The Opinionated Workplace

Different people place very different levels of importance on almost every aspect of their job. Some people really like public recognition, some people like flexibility, some people like to be told exactly what to do.

For some people it’s very important that they have the opportunity to share their opinions. It’s not so much that they expect a lot to be done about it, but they like to be heard. They like to be able to share their opinion with a captive audience. It’s not necessarily that they are venting, but they believe that if they speak their mind and share ideas that at some point they will have an impact. (At least that’s what the realistic view is. Some people do expect things to happen immediately, but more often than not they’re just kidding themselves.)

But sometimes it turns into venting. And that’s what I have a problem with. I’m listening to our office ventor right now. He’s not talking to his supervisor in a private setting, he’s setting at his desk along with another coworker and his supervisor. My office is at the other end of the building and I can hear the whole thing. Which means everyone else can too.

There is nothing any of those people can do for what he’s upset about. If he actually expects anything to get done, he’s talking to the wrong people. What he wants is agreement. He wants his coworker and supervisor to agree with him. I’ll give props to his supervisor, who is making some effort to explain the situation and why it is the way it is, but it’s easy to tell that he does actually agree.

You might wonder what’s wrong with that. What’s wrong with venting a little? The issue is that he’s talking about specific people. One person for the most part, but he even included the president of the company as one of the guys who are “screwing the company.”

Everyone is entitled to their opinion. But in my workplace, you are not entitled to spread dissention without following the proper channels first. We have a written open door policy. There is also a policy that directs people higher up the ladder in those cases where someone doesn’t think enough is being done.

We’re all under enough stress as it is. We don’t need people adding to it. They could very well had a legitimate concern, and in our office they have the right to voice that opinion, but there are acceptable ways to do it.

You also might be wondering why I don’t do anything about it. Technically, I don’t have much ‘pull’ in the office. My assistant is the only office employee who reports to me. If I continue to work here for a few years, I will probably end up supervising everyone at this facility, but until then I need to let the people with that responsibility do their job. In this case, everyone has been working together for at least 3 years and they know this guy is a loud mouth. Because of that I think there is less impact than if there were newer employees overhearing it. There are always new employees in the shop and I don’t put up with venting. I’m sure I don’t know about most of it, but because of that I know it’s not bad enough for me to step in.

 

So why did I write this? Mostly because I’m bored and needed something to write about. But also to gather my thoughts and hopefully have a more refined response to problems like this in the future.