Sometimes employees do things and you will be utterly amazed that anyone could do something so _______ (fill in the blank . . . .dumb, moronic, insensitive, career limiting, etc.) This can be especially hard on a manager when they manage experienced employees. If you supervise this group and one of these events occurs, your first thought might be -“Damnit . . . They Should Know Better”.

And while I may agree with you I think there is another system at play; our Personal Operating System or (POS). I firmly believe that we are all a collection of our experiences, our hopes, and our failures. This collection, that some people might call “baggage”, affects everything we see and hear. This collection influences our intrepretation of our environment, our view of the motivations of others, and any potential threat that may or may not exist. You’ve seen people like this . . . . “everyone is out for my job”.

If you have one of these moments you may need to upgrade the Personal Operating Systems of your staff. Unfortunately you cannot download the necessary patch or service pack. The key to successfully upgrading the POS of your staff is to share your own code and as objectively as possible share how the world looks through your eyes. This could be seen as determining the parameters (or expectations that you have) of your POS.

I’m not sure as a Manager I have ever had a discussion with my team about what my core expectations are. So I decided to write down as many of those as possible and I came to the conclusion that these were such a part of my being that I thought everyone thought this way and I probably hadn’t shared them in their entirety.

My Expectations

I expect that you are capable of everything I ask you to do. If you are not, you need to tell me; but before doing so ask yourself if I am expecting too much of you or you are expecting too little of yourself. Think of the requirements to be met . . .focus on the problem that needs to be overcome.

I expect that if you have a problem you will have considered the solution yourself first. In doing so, I expect that when presenting the problem to me, or any other manager, you will present your two best ideas for consideration with a particular recommendation. Think of the solution . . . . .

I expect that if your are on my team you will never say “That’s Not My Job!” Think of the opportunity that could be lost . . . .

I expect that if you know something, you will find an opportunity to share it. We operate in an environment with an abundance of work to be done, there is enough for everyone . . . . Think of the next guy (or gal)

I expect that if you need help you will ask for it. I also expect that if you see a teammate who needs help you will offer it. Think of yourself as a member of a team . . . .

I expect that each of you has an incredible future and as such will operate in a forthright manner toward you as I expect I may be working for one of you in the future. And I expect that you will be equally open and honest with your teammates and customers. Think about what you say and do . . .and how it will comeback to you.

In short my expectation is that you will Think

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By helping our staff “Think” like us, we will be upgrading their POS and have a direct affect on their work and ensure that the “Didn’t They Know Better” incidents are kept to a minimum.

— Kris

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