ENTERING THE WORLD OF EMPLOYEE-BOSS FRIENDSHIPS, JOE MULL, A WORKFORCE AND LEADERSHIP EXPERT, UNRAVELS THE PARADOX. WHILE VALUING WORKPLACE CAMARADERIE, MULL SHEDS LIGHT ON THE CHALLENGES OF MAINTAINING PROFESSIONAL BALANCE AMID BLURRED LINES.
“Anyone who is in a leadership role is going to have a number of times where they have to make decisions that place the organization ahead of the needs or wants of the employee.”
FROM THE INTRODUCTION OF BIAS AND FAVORITISM TO THE NUANCED DYNAMICS OF ENFORCING ACCOUNTABILITY, MULL SHARES THE DELICATE BALANCE NECESSARY TO UPHOLD FAIRNESS, TRUST, AND PROFESSIONALISM WITHIN A TEAM.
“Most leaders who find themselves in a situation where they have a deep personal friendship with someone at work will immediately insist that they can set boundaries. That they know how to manage that. And most of the time the answer to that is no, you don't and no, you can't.”
“When I am someone's supervisor, I am held accountable for their work product and their performance. I may end up sharing things, revealing things about work, about projects about their coworkers that I really shouldn't. If I am named as someone’s direct supervisor, there is going to be times when I have to have potentially some uncomfortable conversations.
“What's most important is that that leader actually works to put forth the same amount of effort to connect with everybody on the team, not just the person that they've known the longest or feel the strongest connection to.”
MULL ADVISES BOSSES TO BUILD LATERAL FRIENDSHIPS AND FIND MENTORS WITHIN THEIR INDUSTRY OR ORGANIZATION FOR SUPPORT AND CONNECTION.
THE BUSINESS REVIEW IS A PRODUCTION OF LIVINGSTON AND MCKAY AND THE HANKAMER SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY.
