Point Checklist For Taking Over A ‘Distressed’ Project & Team” here.

The stand-out people are those with the motivation to do a good job, are able to join the dots in the project without full information, and are great at pivoting in uncertainty.

You might be surprised that I don’t mention, out of the gate, stand-out skills like knowledge or experience. In truth and in my own experience these are not the most important, at least initially. Skills and experiences can often be acquired including during high-pressure, big, complex, project work. I know because I had a brand new team start with me as part of the Brexit Transfer—choosing people who were not the most experienced but were motivated, could join the dots, and were able to pivot quickly and regularly.

So, let’s go through each of the three stand-out capabilities in a bit more detail:

Stand-Out Capability #1 – Motivated

stay motivated, motivation concept

What I am talking about here is what drives the person in their day job. Some are driven to do their day job and others are driven by doing more than their day job without being asked. These people are what I would call natural-born problem solvers who are driven beyond just doing their day-to-day activities.

Nothing is externally imposed on creating this person’s motivation; rather the motivation comes from a place deep within the individual. They are driven beyond usual incentives rather they are driven by a higher-order goal that is beyond a paycheck (although this is important). I would best describe these people as going the extra mile without being asked to.
This is not necessarily about asking people to constantly go the extra mile. Your job as a leader is to make sure things remain as balanced as possible within the team and effort, but having the attitude tells you something about the sort of person you could potentially have as a colleague and on your team. And when you are restricted by size of the team, you have a small, tight-knit team, and in truth, there is little room for people who are not prepared to go the extra mile.

Stand-Out Capability #2 – Able To Join Dots

connect the dots geometric concept

People who join dots (connect information that doesn’t look like it connects but eventually you see it does) are able to join together information from different sources to build a clearer picture of something that is yet to reveal itself completely (like a half-baked problem or material risk that is yet to gain momentum).

This skill is invaluable in helping to pre-empt and deal with problems that are yet to ‘grow legs,’ that is problems that could become much bigger.

Colleagues with the ability to join the dots are able to see what may be almost invisible to most others. These are people who can work comfortably even without full information and yet have a sense of what to scan, what to ask ‘why’ about, what to watch out for, and how to act if things change, that is more or pivot quickly. They are able to see the small silver balls of mercury and are able to look and sometimes find the energy that may push each individual silver ball into a larger pool of silver mercury—that is a problem with legs in our analogy.

So, this capability to join the dots will always surpass knowledge and experience in my book. Of course, it would be ideal to have both types of colleagues in your team—those that are new, with fresh eyes on a problem, and those who might be more experienced and knowledgeable. This would then, however, require all to get on as a team to build trust to share information freely otherwise having all this knowledge and ability won’t bring out a great result. This bit, managing a team well, is up to you as manager or leader. By the way, skills can be trained but attitudes like motivation and an inner drive to understand and do a great job are not so easily trained or found.

Hence why I would always go with motivation over skills when selecting a team.

Stand-Out Capability #3 – Able To Pivot

pivot, strategy change concept

I define pivoting as an ability to turn or rotate fast. Pivoting is like watching velvet that moves. The feel of velvet is soft and sophisticated for some, and this is what I mean by pivoting in this context. People who can pivot are essentially able to effortlessly move from one task to another, from one piece of work to another, without any angst or stress. Velvety. Rather they appear as soon as they are needed even though they may have been very busy already.

Final word

As motivation is the hardest to recruit for and identify in your colleagues, the best way to find out what motivates a person is to ask them: ‘What are the top five things that motivate you?’ You will find that while money or financial reward is in the top five, it is not necessarily number one of the top five. Interesting, right?

Another important success factor is to make sure you select people who are naturally comfortable with change. Make sure you spend time understanding if your potential team member does not like or deal well with uncertainty in the workplace or in their day job; rather they prefer stability—nothing wrong with this by the way—but this means they may not necessarily be suited to the energetic demands of pressure and uncertainty coming out of a big project.

So, keep this in mind when building or assessing your potential team members. Make sure you match a person’s personal environment preferences (busy, stable, chaotic, calm) with their preferences. These are important factors in successfully embedding someone in your team and an important factor in the project’s ultimate success.

Summary

Team members shake hands after a work meeting

As a leader or manager of large pieces of work that are surrounded by uncertainty, it is important to continually scan the horizon for emerging risks and impending problems. This is a vital capability that needs to sit alongside your many other responsibilities and skills.

It is in your best interest to surround yourself with a capable team that can provide additional capacity to you either to scan the horizon with you or for you to delegate some of your other work so you can dedicate more time to scanning, assessing, and mitigating problems that might be coming your way.

I would love to hear what you think and how you handle scanning for early warning signals in your change work and projects.