The Find: An astonishing 50 percent of advertising and marketing executives report having been stabbed in the back by a colleague at some point in their careers.- The Source: A national survey from The Creative Group, which provides specialized staff to the marketing, advertising, creative and web industries.
The Takeaway: The Creative Group sat down for 250 interviews, half with advertising executives and half with senior marketing executives. The results are pretty bad for the image of the media industry, which already has reputation for being less than warm and fuzzy. Half of advertising and marketing executives reported that a colleague had tried to make them look bad on the job at some point in their careers.
In an example of massive understatement, Megan Slabinski, executive director of The Creative Group, commented: “In advertising or marketing — as with any competitive field — it’s not uncommon for people to promote themselves at the expense of others.”
If it’s a coin toss that you’ll experience such bad behavior from your colleagues at some point, it’s a good idea to learn how to deal with inter-office backstabbing. The Creative Group offers some recommendations:
- Give yourself time to cool down — Don’t respond in the heat of the moment
- Look at the situation from every angle. What were your colleague’s intentions? Did you play a role in the problem?
- Chat in person, if possible. E-mailing about a sensitive situation can lead to misinterpretation.
- Explain the impact. Rather than hurling accusations, calmly explain how your colleague’s actions made you feel.
- Listen actively. Pay close attention to what your coworker has to say. Even if you disagree, you’ll get a better sense of how that person thinks, which can help you predict future behavior.
- Know when to get help. Immediately alert your manager to situations that appear serious.
The Question: Any hard-earned tips for dealing with credit hogging co-workers?
