Harmony On The Job Individually, we feel better; collectively, we are more productive! By Mike Griffin NOTE: Special Thanks to Dr. Griffin for initiating a dialog and forum for professional expression. Others are encouraged to take advantage of the COE Newsletter as a vehicle for the exchange of ideas .
Across most of our private and public lives, we have all encountered environments where our involvement was a positive experience or in contrast, when participation was not at all interesting or possibly, even unpleasant. On a personal level, I have experienced harmony or the lack thereof through various group experiences including but not limited to the following: family dynamics as a child, sibling, husband, and parent; play settings; classroom settings in the public schools both as a learner and a teacher; athletics as a participant and as a coach; and higher education for the past twenty-eight plus years (including the last 7.5 as department head), etc., etc., etc.. Upon reflection, my experiences that have embraced the greatest satisfaction coupled with productivity at a high level correlated nicely with a positive environment. Certainly there are exceptions, but since I am personally drawn to and am motivated to be a part of a harmonious environment, my recollection of those positive episodes would naturally resonate with me more readily when compared with someone that might not be as motivated to experience them. Regardless, those impressions foster who I am as a person and my preferences regarding how I prefer to assist in creating a work environment that has the potential to facilitate the potential for a working atmosphere that is at least pseudo
-enjoyable while yielding productive outcomes. In my quest for the aforementioned results, I stumbled across the following book chapter* related to harmony as it impacts the business setting. http://www.mirainternational.com/ books/difference/chap9.htm. Many recognizable and successful corporations are referenced, but more importantly, there are commonalities across the descriptions that ring true with my personal and professional experiences. Obviously, we can learn quite a bit from business processes. Seemingly, our outcomes (whether as individuals, or within varied units on campus) could trend in positive directions if the applications described within these business examples could be applied here (VSU) in a similar manner. Several descriptors and strategies exist in the chapter and are reinforced with examples cited and used by companies including but not limited to Merck, General Mills, IBM, Northwestern Mutual, Coca Cola, Delta and Marriott. I especially enjoyed the operational harmony paradigm because of the reference to the importance of equilibrium within the human body and how it parallels the need for comparable functionality within any multi-faceted structure in the corporate world or within academia for that matter. A compilation of themes and practices are documented including cooperation, communication, teamwork, willing attitude, rapport, input, warmth, friendliness, efficiency, integration, etc. Through all of the examples, one thing is clear. Harmony, like most challenges we face, involves work. In every instance provided, the improved productivity through enhanced harmony was intentional. Our impetus for harmony obviously has to coincide with a plan to drive it forward. Whether related to our interactions with students or our professional colleagues, improving relations through an intentional environment Continued on page 3