Good
morning.
1.
Understand what the boss expects of you.
1A. My View:
A
few preliminaries.
My format this morning will be to address each topic heading I
was assigned with my views followed by some ideas of the secretaries
in my office whose insights I sought before preparing the text
of my presentation. As you will hear, what I say in many
words, they have said in a few.
When I use the term "Secretary", I mean to include both
Executive Secretaries and Personal Assistants. And being politically
correct when I use the pronouns "he" or "his",
I also mean "she" and "hers".
First,
let's look at "Understanding what your boss expects from
you".
THE SECRETARY'S PRAYER
DEAR
LORD, HELP ME TO DO MY WORK WELL, TO HAVE THE MEMORY OF AN
ELEPHANT (supposedly elephants never forget) AND BY SOME MIRACLE
TO BE ABLE TO DO FIVE THINGS AT ONCE - ANSWER TWO TELEPHONE
CALLS, GREET A GUEST, FIND A FILE, ALL WHILE TYPING A LETTER
THAT "MUST GO OUT TODAY." WHEN THAT LETTER
DOESN'T GET SIGNED UNTIL TOMORROW, PLEASE GIVE ME THE STRENGTH
TO KEEP MY MOUTH SHUT.
DEAR
LORD, NEVER LET ME LOSE MY PATIENCE, EVEN WHEN THE BOSS HAS
ME SEARCHING FILES FOR HOURS FOR A REPORT THAT IS LATER DISCOVERED
ON HIS DESK.
GIVE
ME THE INTELLIGENCE OF A UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR, ALTHOUGH MY
EDUCATION IS LIMITED TO ONLY A DIPLOMA OR A UNIVERSITY DEGREE
LOWER THAN MY BOSS'S, AND EVEN IF I HAVE NOT HAD ANY FORMAL
SECRETARIAL TRAINING.
HELP
ME TO READ HIS MIND, TO DECIPHER HIS HANDWRITING, AND TO CARRY
OUT ALL HIS INSTRUCTIONS WHICH ARE OFTEN GIVEN WITHOUT ANY
EXPLANATION.
LET
ME ALWAYS KNOW EXACTLY WHERE MY BOSS IS AND WHEN HE'LL BE
BACK, EVEN THOUGH HE MAY NEVER TELL ME WHERE HE IS GOING.
AND LET HIM KEEP HIS MOBILE PHONE OR PAGER ON.
AND
LORD, WHEN THE YEAR ENDS, PLEASE GIVE ME THE FORESIGHT NOT
TO THROW OUT RECORDS THAT WILL BE ASKED FOR IN A COUPLE OF
DAYS, EVEN THOUGH I WAS TOLD EMPHATICALLY, "DESTROY THESE
- THEY ARE CLUTTERING UP THE PLACE."
I ASK THESE BLESSINGS,
IN THE NAME OF SECRETARIES EVERYWHERE. AMEN.
This
"Prayer"
may be a bit of an overstatement but from the smiles I've seen
I'm sure you will agree that there is a lot of truth in it.
My
First Key Rule to understanding
what your boss expects of you is simple: "Look.
Listen. Ask."
There is no such
thing as a dumb question. What is dumb is to keep quiet when you
need to know something in order to do your job. Almost any question
is far better than a dumb mistake.
1B. The Secretary'
s View:
A
boss must find a secretary who has qualifications and knowledge
in the field in which he works. A boss must also choose a secretary
who can get along with him. I think he expects a secretary
to work accurately, do a neat and tidy job, and have good communications
skills.
But
a secretary must also sometimes understand that when the boss
has a lot of work, he might become emotional.
2.
Do you know your boss's style? Recognizing different leadership
styles can solve communications or team problems.
2A. My View:
No two bosses are alike,
just as no two secretaries are alike.
My first key rule to learning
your boss's style, his character, his personality, strengths and
weaknesses, his biases, his abilities, his attitudes, again is
to "Look. Listen. Ask."
"Look" - means
to see both the details and the big picture.
"Listen" -
means to hear, analyze, understand and remember what is said.
"Ask" - means
to open your mouth to get the clarification you need to understand
at least enough to do the task assigned.
For instance, ask yourself
- how do I know or learn what my boss expects of me, when he does
expect it, how, and in what form? What writing style does he want
for his letters, memos, reports, etc.? There may be a corporate
form manual - if so, then study it, and follow it.
On an individual level,
"Look. Listen. Ask." What hours will your boss
keep - what hours can you keep? Can you work OT? Do you have to
work OT? How often? How long? You do have a private life. Is your
boss organized and neat, or cluttered and disorganized? What is
his personality and character? Is he a team player or does he
work alone? What kind of person is he? Is he a person who inspires
confidence? Is he fair, open-minded, a listener? How
does he handle his mistakes? Your mistakes? Is he courteous, respectful,
accepting, compromising, demanding, strict, a stickler for details?
Does he shout? Is he moody, short tempered or even tempered? Does
he have a sense of humor? Is he a people person (sociable) or
a loner, decisive or avoids decisions? Is he a doer or a procrastinator,
a delegator or must he do everything himself? Is he protective
and supportive? Is he an effective leader or is he not a leader?
"Look. Listen. Ask."
2B. The Secretary's
View:
Sometimes, a secretary
cannot clearly understand her boss's style because different kinds
of bosses and jobs will have different kinds of roles. For
example, a consumer product company and a services firm will have
different communications requirements and teams to solve their
problems.
3.
Working for expatriates - how to overcome cross-cultural
barriers and what to do and what not to do.
3A. My View:
When
a boss is of one nationality or upbringing in one culture and
the secretary is of another, there are ALWAYS cross-cultural barriers
- to challenge and cross those barriers you can not be afraid
to recognize a cross-cultural situation for what it is nor be
hesitant to try to find a way to treat it so you can accept the
solution. That can take a lot of understanding, diplomacy and
patience. Since you reached the level of Executive Secretary or
Personal Assistant, you should already have the experience and
judgment necessary to handle most of these situations.
But
so too must your boss have patience, understanding and diplomacy
to handle the delicacies of a cross-cultural challenge - and not
all expats are the same - Chinese of Singapore are different from
Chinese of Hong Kong. Koreans are different from Japanese.
Indians are different from Malaysians. British are different from
French. Australians are different from Americans - and all are
different from Thais.
The
following observations are from an extract from a 1994 study by
Worcester Polytechnic Institute of the USA on Cross-Culture Management
in Multinational Corporations in Thailand. You've probably heard
all this before but these observations are so important that they
bear repeating.
Recommendations to Thai
Nationals in Multinational Companies
To
fully understand their expatriate co-workers, a Thai national
working in a multinational corporation must learn several
key issues. The first and most important issue is that Westerners
value their freedom above all other things: freedom of
speech, freedom of religion, and equality among all people. These
values are the driving force behind their history. Achievement
and competition is stressed as an individual aspiration, and
therefore, western individuals are very open and direct. The
highly structured American society results in expatriates
being very systematic which is completely different from the
more social Thai society.
Expatriates may
sometimes appear very assertive and outspoken which may be
seen as a problem to the Thai employee. This American trait
is due to the influence of the culture which encourages every
person to express their opinions. Sometimes, these direct
actions may include criticism directed towards the Thai nationals.
However, the criticism is meant to be constructive, and therefore,
should not be taken to heart. In the western business style,
a clear distinction is made between personal and business
relations. Therefore, the expatriate may not understand that
his/her comment was taken personally.
However
difficult it may be, Thai nationals must comprehend that they
are not expected to be polite at all times. Saying "yes"
or nodding means full comprehension and agreement to a westerner.
Thais must also learn to say "no" when they do not
understand. The research demonstrates that saying "yes"
and meaning "no" is the main communication problem,
and in the eyes of the expatriates, communication and understanding
is essential in doing business.
Most
evaluation methods in multinational corporations are based
on the western personal merit system. The merit system is
a quantitative analysis of the employees performance. Therefore,
Thai nationals must realize that contacts and personal favors
have no direct bearing on their climb up the corporate ladder.
To be effective in Thailand,
the foreign boss will have to learn about many Thai traits and
characteristics, for example - Thai politeness, the Thai smile,
humbleness, saving face, hiding emotions, avoidance of conflicts,
the value of compromise, Thai time, the Thai way, the role of
contacts and relationships, "Kreng-Jai", "Sanuk",
status, age, respect, "jai yen", the Thai social structure,
the close knit family structure, and the Thai reverence of the
monarchy.
3B. The Secretary's
View:
It is quite hard to understand
an expatriate boss because he will have different culture and
customs. A secretary must understand the accent of his native
country to communicate with him in English effectively.
4.
Keeping up with your boss's changing roles and responsibilities.
4A. My View:
Little in the business
world is static these days, i.e. doesn't move or doesn't change.
In today's world of computers, cyberspace, e-mail, internet, dot
com, e-commerce, EDI, cellular telecommunications, GPS, biotechnology,
sustainable development, cloning, alternative forms of energy,
alternative medicine - the technology advances so fast that business
must respond and react to changes in the business environment
almost on a daily basis. For example, did you know that for the
past 15 years or so each year the number of transistors on a computer
chip of a fixed size doubles? The flip side is that the same number
of transistors fit on the same chip in half the space. Globalization,
financial crises, and restructuring, the computer age, desk top
video conferencing, digital images and sounds, satellite/cable
TV are with us daily. Yet, five years ago they were little known.
So,
my Second Key Rule is - "If you don't keep up,
you will be left behind - it is that simple." In
the very competitive world in which we live and work and learn,
being left behind can mean failure.
How
to keep up - read; ask for and attend training courses - self-help,
in-house and outside; get colleagues to teach you. Use your imagination
to find ways.
4B. The
Secretary's View:
A secretary must always
learn more knowledge to improve herself so that she will be able
to keep up with her boss.
5.
Establish trust and develop trustworthiness
5A. My View:
The nature of a secretary-boss
relationship is that they are a team. A team requires mutual trust.
The better the mutual understanding, respect, cooperation, patience,
time spent working together, the more effective the team, the
better the results, the fewer the mistakes. Mistakes will be made
- don't be afraid to make mistakes - you learn from what you do
wrong, not from what you do right. But please, don't make the
same mistake over and over again.
With teamwork comes confidence
building in the other's performance, knowledge, reliability and
judgment. That's called trust. If your boss has to check all your
work all the time, then the team is not functioning up to par
and trust can't exist. Check yourself - did you "Look. Listen.
Ask."? Did you "keep up"? If you did and the trust
doesn't build, then go to your boss, tell him of your concern
and discuss how to create that trust which is lacking.
If you still don't have
your boss's trust, then either (1) you don't have the needed ability,
(2) you are not paying attention, (3) your boss is just a micro
manager, or (4) he doesn't know how to use a secretary and so
you must either teach him - or (5) as a final option, you may
have to find a new boss!
5B. The Secretary's
View:
A secretary must always
work honestly, so that the boss can trust her.
6.
Staying ahead of your boss - what the boss wants you to
do to help him/her keep things on track.
6A. My View:
From
the standpoint of a boss - an efficient, competent, friendly,
dependable, skillful, intelligent, honest, confident, organized,
detailed, right thinking secretary who knows her job, her abilities
and her limitations, who can take responsibility, and who freely
communicates with her boss is a gift from God.
A
smooth working secretary-boss team can perform wonders. But a
poor working relationship is a misery for both the secretary and
the boss and neither can work at anywhere near their potential.
The good team doesn't just happen. It takes work, work, and more
work plus practice, practice and more practice by both secretary
and boss to make it work - each must teach the other, and each
must learn from the other. The boss who also doesn't "Look.
Listen. Ask" or keep up with the changing world is foolish,
disrespectful of his secretary and a poor team player. He is cheating
himself and his secretary of the ability to work at their full
potentials and their employer is ultimately the loser.
In
Thailand there is a language barrier between the expat boss and
his Thai secretary. Like it or not, English is the generally accepted
common language today between different nationalities in the business
world. Therefore, to succeed in a multinational multicultural
business environment, whether or not English is your native language,
it is imperative that secretaries learn more and more English
and how to use it properly. English is probably not your first
language; foreign ways are still foreign, but these barriers are
not valid excuses to avoid learning and correctly using the English
language for business communications and in the international
worlds of trade, media, science, academic, government, culture
and civil society.
Correspondingly,
the expat boss should try to learn some Thai. In any event, to
avoid miscommunications in the multicultural environment, he must
be very patient to insure his instructions, desires and needs
are very clearly expressed in English and are understood in full
by his secretary. An American friend working in Hong Kong once
told me when I asked him if he was learning Cantonese, said, "No.
But I am learning English as a second language."
In closing - as a boss,
let me leave you with my Third Key Rule for secretaries
and personal assistants. The rule is: "You have a brain.
Use it." Use it to think. Use it to organize. Use
it to plan. Use it to question. Use it to learn how to act. Use
it to anticipate. Use it to learn. Use it to apply what you have
learned. Use it to remember. Use it to visualize how your job
can be done better. Use it to improve your knowledge and your
skills. Use it to help you stay ahead of your boss.
6B. The Secretary's
View:
Actually,
a good secretary knows her boss's planning. She should think ahead
about how to help him and always remind him prior to task deadlines,
so that the boss can do his work on time. AMEN.
