Dealing with Difficult Co-Workers
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Sexual & Psychological Harrassment in the Workplace
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Category: Communications
I Earn More Than You Do
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Category: Communications
Mixing It Up - 'Interoffice Networking'
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If you are engaged with a medium to large-sized firm, there are likely other divisions' in the firm, which have piqued your interest and curiosity. I should point out that I am not suggesting that you are dis-satisfied within your current role or group. It is always a good idea to learn as much as possible about your firm and its members; and that means 'all' aspects of the firm, as well as its associated companies. You can only accomplish this through your own knowledge, research, and networking via attending and/or participating in company events, aside from the AGM's.

 

In order for you to get a feel of this division's working style, and the tasks associated with their Administrative groups, I would suggest checking out your 'company portal' to investigate current and past projects the division has been involved with, learn their leadership structure, review current client mandates; which could look like their 'client pursuits', et cetera. The portal should provide enough information for you to make an intelligent decision as to whether or not to expend more energy and time pursuing this arena further.

If you decide to explore this division in more depth, I would suggest taking action with one or all of the following:
 

 

  1. Join a Committee that involves their division' staff members;

     
  2. Attend meetings and functions held for all Administrative Assistant groups;

     
  3. Ask one of the Administrative Assistant's to coffee or perhaps lunch;

     
  4. Once you feel comfortable, volunteer to 'Chair' a Committee that 'lights you up';

     
  5. Participate in divisional feedback from groups such as IT, Graphics, Production, etc.;

     
  6. Speak to your Team Lead if you have one, if not, connect with your HR team; and

     
  7. Express your interest to the 'head' of the division and ask for any of their marketing materials to review.

     

Another point I would like to make here is to encourage personal contact versus email or telephone as much as possible. Speaking with staff members via telephone is preferable to email, however, there is nothing as powerful as a 'face-to-face' connection. I know we are bogged down with busy schedules and workload demands, but it is worth taking the time for an in-person chat throughout your day and week. These individuals are your 'network', and play a vital role in your success both inside and outside of the firm.
How You Can Affect Change
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Category: Communications

How You Can Affect Change

In my last post, we finished off with ensuring your PDF files are 'locked down' prior to sending them out - internally OR externally. By that I mean, even if you are sending an email to head office, make sure the file is secured because it is travelling over servers and is therefore basically open to attack.

What I want to discuss with you today is how you can affect positive change by implementing some, if not all, of the following tools and resources, depending on your needs. Please note that anything that you feel needs to be addressed or improved upon will require some of your time and effort in research first.

For example, speaking with the people in charge of the appropriate division or matter, perhaps approaching your Team Lead, and so on. Once you have approached the appropriate individuals and are armed with further knowledge, you can move forward with your own research on costs, timelines for implementation, etc. At that point, you can re-address the issue with your Team Lead with all your data in hand to support your desired result.

To begin with, let's look at Scanning capabilities on your Copiers - a great place to start, and a task easily handled by your IT team. This will give you PDF and faxing capability as well. I have to note here though that the PDF quality is not appropriate for client delivery.

Other areas to look at are your Video Conferencing facilities -in terms of ease of use and access, as well as costs. Note that your company 'portal'may well have this capability, which would be substantially more cost effective for your firm versus using an external service at a per use fee.

If you learn your portal does not have either Video Conferencing facilities or 'document sharing' capabilities, I would encourage you to speak with your Team Lead to investigate this further. I repeat myself by reminding you that for changes to come about that are going to benefit you and those you work with, it is wise to be sure you have completed all of your research beforehand. This will demonstrate that you are a proactive employee and considerate of everyone's time.

Another very important area to look at is 'program' access'. In order for you to be efficient in your role, your company should provide programs such as Adobe Acrobat and Visio for 'all' Assistant's. Too many problems can arise when those with access to these programs are out of the office or otherwise not available to you. This particularly applies to the Adobe program given the importance of time and security. Having the proper tools and programs in place is an absolute necessity for your success as well as your professionals you report to, period.

If any of these areas are a 'hot button' for you, please let me know via email or in your comments below, and we can discuss a number of approaches you can take on the issue(s). More tommorrow!

 

Source: http:www.corporatesecrets-adminpro.blogspot.com