“People ask me, ‘How can I get our employees to be passionate about the company?’ Wrong question. Passion for our employer, manager, current job? Irrelevant. Passion for our profession and the kind of work we do? Crucial. If I own company FOO, I don’t need employees with a passion for FOO. I want those with a passion for the work they’re doing. The company should behave just like a good user interface — support people in doing what they’re trying to do, and stay the hell out of their way. Applying the employer-as-UI model, the best company is one in which the employees are so engaged in their work that the company fades into the background.”

“A month ago I shared some specific ways to get ahead at work. For me it worked, I got promoted within my IT group and was actually bumped up 2 spots. As I mentioned in that post, I was promoted directly by a VP (my boss’ boss), which was unusual. Since then my boss was let go basically because anarchy broke out in the group and people were quitting daily. However, it got me thinking. What if I didn’t have a VP that recognized my efforts? When does the atmosphere at work get so backstabbing and bureaucratic, that there is no good process to overcome it? What if a star employee wants to grow but management doesn’t know what to do or how to take advantage of the enthusiasm and motivation? Those are all questions that I will address over the next few weeks because they are best answered individually. However, there are several things that mid-level managers can do to keep employees happy and there are even more things they can do to irritate them to the point of quitting or becoming a virus.”

“Business literature is packed with advice about worker motivation — but sometimes managers are the problem, not the inspiration. Here are seven practices to fire up the troops. From Harvard Management Update.”

“I recall Kate, a TV executive, who returned from maternity leave to a new boss. She was, she found, tainted by association. When her projects (initiated under her old boss) turned out to be wildly successful, it made matters worse and she found herself ostracized. Anything that made the old strategy look good made her new boss look bad. Caught in the crossfire of regime change, the better she did, the worse she was treated. Ultimately she had no choice but to leave.”

“How did Lou Gerstner from IBM turn a $5 billion loss into a $8 billion profit in just 9 years, or Carlos Ghosn turn Nissan around by $10 billion — they both formed cross-functional teams to lead their revival plans. The only way that you can restructure people’s mindsets is via team building and training.”

“Our security manager can handle viruses and hackers, but an abusive boss is another story.”

“When senior executives and managers nationwide were asked how well they were recognized for their work, only slightly more than 10 percent said they were extremely well recognized. More than a third said they were either not very well or not at all well recognized, in the survey conducted by NFI Research. And the recognition and rewards that executives and managers would prefer are both financial and personal. ‘Recognizing great work is one of the easiest responsibilities of leadership, and the most poorly executed,’ said one survey respondent.”

“Why are some organizations successful year after year while other seemingly extraordinary companies eventually fall by the wayside? I believe it comes down to having leaders who understand how to manage innovation and growth throughout the life cycle stages of an organization.”

“What does it really mean to be good with people? This Harvard Business Review excerpt examines the ‘relational’ aspect of business.” (Thanks FC Now)

“Writing in the May issue of Atlantic Monthly, Howell Raines, the former editor of The New York Times, coins the phrase ‘Management by Mendacity.’ It’s a condition many cubicle dwellers can identify with.”

“The other day, over lunch, a friend recounted how her boss was just like the manager from the movie Office Space. After a few stories of cubicle horror related to said manager, she looked up at me and asked: ‘Am I an idiot? Or did something I did in this or a previous life make me deserve this?’”

“Figuring out how to motivate your staff and adapt your style for their particular ‘career anchors’ can turn all employees into higher performers.”