As a boss, the focus should remain on work and not sustaining
and maintaining personal relationships within the workplace.
Work is work and play is play, and time spent at work needs
to remain focused on work. In terms of the interpersonal,
interoffice relationships formed, both boss and employee need
to interact and coexist as human beings, but they must work
together to complete a common goal, which is why both were
hired in the first place. There should be mutual respect, courtesy
and friendliness.
The Inside Track
Bosses are privy to more inside information than their employees.
Friendship is supposed to be about honesty, and that isn’t always
possible when a boss is supposed to withhold or put off sharing
information with their employees.
Evaluations, managing progress, motivating change, and
facilitating that change are all things expected of a boss. They are
not necessarily things expected of your friends. Hiring and salary
information should never be shared from a boss to an employee
not directly affected by the information being shared.
PRoduCTs
ComPany
For a boss, firing or letting employees go is never easy. When it’s
a friend, it’s especially hard. Being a boss means doing what needs
to be done to make the business grow. Sometimes that means
doing things that aren’t easy like reprimanding employees when
they’ve done something wrong, or making tough decisions like
pay-cuts. When friendship is in the mix, it’s hard not to feel like
it’s personal.
Working off of gut instincts and chemistry aren’t the best
practices to apply in boss-employee relationships. A boss should
strive to be a well-respected leader and the type of boss employees
respect; someone they feel inspired by and proud to work for. It’s
inevitable that a boss will like some employees more than others.
However, it is vital that he or she strike the right balance with
clearly defined relationships that are based upon performance,
respect and the commitment to work together toward reaching
a common work goal. The result will be a great working work
relationship.
Story by Megan McClure
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