1.5 - About University

12.1 T HE R ELATIONSHIP B ANK:M AINTAINING W ORKING R ELATIONSHIPSInspired by Stephen Covey and Roger and Rebecca Merrill.Like it or not, organizations are inherently political systems, and the all-powerful informalorganization is a product of many networks of relationships. While it’s essential to treat allcoworkers and customers with dignity and respect, you won’t have time to invest heavily inevery possible relationship within your organization. That’s why it is important that you maintainand develop your working relationships strategically—with individuals and groups thatyou must rely on to get your work done. However, without ongoing effort, relationships tendto go stale over time. Thus, if you ignore your key relationships, sooner or later you may findthat everything you do takes longer, requires more effort, and yields lower results. This is justa basic fact of organizational life!The metaphor of a relationship bank gives new meaning to the terms trust account and balancesheet. For example, if you make a few deposits in a relationship by being understanding,flexible, open, supportive, reliable, considerate, listening, and so on, then it won’t hurt quiteas much when you make a withdrawal. A withdrawal could be deliberate, for example, challengingor confronting; or it could be inadvertent, such as forgetting to follow through on apromise. But without having a balance on deposit, a withdrawal puts the relationship into thered (i.e., a negative balance).Examples of relationshipdeposits✔ Seeking to understand others✔ Keeping your promises✔ Clarifying and meeting another person’s expectations✔ Demonstrating loyalty to someone even when theperson is not present✔ Apologizing for a mistake✔ Being open to receiving and acting onfeedback✘✘✘✘✘✘Examples of relationshipwithdrawals(Like deposits, you will notice thatwithdrawals also come in various sizes.)Demanding to be understoodFailing to follow through on a promiseUnkindnesses, discourtesiesFailing to meet someone’s expectationsDishonesty, conceit, arroganceRejecting feedback or failing to thank someone forfeedbackSECTION 12 TOOLS FOR LEADING RELATIONSHIPS 363