Course Title: Work with Others

Department of Accounting TVET/2009Entries

Competence: Work with Others

Competence Title: Working with Others

LO 1: Develop effective workplace relationship

1.1 Work place and Workplace relationship
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 Work place is defined as a location at which an employee provides work for the
employer. A workplace is found in a variety of setting including offices, manufacturing
facilities or factories. Stores, farms, out of doors and in any location where work is
performed.
In the present information age, employers are not always expected to provide opportunities
to work with the physical presence of employees. In any case offices at home, distant,
relationships and employment as well as monitoring of work related activities means that
almost anywhere related to performing work related duties can be called as a workplace.

 Workplace relationship is interaction among employees operating under the same

organizational rules and work settings. The relationship among individuals in a
workplace can either be constructive or destructive depending up on the ability of the
organization to manage differences of interest among employees.

It also depends on the clarity of organization goal attainment as well as the way and
means to achieve it. In this learning module, you’ll examine different aspects of creating
effective workplace relationships with people in a positive manner. Hence, it is
ultimately expected to make your life styles more attractive and help you have a
successful working relationship with others.

Working in teams can create both benefits and challenges for the individual and the organization.
 For the individual:-
 Helps you develop communication, negotiation and problem solving skills
 Enables you to share ideas
 Exposes you to different ideas and ways of working
 Makes more enjoyable - we all like to "belong" However; people often find it
difficult to work in teams if they are naturally introverted, and it is the job of the
Team Leader to ensure that all team members feel able to contribute.

 For the organization:-

 Release creativity and energy
 Combines a range of specialist skills and knowledge

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 Course Title: Work with Others
 Improve communication
 Improve efficiency
However, teams need meetings and unless well managed can take up too much time. Conflict
and personality clashes can also arise or just as bad, "groupthink" can set in and lead to a lack
of new ideas - remember new ideas often only come from good use of conflict!
Developing effective workplace relations are critical to productivity and ultimately job
performance. It is necessary to have relationships with coworkers, supervisors, managers, or
employees.

1.2 Duties and Responsibilities

Regardless of the position, successful relationships among team members at work will make a
team more effective. All team members need to be responsible for different parts of the
process of the work in their workplace.

For a team to be successful, responsibilities and duties must be undertaken in a positive

manner to promote co-operation and good relationships.

 Successful responsibilities and duties can be achieved through:-

 The requirements of job description

 The goals and objectives of both the organization and the team in which you
are working
 The organization’s business plan
 The organization’s supervision and accountability requirements
 Legal requirements, such as Occupational, Health and Safety regulations
 Anti-discrimination policy
 Access and equity principles
 Workplace policies/ethical standards or industry Code of Conduct.
1.3 Workplace policies

Workplace policies often reinforce and clarify standard operating procedure in a

workplace. Well written policies help employers manage staff more effectively by defining
acceptable and unacceptable behavior in the workplace, and set out the
implications/suggestions of not complying with those policies.

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A workplace policy consists of a statement of purpose and one or more broad guidelines on
action to be taken to achieve that purpose. The statement of purpose should rarely exceed one
page in length and should be written in simple terms free of jargon. The length of the policy
may vary depending on the issue it addresses.

A policy may allow discretion in its implementation and the basis of that discretion may be
stated as part of the policy. A policy may be required where there is a diversity of interests
and preferences, which result in vague and conflicting objectives among those who are
directly involved.
Not all workplace issues require a policy. Many routine matters can be dealt through simple
procedures.
1.4 Assistance from Workgroup Members
There are many times when a problem arises that you cannot solve by yourself. If you cannot
finish a task, then you slow down the whole group. It is then necessary to ask for assistance,
by approaching others, for example

 Your supervisor
 Your coach or mentor
 Your colleagues or other members of the team
 Another member of the organisation.

It is important to work together. This can happen in either a meeting, teleconference, face-to-
face or online via the Internet.

1.5 Feedback and Feedback Mechanisms

Feedback is about giving information in a way that encourages the recipient to accept it,
reflect on it, learn from it, and hopefully make changes for the better.
Feedback occurs when an environment reacts to an action or behavior. For example,
'customer feedback' is the buyers' reaction to a firm's products and policies, and 'operational
feedback' is the internally generated information on a firm's performance. Response to a
stimuli (such as criticism or praise) is considered a feedback only if it brings about a change
in the recipient's behavior.
 Specifically, feedback can:
 Clarify good performance

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 Help develop self-assessment (reflection)
 Deliver high quality information
 Encourage dialogue
 Encourage motivational belief and self-esteem
 Provide opportunities to close the gap
 Provide information to teachers to improve teaching

A feedback mechanism is a process that uses the conditions of one component to regulate the
function of the other. It is done to either increase or dampen the change in the system. When
the process tends to increase the change in the system, the mechanism is known as positive
feedback. Negative feedback is when the process seeks to counter the change and maintain
equilibrium
Feedback is also an essential element for everyone in an organization's workforce. Giving
feedback is a task you perform again and again as a manager or supervisor, letting people
know where they are and where to go next in terms of expectations and goals - yours, their
own, and the organizations.
In addition feedback is a useful tool for indicating when things are going in the right
direction or for redirecting problem performance. Your objective in giving feedback is to
provide guidance by supplying information in a useful manner, either to support effective
behavior, or to guide someone back on track toward successful performance.

 Feedback on performance may include

 Formal or informal performance appraisals, which generally occur on a

regular basis. The first appraisal usually takes place three months after an
employee starts a job then every six or twelve months thereafter. These
appraisals allow for a formal method of feedback which can lead to
modification of work performance, further training and re-evaluation of
performance.
 Obtaining feedback from supervisors and colleagues – mainly in the form
of informal comments on a job well done or suggestions of how to complete a
task.
 Obtaining feedback from clients – hopefully positive praise rather than
negative points.
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 Personal, reflective behavior strategies – thinking about what you have
done and how you can improve it next time.
 Routine organizational methods for monitoring service – these include
customer complaint or satisfaction forms, and surveys that are completed at
the end of a task.

It is important that your work performance is monitored and that you receive feedback that is
constructive and encourages you to strive for improvement.
 When feedback should be occurred?
 Someone asks for your opinion about how they are doing
 Unresolved problems persist
 Errors occur again and again
 An employee's performance doesn't meet expectations
 A peer's work habits disturb you
Therefore, Feedback provided by others in the team should be encouraged, acknowledged and
acted upon the goals of the organization.

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1.6 Workplace values and beliefs

We each bring our backgrounds, beliefs, values, talents and behavior standards to work.
Taken together, these define how we treat others and how we expect to be treated. They
define what makes each of us unique.

To respect diversity is to recognize each individual for his/her unusual and unique talents.
These talents are as multifaceted and complex as the individual they belong to. Learning how
to deal with diversity involves acquiring some new skills. In fact, succeeding at work is very
difficult for those who are unable to collaborate with a diverse group of people.

Diversity by itself doesn't make an organization strong or successful. Dealing with diversity in
a healthy, productive and proactive manner, however, can help an organization succeed.

Diversity includes:

 People of different genders

 People with diverse ethnic, racial and cultural backgrounds
 People of different ages and experiences
 People with different abilities
 People with different sexual orientations
 People who practice different religions
 People who speak different languages
 People with different family structures
 People with different educational backgrounds
 People with different work and life experiences

Differences/diversity in personal values, beliefs, talents and behavior standards are needed to
be respected and acknowledged in the work place relationships for success of a development
organization.

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LO 2: Contributing to workgroup activities

2.1 Providing support

It is important to provide support to team members to ensure that workgroup goals are met.

 Providing support to team members may include

 Explaining or clarifying policies, procedures, instructions etc

 Helping colleagues to complete tasks on time, especially if you have
completed your own tasks ahead of schedule
 Assisting with solving problems
 Providing encouragement in order to foster a positive attitude
 Providing feedback to another team member
 Undertaking extra tasks if necessary.
2.2 Time management

In order to ensure workgroup goals are met, it is important to apply time management.

 Some ways to manage time effectively include:-

 Prioritizing: the ordering of tasks so that the most important are

completed first and so on to the least important.
 Delegation: passing on specific tasks for completion by someone else,
particularly if that person is more skilled to complete the job than you
are.
 Problem-solving: often achieved by brainstorming so that the best
method of solving the problem is adopted and agreed on by all team
members.
 Decision-making: often the responsibility of the team leader so that tasks
are completed within the set deadline.

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2.3 Communication

Effective communication is very important issue at particular work place.

 It help team members to understand and agree with team goals

 It helps to clarify goal and tasks
 It helps team members to understand how their tasks fit in with other people’s
tasks
 It helps to sort out problems before they become too serious
 It helps to share information that affects team goals
 It helps team members to evaluate their progress and discuss ways to improve
their work.

Method of Communication can be categorized into oral and written communication.

a) Oral communication methods may include:-

 Discussion: to share ideas to facilitate a job being completed on time

 Debate: when two people do not agree so put forward their point of view in
order to convince/persuade the other person
 Negotiation: when people discuss their differences of opinion but are willing
to compromise with each other in order to get a job done
 Speeches: for example, in a training session.

b) Written communication methods may include:-

 Instructions: to explain how a task must be completed in order to limit

misunderstanding
 Schedules: to prioritize tasks so that the most important is completed first
 Reports: often used as feedback or when evaluating a task/procedure.
2.4 Strategies and opportunities for improvement of the workgroup

Strategy: - is an expression of how an organization needs to evolve over time to meet its
objectives along with a detailed assessment of what needs to be done.

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Developing an organizational strategy for a business involves first comparing its present state
to its targeted state to define differences, and then stating what is required for the desired
changes to take place.
It is important that strategies and opportunities for improvement of the workgroup are
identified and planned in liaison/link/connect with the workgroup.

 Some strategies or opportunities may include:-

 Holding meetings: an important way for members to communicate and

solve problems.
 Brainstorming: many people are able to contribute ideas, particularly
when trying to solve a problem, so that the best alternative is adopted.
 Coaching, mentoring or supervision: enables more experienced
personnel to help the less experienced in order to improve the latter’s
efficiency and performance.
 Formal and informal training provisions: formal includes attending
courses whereas informal is often one colleague helping another, which
will improve the performance of the person receiving the training.
 Internal and external training provisions: internal training occurs on
site whereas external is held another College or other business premises,
depending on the size and resources of the business. All training would
result in improvements in awareness, performance and efficiency of the
workgroup.
 Work experience or exchange opportunities: allows a worker to see
what is occurring in other work venues and can share ideas with team
members to improve work performance of team.
 Personal study: to improve knowledge and performance, by sharing
experience with other team members.
 Career planning and development: preparing a plan for the future, to
lead activities of team.
 Performance appraisals: will identify the need for further training.
 Workplace skills assessment: to determine what skills the members of a
particular workplace have so that workgroups can be chosen with the

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knowledge that the best people for a certain task will be chosen to
maximize the outcomes.
 Recognition of prior learning: to ensure that the most experienced or
the person with the most training will be chosen for each task to ensure
that tasks are completed on time.

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