I Me Mine: Two Cogent Commentaries on Credit and Collaboration Challenges in the Workplace - ComplexDiscovery Archived Content

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Editor’s Note: As a fan of the Beatles, business, and blogging, today’s post weaves elements of each of these interests into the presentation of extracts providing insight into several oft-experienced but less spoken about challenges in the workplace. These challenges being credit and collaboration. These challenges are especially relevant to the discipline of discovery because they can positively or negatively impact investigation and litigation outcomes by their influence on the people involved in discovery programs and projects.

“All through the day 
I me mine, I me mine, I me mine
All through the night 
I me mine, I me mine, I me mine
Now they’re frightened of leaving it
Everyone’s weaving it
Coming on strong all the time
All through the day, I me mine.”

Beatles. Let It Be. Apple Records, 1970.

How to Respond When Someone Takes Credit for Your Work

Extracts from an article by Amy Gallo from the Harvard Business Review

There’s nothing more infuriating than someone taking credit for your work. We’ve all had this happen at one point or another: you share an idea with a colleague and then hear him repeat it in a meeting; you stay late to finish a presentation yet your team member accepts all the praise; you lead a long overdue project to completion and your boss tells the higher-ups it was his doing. How should you handle these situations? Is it okay to speak up right then and there? Or should you keep quiet? And how can you make sure that you get the credit you deserve in the future?

We want to believe that our work speaks for itself. But “in the real world, it matters who gets credit,” says Karen Dillon, author of the HBR Guide to Office Politics. “That all goes into the bank account of how much value you bring to the organization and plays into promotion decisions, raises, and assignments.” And you can’t assume that people will notice the time and effort you put in, says Brian Uzzi, professor of leadership and organizational change at Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management and author of the HBR article, “Make Your Enemies Your Allies.” “With collaborative work, it’s not always clear who has done what,” he says, which leaves the door open for a colleague to take undue credit. Here’s what to do when someone tries to claim your work or ideas as their own.

Read the complete article at How to Respond When Someone Takes Credit for Your Work

How to Manage a Narcissist

Extracts from an article by Manfred F.R. Kets de Vries from the Harvard Business Review

Narcissistic people can be charismatic and manipulative, which helps them get ahead. But although their drive and ambitions can be effective in moving organizations forward, excessive narcissistic behavior can create havoc and lead to organizational breakdown. Envious as they are, narcissistic people always strive to win, whatever the costs. They see themselves as “special,” and only associate with other “special” or high-status people.

A manager’s biggest worry should not be losing their narcissist; it should be that other team members will be the ones to resign, tired of the way narcissists need to be catered to. It’s hard to deal with a narcissist’s sense of entitlement, lack of empathy, and need to feel special. But if you can create a group dynamic that keeps those tendencies in check and that helps develop the self-awareness of everyone on your team, you’ll keep your best people — and get the best out of the rest.

Read the complete article on How to Manage a Narcissist

Additional Reading:

• The Workstream of eDiscovery: Considering Processes and Tasks
• A Concise Framework for eDiscovery Automation