32 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Preys on the naive by introducing obvious information, July 25, 2008
This review is from: It's All Politics: Winning in a World Where Hard Work and Talent Aren't Enough (Paperback)
Kathleen Reardon seems to be laying the groundwork to be the university expert in corporate politics. First her book "Secret Handshake" and now this one. I read them both, and neither was helpful to me, a 20+ year management veteran of the corporate world.
Dr. Reardon gives real life situations for her case studies. She discusses what to do when a person is passively-aggressive in a meeting, or explaining a backstabbing incident.
The boiled down advice all readers should use in all situations is: "Confront the attacker. First with professionalism. If they don't respond, let it be known you will fight and you won't be a pushover. If THAT doesn't work, you'll need to get some senior executives on your side, to confront this person. If none of those work, quit."
Well, the 1st and 2nd pieces of advice are pretty obvious, but don't always work, especially when you're new to a company or department, unsure of yourpolitical capital, and unsure of the consequences of confronting a coworker or boss. Most attackers have support from others, and know how to spin an alternate version of a 'situation' so the victim (this book's reader) is seen as politically paranoid. I've been in companies where nasty people have a lot of clout, and confronting them is not smart.
Dr. Reardon's 3rd piece of advice is hilarious. "Find a senior executive to back you up, so that when the confrontation becomes public, you will have their support." Huh? If i had access to senior executives to back me up, i would drop their name to the politically inept backstabber and win the fight instantly. And most senior executives aren't about to back up junior managers just because they are asked to. They have their own political capital they are building. They're not going to squander it just because you come into their office and ask them to.
To propose getting your Big Brother to beat up the Bully as the "get out of difficult political situations free" option proves she's an academic, buried in theory.
Oh, and if you, the reader, can't get any of these three 'solutions' to work, you should "find another job." Well, finding another job is not helpful to those of us who have families, who want to stay in our neighborhoods, and don't want to create an emotionally traumatic family problem by moving spouse and kids to another state just because the corporate breadwinner keeps getting into political fights at work. Maybe the corporate breadwinner should maneuver out of this small battle, and live to fight another day (or maybe try to not fight at all).
I found all the suggestions sound good while comfortable in your chair at home, but useless come the workweek. Dr. Reardon assumes every reader is in a position to find Goliath's at work to stand behind them, quit jobs they don't like, and change companies and cities if they don't get their way. The options proposed are improbably contrived solutions to intractable problems.
Sun Tzu said "Every battle is won or lost before it is fought." Dr. Reardon gives you impractical tactics to implement while fighting, instead of teaching you how to stay out of the fight and still succeed.
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17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent guide to office politics but a bit plodding here and there, January 15, 2006
Reardon's topic is winning at office politics -- getting along and rising to the top in a corporation or similar organization by understanding human interactions. This book will be useful to anyone, particularly a new employee or a recent college graduate, who is trying to figure out how things really work on the job.
She correctly identifies all white-collar employees as "politicians" and points out that office politics is inevitable. Some people will win and some will lose. Her case studies are fascinating -- particularly the ones that involve responding to nasty e-mails or coping with putdowns by practitioners of "negative politics." To her great credit, Reardon emphssizes that there are times when merely "getting along" is not the right answer and when courage, integrity, and risk-taking are essential. And she gives appropriate weight to issues of personal style: some people face problems head-on, while others defer them; some are "in your face," while others avoid confrontation.
There are places where Reardon's expository energy seems to slow and the book plods along. But soon, the reader is caught up in another case study or interesting e-mail exchange and the book picks up strength again.
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
It's Not ALL Work, Can Be Fun!, August 3, 2005
This valuable reference book explains the "in's and outs" of office politics, which are the most single factor in getting ahead in the career of your choice. This book is full of commonsense wisdom on how to get along with others and get ahead in life. Dr. Reardon is the author of THE SECRET HANDSHAKE about business psychology. She's great!
Talent alone does not insure success; you must have those important relationships with the people who can best reward your creativity and intelligence. You are encouraged to 'pick your battles wisely' to deal with a difficult co-worker.
When we think about politicians, automatically the words 'unethical' and 'devious' (sometimes flat-out 'lies') come to mind. In the workplace, "knowing what to say, to whom, and how and when to say it." Most of all, you will need to be able to convert enemies into your allies to win crucial support for your ideas.
The only way to avoid politics at work is to avoid people. "For every locked entrance, there is a back door, window, even a chimney;" always be sure there is a way out before you crawl into a corner. It is important to remember that there is more than one way to handle any situation: good, bad or indifferent.
Intuition is needed, but just as necessary is the power of persuasion.Power is a critical part of career politics. People remember those they perceive to be powerful. Power, like beauty, is in the eyes of the beholder.
A good read, wonderful instruction in the ways of life at work and at home, and packed full of good advice. It behooves us to try to follow her instructions as close to the letter as possible. She knows what she is talking about; you can, too.
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