Angles We Have Heard On High

¹Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the East to Jerusalem, ²saying, "Where is He that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him."  ³When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.  ⁴And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.

⁷Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, inquired of them diligently what time the star appeared.  ⁸And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search diligently for the young child, and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also."  ⁹When they had heard the king, they departed; and lo, the star which they saw in the East went before them until it came and stood over where the young Child was.  ¹⁰When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.  ¹¹And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto Him gifts: gold and frankincense and myrrh.  ¹²And being warned by God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.

¹⁶Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked by the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth and slew all the children who were in Bethlehem and in all the region thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men.  (Matthew 2, selected passages, 21st Century King James Version)

OK, here's an interesting question for you:  when is it moral to play office politics?  Is it ever justifiable to lie to somebody?  To withhold information?  To mislead?  To spin doctor?

Never?  What about the Wise Men in the Christmas story?  It sounds as though they had agreed to bring Herod the information he requested, and it was a warning that directed them not to follow through.

I was leading a workshop this fall where one of my participants shared the story of a secretary who was assigned to work for an absolute tyrant.  Very methodically, she undermined and sabotaged his work until he was let go from the company, then she went back to being the same sweet, caring, thoughtful person she was before.  Was this sabotage out of character for her, or was she playing "bear politics" for the greater good of her organization?

Granted, it's hard to have office politics back in a time when cubicles had not yet been invented... tent politics, maybe?  Or camel politics?  Regardless, getting back to the point, can a seemingly moral person play office politics and keep their morality in check?  Is there ever an acceptable angle to justify certain behaviors?

Comments

[Crysta Wille]

I mulled this question overnight. I can find several situations when playing office politics would be acceptable, but the discipline required to not let the power run to your head needs a strong check/balance. The best in my opinion would be a clearly defined purpose, that once achieved, causes you to return to your normal mode of operation. I’ll keep an eye on the dialog. I’m interested what others have to say about it.

[J. Erik Potter]

From a utilitarian viewpoint, of course. There are always going to be times when working office politics could be viewed as "for the greater good". The ethical dilemma would be determining if your actions are truly altruistic, for the betterment of the company, or personally motivated.

Your example from this fall is the perfect example. The company is probably better off not having this person around. However, was this secretary really motivated to make the company better or was she just tired of working for an a$$?

My big questions when running into these situations - can I live with myself after making this decision? And would my mom think its ok?

[Ms. Admin]

Once upon a time, an experienced admin's beloved executive was "encouraged" to retire (as had all other highly compensated, &/or long-term employees). A young man from within the department, we'll name him Junior, was chosen to lead this very professional area. Junior was whiney, rude, arrogant, petty, unforgiving and pretty much a pain-in-the-you-know-what to everyone, even the board of directors. It should be noted that Junior's father, Senior, had been one of those who retired. Senior was talented, had paid his dues, much loved and admired.

Ms. Admin had been tactful in trying to help Junior with his new role, but nothing seemed to work. Also, the seasoned, experienced admin did everything she knew to protect the co-workers she held in high esteem.

One day, Junior was having a tantrum, making life unbearable and miserable for everyone around. Ms. Admin had reached her limit with this spoiled child. Ms. Admin does not remember the demand he made, however, she remembers what happened next. She planted herself firmly in front of his large, executive walnut desk. She said, "There are two ways I can help you. I can help you up or out. YOU need to decide which career path you want help with and I will be glad to oblige." Ms. Admin did not yell, she delivered the message w/steely eyes, no smile and a don't you dare threaten me or mine one more time attitude. She quietly turned on her heel and very firmly closed the 8 ft. solid oak door.

The phone line lit up. Ms. Admin was certain she'd be drawing unemployment w/in hours. 30-minutes later, Junior came to her office; politely asked her to step into his office. Junior explained he had called Senior. Dad explained, apparently in no uncertain terms, Ms. Admin was absolutely correct. If Junior had any brains at all he would apologize to Ms. Admin, straighten up his act or Ms. Admin would, without a doubt, help him out the door.

Eventually Ms. Admin was offered a position in another firm and has done quite well for herself. However, Junior's previous behavior reappeared. He came to work one day and found his belongings packed and in the front lobby of the office building.

Office politics were around even when secretaries (I love that word and the root meaning, much more than admin asst.) had private offices next to their execs. An excellent assistant should know enough about the operation to be able to make the decisions but have the common sense not to let anyone know she knows that much. Yes, I'd like to think a very moral person can play politics but common sense must prevail---after all the power is truly behind the throne (seems some guy wrote a book about that). No one should know the amount of access I have to "my executive"--his emails, personnel & personal decisions, sounding board, etc.

Recently I told "My exec" I believed he is "being played" I'm the outside observer which sees and hears much. I also know that my word is my bond & I don't share my opinion of others w/him lightly.

The admin in your story was 100 percent correct. I'd hire her in a NY minute. I hope she was well rewarded and her company and her executives treat her as the gold she is.

PS My Mom would have thought it was the correct action to take.

[Timothy Johnson]

Great comments, all. Ms. Admin - awesome story! And yes, the "mom factor" is important.

[Sd card]

Hi, I am developing my site right now and I would like to translate and publish and a few more of your articles on my site, I hope you don’t mind. If you do - then I’ll just place links to them but I really needed them in Polish. Thanks!