A working place is an environment in which people with different personalities have to interact. These differences don’t have to be a problem, but often they become a source of workplace issues as they build up tensions and stress.
Since workplace issues can lead to decreased productivity, bad performance, and overall stress, that is usually one of the main reasons why people quit their jobs or change companies. With this in mind, managers and HRs are struggling to build an atmosphere of positivity and communication, so the people would feel better at work.
In this article, we will outline some of the common issues that you might face at work and try to give some tools to handle them or prevent them from happening.
Managing Team Communication
With remote work, communication became more important than ever. Since more than 90% of workers believe that communication directly influences the quality of their work, with remote teams, it is sometimes hard to get all the necessary information, but speaking up and expressing your opinion should never be in question. Even if you feel that your managers are unavailable, make sure to write to HR and describe how you feel.
With engagement being the key to success, managers should explore different ways of communication with other teams. Sometimes people prefer to start the conversation lightly before the meeting starts or have a coffee break meeting every week where they can exchange ideas and come to new conclusions.
Unclear Project Goals
Everyone feels overwhelmed due to increased workload from time to time. However, if that is something you are experiencing daily, or you simply feel that there is too much happening, you should be vocal about it.
If the team doesn’t have a clear to-do list with all tasks, maybe it’s time to start using a tool that will help everyone organize their weekly, monthly, and quarterly workload. With various digital tools like Trello, Slack, Teams, everyone will know what they need to do and contribute to the overall team productivity.
Uneven Distribution of Tasks
If you feel overwhelmed with the number of tasks, reach out to your manager and explain what’s within your capacity. Managers should carefully choose an approach that will work best for everyone and delegate tasks accordingly. When you feel like you have too much on your plate while your coworkers have just a few tasks, try to see what’s the problem as well as how it could be resolved.
Lastly, it would help if you said no to projects that demand more energy, as your work-life balance has to be the number one priority.
Workplace Conflicts
Harmony is not easily achievable in big offices filled with different personalities. Sometimes emotions run high, or everyone is stressed because of a new project or changes in the company. Either way, the key to a healthy workspace is resolving conflicts. The first step toward solving a problem is to pinpoint how the conflict happened and discuss the issue in private.
Everyone can have a bad day, but if it lasts for weeks, then it might be time to involve other people and find a solution that works for everyone. Conflict resolution mediators can bring a positive change to any team as they will explain the importance of speaking up, creating boundaries, and working towards a common goal – to feel safe while at work.
Sexual Harassment
Workplace harassment is a big problem in a lot of companies around the world, not just in the US. From workplace bullying to outright discrimination or sexual harassment, it is important to recognize that it’s happening and do something about it.
While most common types of harassment are verbal physiological, the most serious one by far is sexual harassment. These forms are illegal as they affect people’s mental health, productivity, and safety at work. By organizing sexual harassment training online or offline, managers can show their workers how to react when something similar happens and make sure they feel protected. Although many victims of workplace harassment think they know what to do, after training, they will learn more about the right steps they need to take if something problematic happens.
Stagnant Career Advancement
People like to see the results of their work, especially if they aim to climb the corporate ladder. If you notice that everyone around is progressing, maybe it’s time to ask your manager to explain his decision and the steps necessary to get where you want to be. If you applied for another position and never made it, ask for feedback on what you need to work on. Create an Individual Development plan to steer your career in the right direction.
Don’t forget that if you don’t fight for your position -someone else will. That’s why there’s no better advocate for your advancement than yourself.
Digital Harassment at Work
Regardless of the digital space where digital harassment happens, it is just as problematic as any other type of bullying. It can occur on different outlets, social media, and online platforms for team communication and includes posting uncomfortable content. In that situation, it’s important to monitor the situation, take screenshots, save emails and keep a file of everything that is making you uncomfortable. Then, you should talk to someone from the management and explain the situation by reporting the person and providing evidence.
Feeling Left Out
Mean comments, photos, videos, or any type of content that a person finds demeaning, offensive, or problematic is enough to constitute digital harassment. However, another form of harassment is when a person feels left out of every important work-related conversation and feels like it doesn’t exist or that their opinion doesn’t matter to anyone.
Preventing all the different types of workplace harassment is an ongoing process. It requires managers to have a closer look at their teams and assess the situation in the office.
Also, by educating your employees on harassment and how to prevent it, you will show them how important it is to speak up and react to violence in every shape and form. Outline the procedures, encourage everyone to speak up, resolve conflicts, and transform the office into a safe space for everyone.
