Individuality in the office [Archive] - Beyond.ca - Car Forums

Tomaz

04-23-2010, 03:57 PM

Well, today my company has issued mandates specifying what all employees can have for desktop backgrounds, e-mail signatures, logo usage, personal affects, and clothing.

I understand that the company wants to maintain an image that is world-wide, but when is it taken to far?

E-mail sigs: I get it, we might as well keep it the same and have all of our contact info available in our emails. One problem I have with this idea was that I am no longer allowed to have my "quotes of the day" at the bottom anymore. My customers really like getting e-mails from me just because of my insightful quotes. It may sound stupid, but hey... they like it.:dunno:

Clothing: I get this too. Wear the uniform or any other company-approved/company issued clothing to maintain the image of unity and professionalism to our customers. But now my "casual Fridays" are no longer!

Desktop background: I don't know why this got to me so badly. My desktop was a reflection of me and kept me sane in my boring work environment. I am the only one the looks at me screen, my images were work-safe. What the hell is the big deal?

Personal affects: Ok, so I am not longer allowed to have anything personal on my desk. No pictures of family, no Formula 1 mousepads, nothing without my company logo. They even took away my 1:38 model of my favorite car, and my magic 8-ball! Even my stapler wasn't "company approved". I had to fight to keep my ergonomic chair!

Now seeing that these restrictions have been placed, I need to come up with ways to show my individuality and make my office professional without losing the personal touch that keeps my customers know me for.

/Rant

OFFICE EMPLOYEES: How do you keep your identity at the office? Put up all of your ideas, techniques so I can find something to break the system!!!:poosie:

JfuckinC

04-23-2010, 04:03 PM

Ahh the flexibility of a small company.. i can do whatever i want :)

Whats the rules for backgrounds? do you have alot of client visits? No personal effects is stupid in my opinion, what a douche move.

Pahnda

04-23-2010, 04:06 PM

Eat a lot of gassy foods and let some nasty farts out. It'll uniquely identify and mark your area as your own.

ercchry

04-23-2010, 04:09 PM

that sucks... i feel pretty lucky working here, can do all that stuff :poosie:

can you listen to music at your desk? i think that is pretty much all you have left!

Tomaz

04-23-2010, 04:11 PM

Originally posted by JfuckinC
Ahh the flexibility of a small company.. i can do whatever i want :)

Whats the rules for backgrounds? do you have alot of client visits? No personal effects is stupid in my opinion, what a douche move.

I have 5 different images of our logo to choose from... I miss my magic 8 ball :(

Originally posted by ercchry

can you listen to music at your desk? i think that is pretty much all you have left!

They took that too :( . We are only allowed to play classical in the showroom.

TomcoPDR

04-23-2010, 04:17 PM

Just pull a who gives a fuck move and see how long you'd last

http://www.themontyminute.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/01/image001.jpg

I say who cares as long as the money they're paying you over compensates for this indifference...

Aside from the obvious "new job" I say just think of other ways to entertain your time. (i.e. slack off, flirt with office slut, sneek off somewhere, etc...) You know what I mean, just make up for that rule in another way.

bituerbo

04-23-2010, 04:19 PM

Shave a cock-n-balls into the back of your head.

Jlude

04-23-2010, 04:21 PM

Tomaz.... I like you, but really... this is just whining.

You wanna keep your identity at the office? Excel in your work... separate yourself from everyone else.

Is this a career or just a job? Either way, who really cares that you can't have a magic 8 ball at your desk?

kertejud2

04-23-2010, 04:39 PM

Just find a way to put the company logo inconspicuously on all your personal effects. A sticker on the picture frame, turn the desktop image into a watermark and have your own image behind it etc.

Or show a mocking support of the changes. Cover your entire desk in company parafanalia to the point where it become unproductive and obnoxious.

If you really want to show how individual you are I'd suggest going with a crazy new hairstyle, maybe even customize your company apparel to show what kind of rebel you are.

QuasarCav

04-23-2010, 04:46 PM

Your first point is logical. For everyone that likes your quotes of the day there are probably one or more that don't.

What type of business do you work in? You'll find companies are all over the map when it comes to office code of conduct but it sounds like you are working for one of the more controlling ones.

e31

04-23-2010, 05:01 PM

Two Words: Mike Tyson

http://nybankruptcynet.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/celeb-miketyson.jpg

Seriously though, when it gets to the point where you can literally feel your job draining your life away, suck it up and break some shit out back.

I purposely keep all personal effects out of the office, mostly as a personal satisfaction that I can just say "fuck it" and leave at a moments notice.

I would say that the general impression with "creature comforts" is that one gradually accumulates a small collection. This assortment of personal effects goes to show that you have most likely put in your time, and therefore know your stuff. When everyone's office looks bare, it would seem that the company must have hired a bunch of temps or something. Not the impression anyone is looking for.

GQBalla

04-23-2010, 05:07 PM

Email sigs - understandable
Desktop backgrounds - understandable. At least they are letting you choose from some and not just having a company standard that's built into every image like some companies.
Personal effects - now that's retarded. Why couldn't you have a picture of your family, even stapler? Come on you work there for 40 hours + a week. You need some sort of homie feel.
Dress code - casual fridays. For me as long as you look presentable. The douchey clothes definitely is not okay here

What I don't understand is why they got mad over your ergonomic chair. Ergonomics is huge and they could get in serious trouble if they didn't provide the proper ergonomics needs for a employee

adam c

04-23-2010, 05:16 PM

our company uses the logo as the background for the desktops, i have no problem with it but when i implemented it a lot of people were pissed... don't care since the orders came from the top

Tomaz

04-23-2010, 06:15 PM

Originally posted by Jlude
Tomaz.... I like you, but really... this is just whining.

You wanna keep your identity at the office? Excel in your work... separate yourself from everyone else.

Is this a career or just a job? Either way, who really cares that you can't have a magic 8 ball at your desk?

Yeah, your right. It is just whining. My rebel comes out when I am told what to do. ;) I just know that I am great at my job and what they are controlling in no way affects the way I conduct business. Knowing me, i'l kick and scream like a spoiled 6 year old for a few days, then bend over like everyone else in the office.

Originally posted by QuasarCav
Your first point is logical. For everyone that likes your quotes of the day there are probably one or more that don't.

What type of business do you work in? You'll find companies are all over the map when it comes to office code of conduct but it sounds like you are working for one of the more controlling ones.

I'm in Corporate Sales - Inside Sales. I guess now is better than 20 years ago where everyone was required to wear full suits!

Originally posted by GQBalla
Email sigs - understandable
Desktop backgrounds - understandable. At least they are letting you choose from some and not just having a company standard that's built into every image like some companies.
Personal effects - now that's retarded. Why couldn't you have a picture of your family, even stapler? Come on you work there for 40 hours + a week. You need some sort of homie feel.
Dress code - casual fridays. For me as long as you look presentable. The douchey clothes definitely is not okay here

What I don't understand is why they got mad over your ergonomic chair. Ergonomics is huge and they could get in serious trouble if they didn't provide the proper ergonomics needs for a employee

My stapler was not company colours. I bought a whacky blue one with racing stripes. lol

My chair wasn't company colours. They have agreed to get one that is good for my back and fits the colour scheme.

I have gotten a few ideas now to bend the rules a bit...

-I am getting small stickers from marketing to brand my F1 model car
-My new chair should be in by Monday
-Family pics are hidden behind my cardholder/nameplate so only i can see them
-My 8 ball is now sporting the company logo.
-"Quotes of the day" are now on my voicemail

If there are any other ideas, feel free to share them! :D

iCreep

04-23-2010, 06:24 PM

Originally posted by Tomaz

-"Quotes of the day" are now on my voicemail

I think this is a little extreme, ya SOME people may enjoy listening to your quotes of the day, but then others just want to leave a damn message. :dunno:

thrasher22

04-28-2010, 02:29 AM

If a company doesn't respect your personal choices, they shouldn't have hired you in the first place. Happy employees are productive employees. I don't see why so many companies have a hard time seeing that.

speedog

04-28-2010, 07:37 AM

Such is life in the working world. Many companies can and will bring down various policies such as the OP has detailed and as an employee, you either suck it up and follow suit or quit and find a new job. Worked for a large corporation for 26+ years and saw all sorts of ridiculous rules - some the result of overzealous management who never took the time to spend a day in the trenches so to speak.

This isn't about a company respecting personal choices or anything else - the company writes the rules, you work for them and have to abide by them. So - if you want to have certain rules in place or want them relaxed, then put yourself in a position to do so. Otherwise, you'll just have to suck it up or possibly risk being on the outside looking in.

As a side tip, if you wear glasses then I am sure you can probably find a way to show some personal style. Hair styles and personal grooming - same thing. But be forewarned - deliberately flaunting the rules even in this manner may affect your career path within a company as there are many management people who will make it their mission to get rid of someone just because they flaunt the rules. OP - keep playing the game if you wish, but be very mindful of what you do as it sounds like you're working in a progressively oppressive workplace.

Speed_69

04-28-2010, 07:39 AM

Originally posted by iCreep

I think this is a little extreme, ya SOME people may enjoy listening to your quotes of the day, but then others just want to leave a damn message. :dunno:
:werd:

R-Audi

04-28-2010, 08:18 AM

Moves like this are typically because of the people who push the limits.. while your screen saver might have been appropriate, there is always someone who thinks a bikini clad model is also appropriate.
Instead of working with people on a case by case basis and wasting time, its much easier to set the standards from the get go.

Everyone pays for a few peoples mistakes!

masoncgy

04-28-2010, 08:54 AM

Man, thanks for reminding why I left the office environment and will never return.

I worked in a company that was pretty open & tolerant and allowed their employees to feel comfortable at work... and it was a very productive, money-making operation that people bragged about to their friends & families alike...

...then suddenly, a bunch of corporate douchebags from downtown started to infiltrate the upper brass and everything went downhill... it became a lifeless, sterile, soul sucking environment where all of the best people left for greener pastures.

Happy employees = productive, responsible employees. Unhappy employees are simply the reverse.

Worked for a large corporation for 26+ years and saw all sorts of ridiculous rules - some the result of overzealous management who never took the time to spend a day in the trenches so to speak.

Exactly. The rules came down from people who didn't understand the culture or what it was that made us so successful. It was basically 'let's institute my corporate philosophy and to hell with what the masses think' .... and ultimately, the company failed.

OP: I would hope that there is enough positives at your job to keep you there other than the paycheck, otherwise I'd GTFO and find something better. Being treated like a number... for lack of a better term... sucks balls.

Mar

04-28-2010, 08:58 AM

Wow, that's rough. Some companies don't understand that productivity drops with morale and they just annihilated yours.

sputnik

04-28-2010, 09:02 AM

Originally posted by Tomaz
Well, today my company has issued mandates specifying what all employees can have for desktop backgrounds, e-mail signatures, logo usage, personal affects, and clothing.

I understand that the company wants to maintain an image that is world-wide, but when is it taken to far?

blah blah blah

whine whine whine

This folks is a PERFECT example of the "Entitlement Generation".

speedog

04-28-2010, 09:10 AM

OP has stated that he works Inside Sales in a show room environment - if that show room environment includes either corporate customers or joe blow public wandering around, then I can understand some rules being in place. If it's corporate customers, then I'd expect that the rules are probably tightened up a bit more so as to present a more professional appearance to these corporate clients. If it's joe blow public, then I wouldn't expect the rules to be quite as restrictive.

Either way, morale can be dealt a blow here and productivity and company loyalty will suffer as a direct result. The 26+ years I spent at my last employer could be used to write a book on how to destroy company loyalty and employee morale through dumb ass rules and silliness.

masoncgy

04-28-2010, 09:16 AM

Originally posted by sputnik
This folks is a PERFECT example of the "Entitlement Generation".

I agree with the desire for an organization to have consistency across the board when it comes to presentation & image... email signatures, logos, etc... in fact, it annoys me when a company does not have this under control.

That said, within the confines of an office, there needs to be some flexibility when it comes to an employee's comfort. It's a 40 hour a week haul in a cubicle or sweat shop... not the greatest environment to begin with. Allowing employees to have *some* freedom when it comes to attire & personal touches at their workstation gives the employee something to look forward to... instead of day in & day out in the same lifeless, sterile environment.

I actually took in a few seminars on keeping 'today's generation' happy within the workplace... it's a tough battle for many organizations... maintaining a level of professionalism & efficiency while dealing with the challenges of the 'me' generation.

When employees are happy at work, they have reasons to come to work other than collecting a paycheck... and that's what a profit seeking organization needs... a happy & productive work force.

I had employees stay with our company even though they could have left for more money because of the culture we had in place... once that was gone, they left...

speedog

04-28-2010, 09:16 AM

Originally posted by sputnik
This folks is a PERFECT example of the "Entitlement Generation". Don't agree as I was born well before this "Entitlement Generation" and I always tried to push the boundaries a bit where I worked as an employee - reason why I did it was there always has to be a little bit of push back by employees to hopefully find a agreeable middle ground that is acceptable. Otherwise, you'll soon find security cameras poking up at you from under the toilet to make sure that you're taking a shit in a manner that falls within certain company parameters.

Xtrema

04-28-2010, 09:17 AM

Originally posted by Mar
Wow, that's rough. Some companies don't understand that productivity drops with morale and they just annihilated yours.

The bigger the company, the tighter the rule. Or it takes only 1 incident to ruin it for everyone.

Tik-Tok

04-28-2010, 09:59 AM

Originally posted by kertejud2

Or show a mocking support of the changes. Cover your entire desk in company parafanalia to the point where it become unproductive and obnoxious.

This is probably what I would do. Have company logo for the computer wallpaper AND screen saver, logo/colours on mouse, mouse pad, keyboard, embroidered logo seat cushion, and back, plastic mat under the chair with company logo, framed photo's of the company logo, pretty much every single item on my desk would have the logo on it, and be company colours.

BigMass

04-28-2010, 10:28 AM

next time your boss comes over give him the Strangelove "mein fuhrer!"
http://www.indelibleinc.com/kubrick/films/strangelove/images/dr_arm.gif

jonnycat

04-28-2010, 11:58 AM

Quotes of the day on your voicemail? This would bother me to no end.

The instant that I realized I am going to have to listen to someone's personal opinion or much too "informative" voicemail message, I'll hang up and call someone else. Even if your message was almost over, you've just wasted my time and I hate that.

The only time I would appreciate this is if you did dead on impressions that made me laugh.

Tomaz

04-28-2010, 12:04 PM

Well, a few days have passed and as i said before, i would stop kicking and screaming like a spoiled child.

I have been given back the small, petty stuff that the rules have outlawed (pictures, magic 8-ball, model cars). To my surprise, i learned that the office manager was outraged when he was not allowed to have his mounted fish trophy on his wall. He has claimed all of our stuff back, but with a few minor restrictions:

-Workplace to not be cluttered (of course)
-should not have any other brands showing (of course)
-Workplace cannot be distracting to one's self or others. (of course)
-Calgary and Edmonton offices have been allowed high-end (tear-free) denim pants (a bit of a surprise)

As for all the other stuff, i would have been expecting emails and similar inter-office and branding to be very uniform. So i never really had a problem with it.

As for desktop backgrounds and logos: I have been working part time in designing new corporate backgrounds that show more creativity and design without slandering the brand. So far all but one of my designs have been accepted and are going to be implemented Canada-wide so people have some choices.

Soo, all is well in the corporate world in the west! haha!

PS: I was complimented on my "company sponsored" model F1 car by the CEO of operations when he came to visit this morning. :poosie:

Kloubek

04-28-2010, 12:24 PM

No pictures of family? That's fucking brutal.

Graham_A_M

04-28-2010, 04:49 PM

Originally posted by jonnycat
Quotes of the day on your voicemail? This would bother me to no end.

The instant that I realized I am going to have to listen to someone's personal opinion or much too "informative" voicemail message, I'll hang up and call someone else. Even if your message was almost over, you've just wasted my time and I hate that.

The only time I would appreciate this is if you did dead on impressions that made me laugh.

Yeah, I just want to leave a message, not rot away in hopeless despair while you spew your motivational talk.
Dont take that the wrong way, I LOVE motivational quotes as they offer some remarkible insight towards offering a new perspective on a daunting arduous thing, but they have their time & place. Corporate or personal voicemail is not one of them.
I've all the management classes I've taken & read, I must say everybody is different, and contributes in their own way. Forcing everybody in a conformists grip is killing peoples individual creative abilities.
I'll assume with the added implementation of more strict rules of what was already mentioned, you'll see productivity, initiative & responsibility take a noticeable and measurable hit.

FiveFreshFish

04-28-2010, 06:52 PM

With most voicemail systems you can skip the greeting by hitting # or 1 or *.

Antonito

04-29-2010, 07:39 AM

Having things like pictures or gizmos at work just depresses me because they remind me that I'm at work rather than being with family/out enjoying my hobbies/on a beach in Hawaii.

Work is work, everything else is everything else. Even when I enjoy my work I'd still rather being doing something else, and I don't want reminders of that.

Cos

04-29-2010, 08:46 AM

Originally posted by Tomaz
Well, a few days have passed and as i said before, i would stop kicking and screaming like a spoiled child.

I have been given back the small, petty stuff that the rules have outlawed (pictures, magic 8-ball, model cars). To my surprise, i learned that the office manager was outraged when he was not allowed to have his mounted fish trophy on his wall. He has claimed all of our stuff back, but with a few minor restrictions:

-Workplace to not be cluttered (of course)
-should not have any other brands showing (of course)
-Workplace cannot be distracting to one's self or others. (of course)
-Calgary and Edmonton offices have been allowed high-end (tear-free) denim pants (a bit of a surprise)

As for all the other stuff, i would have been expecting emails and similar inter-office and branding to be very uniform. So i never really had a problem with it.

As for desktop backgrounds and logos: I have been working part time in designing new corporate backgrounds that show more creativity and design without slandering the brand. So far all but one of my designs have been accepted and are going to be implemented Canada-wide so people have some choices.

Soo, all is well in the corporate world in the west! haha!

PS: I was complimented on my "company sponsored" model F1 car by the CEO of operations when he came to visit this morning. :poosie:

at the end of the day, you didnt lose beyond tho! :clap:

rob the knob

04-29-2010, 10:12 AM

quote of day :barf:

D. Dub

04-29-2010, 02:13 PM

Originally posted by Tomaz

OFFICE EMPLOYEES: How do you keep your identity at the office? Put up all of your ideas, techniques so I can find something to break the system!!!:poosie:

Pee in the corners to mark your territory.

VeilOctane

04-29-2010, 03:20 PM

ha ha im totally a individual at work.

everyone at the office is White. i am the only asian

wow i had to work hard to get where i am. :nut: :nut:

but yeah its pretty standard to have email signatures desktops screen savers and proper policy.

remember fight club?

just pull this in-front of your boss and you can work at home.

http://www.gifbin.com/bin/3934yu85yu4.gif

sexualbanana

04-30-2010, 12:29 AM

Originally posted by R-Audi
Moves like this are typically because of the people who push the limits.. while your screen saver might have been appropriate, there is always someone who thinks a bikini clad model is also appropriate.
Instead of working with people on a case by case basis and wasting time, its much easier to set the standards from the get go.

Everyone pays for a few peoples mistakes!

This would be my bet. It may not have been you, but it was probably someone else in the company that had 438 troll dolls on their desk and 884 pictures of her 68 cats plastered on her wall.

AndyL

04-30-2010, 08:31 AM

Well if you're really upset over the desktop :) You could always redo the application icons to something more enjoyable...

I'm 50/50 on this - at my work, we seem to have a starwars collection going in a few cubicles... Boxed sets, light sabers blah blah blah... I'm waiting for something to get broken (as many play with them) then the sh*t will hit the fan I'm sure...

But my Rigid tools calendar has managed to escape criticism over the past two years - after most of the southern ones were ordered to be taken down... My comment to the boss was - "If the bikini girls bring the guys into the office - I can nag them about paperwork; if it's gone - they aren't as likely to stop in".

88CRX

04-30-2010, 08:41 AM

Watch Office Space..... then when stuff like this happens it's funny.

Is This Good for the COMPANY?
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/30/67820957_acce81ded0.jpg

msommers

04-30-2010, 08:48 AM

The email quotes thing is something that seems to characterize an email but I feel it loses a piece of professionalism.

Desktop backgrounds. I think we all know what a suitable background we be, so I'll assume that it was safe for work. Regardless, I don't see a problem about customizing this based on who you are. Wow, you have a picture of Yellowstone Park instead of a company logo, cry me a fucking river. That said, at work you normally have shit covering up your background anyways.

Casual friday has been around for almost 20 years now. It's just something that has become the norm. It's not a huge deal to have it taken away but it's 'just another thing'.

Wanting family pictures? Ya, that's the entitlement generation right there.

A fish trophy in the office is tacky as shit, I can see why they'd want that garbage out. But something like a favorite photo/painting to hang on your wall should be perfectly acceptable.

The 'me' generation is evident but on the other hand it may also have to do with people realizing what they're worth and that work isn't everything. If that makes me spoiled entitlement punk ass well then so be it.