A third of people believe they could do a better than their boss

A third of people believe they could do a better than their bossA third of people believe they could do a better than their bossComparablyrecently releaseda studyrevealing opinions we sometimes keep to ourselves- what we truly think about our managers performance at work.The data was from 20,000 workers employed at small, mid-size, and large public and private tech companies. With numbers of participants saying that they think they could do the job better, pointing out areas they think their higher-ups need to work on, changes they would make and more, the study took it took a pretty candid look at whats really going on inside some employees minds. Among the findings, here are some that stood out.Who says they could do a better job than their bossHeres the kicker- the studyprovided a breakdown of who thinks they would be better suited for their managers position. Here are some of them.Among the findings, 34% of women thought they could do a better job if they were in their managers shoes, compared to 36% of men.In terms of education, 32% of workers with a Bachelors degree felt this way, versus 53% of those whose education did not progress past high school.In terms of department, at the high end were people in Business Development (53%), Legal (45%) and Sales (43%). Some of the people who were not as likely to feel like this were those in Finance (31%), Engineering (30%) and HR (24%), among others.Who says they could tell the boss what he or she is doing wrongThe department breakdownby gender also stood out.The men who fruchtwein frequently reported being ok with this were in customer support (70%) and HR (77%), while the ones all the way at the bottom of the other end were employees working in legal (38%).Among the findings, at the top of the heap in the womens category were those with executive jobs (68%), those in engineering (66%, matched with 66% of men in that department), and women in customer support (66%).But women in these departments were on the othe r end, appearing to be the least likely to report saying they were comfortable telling their bosses what wasnt working geschftliches miteinander development (48%) and legal (39%), among others.The studysaid that just over 60% of participants reported being comfortable supplying their manager with negative feedback, with 58% of women reporting this versus 64% of men.Bernard Marr writes on LinkedInabout how to tell someone (like your boss) that they are wrong- without getting fired.Once youve decided that you do need to speak up, think very carefully about when and how. If at all possible, speak to your boss in private, so theres no chance you will embarrass him in front of others. Correcting your boss in front of a client or in front ofhisboss is probably the worst possible time, because your boss has the most at stake, Marr writes.Where workers say bosses can do betterWhen askedabout the top thing they want their managers to work on, communication came in first place, with 50% of me n and 48% of women picking this choice, 20% of both groups, respectively, reporting accountability, 14% of men and 15% of women reporting positivity, 9% of both groups, respectively, picking honesty, and 7% of men and 8% of women choosing work ethic.Thirty-nine percent of women and 31% of men said their managers were negatively influencing their employers culture, among other conclusions in this category.It looks like respondents also had topics in mind when asked what their first change would be if they were in charge.Better vision/strategy claimed the highest percentage of respondents, then improve office culture, followed by paying people more, then make a better product and then slashing expenses, among other findings.Managers, instead of just bashing you, heres a word of practical advice on how to communicate well with your employees, according toan article by David Krantz in EntrepreneurMany companies have a culture of looking for the positives and avoiding calling out and dis cussing the negatives.Great companies focus on what is not going well so they can dig in and get better. This approach allows employees to feel they have a say in their companys culture and their ideas are valued, Krantz writes.With all the time we spend at work each week, this study confirms that some employees have ideas about how things could be handled better by their supervisors.

This startups management problems can teach companies how to treat people better

This startups management problems can teach companies how to treat people betterThis startups management problems can teach companies how to treat people betterOn Tuesday, Racked published a blockbuster expos on the corporate culture of Thinx, a startup devoted to creating period-proof underwear for women. Its a doozy. Thinx was co-founded by Miki Agrawal, who recently stepped downfrom two positions at companies she founded CEO of Thinx and the pee-proof underwear company Icon, wzu siche she adopted the title SHE-E-O instead of CEO.Agrawal has made a business out of branding feminism onto her products. Thinx becamewell-known in New York City for its provocative advertisements of suggestively cut fruit. UnderThinxs capitalist form of feminism, Thinx is not just selling a menstrual product, but patriarchy-proof underwear. The company has also taken its ardently feminist approach overseasIn January, Thinx launched a nonprofitbranch that will support education for girls in Sri Lanka and India.These sound like sound corporate values for a startup dedicated to products for women - but according to employees who talked to Racked, Thinx didnt quite live up to the values it touted. The employees claim a damning disconnect between the company line and their personal experiences. Ladders has reached out to Thinx for comment and will update accordingly when we get a response.Here are the big lessons we can learn from their cautionary tales.Dont be ageist Oh youre in your twenties, you dont need a lot of money.Employees are paid according to experience, not according to age - and in fact, age discrimination is illegal. While in practice, that affects older workers mora, younger workers should also be treated with dignity at work.In salary negotiations, Agrawal would go back to the fact that were young, and just be like, Oh, youre in your 20s. You dont need a lot of money, according to one former employee. Several Thinx employees said they took a pay cut below the market-r ate of their jobs because they believed in Agrawals vision. A second employee confirmed the hostility in salary negotiations, saying Agrawal acted like it was selfish to take a salary representative of your worth.This is coming from an executive who recently lamentedabout the cray stats women in the workforce face, including the how the gender pay gap across all occupations is close to 76%. (For those unfamiliar, cray is slang for crazy.)Even worse, not all employees faced the same pressure in salary negotiations employees said the only people who were able to successfully negotiate for more money were the companys white men, creating an atmosphere of favoritism. As a recent study proved, favoritism in the workplace promotes toxic rivalries and can cause employees to quit.Being a good manager means every employee should be able to negotiate for more money. It also means companies should not use age or gender as dividing lines in pay and stick to experience and performance. One relie ved former employee said quitting was the feminist decision.Crossing personal boundaries I need smiley faces. I need exclamation points. I need love in your voice.The common thread in many of the complaints made against Agrawal washow she continuously crossed interpersonalboundaries, expecting employees to be her friends rather than workers devoted to a common goal. That meant Agrawal even policed employees moods, former workers said.Agrawal seemed intent on building a chirpy corporate culture. She discussed her need for smiley faces and love in her employees voices as a positive parte of Thinxs looser corporate culture on a Forbes podcast.This might be too much to ask. Companies can ask employees to show dedication, but demanding a certain emotional state at all times can be, ironically, dehumanizing. Employees should save love for - people they actually love, like friends and family. At work, respect and kindness is more than enough.https//twitter.com/s_m_i/status/841736804793380 864Live your valuesDescribing her companys culture, Agrawal said she promoted direct discussion If you have an issue, dont go talk to someone else about it. Go talk directly to the person about it. Face them, because that builds courage for yourself. Hashtag adulting.There are two problems with that policy.The first is that talking down to employees with glib reference to social media memes cheapens them. The adulting hashtag on Twitter and Facebook is frequently ironic, and its condescending.The second problem employees said Agrawal couldnt follow her own advice. When employees talked to her, she complained about it.When Thinxs staff helda come-to-Jesus meeting last March about their reduction in benefits, Agrawal accused her workers of staging a coup.The company had no formal human resources department, and this was a situation where some clear-eyed mediation could help translating between the feelings of a CEO and the pay expectations of workers.In the meeting where Agrawal said she was stepping down as CEO, Thinx leadership said they were going to finally hire an employee to handle human resources.Know the line between warmth and emotional manipulationIn her origin story for The Cut, Agrawal recounted how she turned atenuous connection withan investor into a real connection by pretending there was a bond between them and telling him she was proud of him.Its a technique she still uses I often find myself saying things like, Im proud of you. It implies familial bond, like a proud parent.While positive reinforcement is strong, managers should watch the intent behind it the office is for work, and home is for parenting. A CEO that tries to parent employees may be crossing a line.The use of emotional bonds to manage someone can take on a Machiavellian tinge, a Harvard Business Review article reminds us- if bosses develop a friendship because it might serve them.Agrawal signing professional emailsLOVE YOU Xoxo for instance, would cross a line in many companies. The emotional string-pulling went further. Racked reported that Agrawal orderedthree employees to write positive reviews on Glassdoor, a popular careers website. The goal, she suggested, was to contradict other reviews calling her Trump-like and filled with Stalin-like paranoia. Agrawals pressure on employees went beyond encouragement she said to one employee who didnt want to write a positive review that there was no other option. Thats a scary thing to hear from someone who controls your paycheck.In response to this story, Glassdoor reached out to Ladders to emphasize that, although employers can request honest balanced reviews, incentivizing employees to leave positive reviews is not allowed. If we learn of such a situation, we conduct a thorough investigation and remove content in question where needed.A company for women with terrible maternity leave and employees unable to afford birth controlThinx is not a struggling startup where everyone ismaking sacrifices for the greater good. Fast Company confirmed that in 2016, Thinx made tens of millions of dollars in revenue. Seeing that money pouring into the company, with no benefit to them, was galling for underpaid employees.Despite Thinxs woman-positive message, one employee said she couldntafford birth control the companys cheapest health care option cost a $200 monthly premiums.The maternity-leave policy at Thinx was limited too justtwo weeks of full pay and a week at half-pay, far behind the industry standard of 20 weeks.https//www.instagram.com/p/BRYWPNlB2ot/?taken-by=shethinxTrust is powerful. Dont abuse it.The most important lesson Agrawal and her company failed in every instance to follow was not practicing what they preached. Thats the basic advice Ask A Manager urges all bosses to follow Do what you say youre going to do, by when you say youre going to do it, or update people accordingly.When companies break promises, they lose their employees trust. One currentemployee whowrotea Glassdoor review this January summarized their anger towards Thinx management failure with thisHow can you empower people with your products if you dont know how to empower those behind it?

How Oreo the Cat landed a great job (and what she can teach you)

How Oreo the Cat landed a great job (and what she can teach you)How Oreo the Cat landed a great job (and what she can teach you)On yur average night at the St. Augustine Health Ministries, a nursing home in Cleveland, Ohio, residents and staff members will likely find Oreo the Cat sitting at the reception desk. Oh look, Oreos answering phones at the reception desk because its after hours, theyll say. No, Oreos bedrngnis actually answering phones, but he is often on the job bringing joy and comfort to most everyone who resides at the facility.Most of us grew up with pets, and many of the people we serve here had pets, but when they come into a nursing facility, they cant bring their pets, said Dana Carns, director of advancement at St. Augustine Health Ministries. She just is a break, and makes it like home.There are over 200 residents living at the Ministries, some of whom are recovering from strokes and other similar brain injuries. According to the staff, having a feline friend aro und noticeably improves the moods of residents. She may even be helping them get better. Several studies suggest cats purrs have the power to heal bones.What every job hunter can learn from Oreos job searchDo your research before getting your foot in the doorA couple years ago, Oreo was a stray cat who used to hang outside the Ministries. Eventually, however, she won over the staff, moved inside, and got the job she became their resident cat.Become a familiar faceSo how did a stray cat land such a sweet gig in a warm nursing home where she gets all the head scratches she could want? Simple - persistence and charm. This is something every job hunter can take away from Oreos experience.In Oreos case, passively hanging outside the Ministries allowed staff members see her everyday, and get to know her pleasant disposition. Granted, shes a cat, and theres not much more she couldve done to get noticed - but in her case, just continually showing up paid off in the end.This can also work for you.Many career sites suggest persistence (up to a point) is necessary when going after the job you want. Its important to show your continued interest in the position, but not take it to the point where youre calling or email three times a day.Make sure a companys hiring managers know your name and your face. Theyll think of you when the next big job comes up.Be fun to work withIts unclear whether or not Oreo had been an indoor cat earlier in life, but she picked up the job quickly, and soon enough, was everyones favorite staff member. Shes such a character, Tim Fredmonsky, a security guard who works at the north entrance, told Cleveland.com. The residents see her and pet her all the time. Even the visitors get a big kick out of her. Shes a good cat.Find a niche that no one else is fillingThe nursing home wasnt exactly in need of a cat, but Oreo found a way to show them that her talents were necessary.She isnt quite a lap cat, but shes very fond of attention, and is often descr ibed as the greeter.Shes like our family here, said receptionist Carmen Delgado.Oreo filled a void the staff didnt even realize was there. She makes staff and residents alike smile, laugh, and just generally feel more at ease. Those are rare talents, and not often ones you find in job descriptions. Sometimes thats what ends up getting you the job rather than what you have listed on your resum.