I received a phone call this morning. From a number I have not saved. ‘Hello. You told me to call you in three weeks.’ This was early in the morning, I had no clue who was calling, and I was late to get out the door. Eventually, after slight prodding, it did become clear who it was, and we shall speak later in the day. But it has prompted me to put down some thoughts. If they’re useful to you, gravy. If they’re not, ignore them (but bookmark them, because at least one will be useful in the far future).
Here goes:
1. When you make a phone call, especially a business-related one, please introduce yourself, and your affiliation. A quick ‘Hello, this is Wallace Kantai of the Central Bank’ takes two and a half seconds (I have timed it), and it saves the other person endless head-scratching, trying to figure out who you are. A variant is ‘Hello, this is Wallace Kantai, we met at the nyama choma conference in Kenyatta Market last week’ also helps someone to figure out who you are, and thus align their thoughts to the conversation.
2. If you call someone and they do not answer, especially in the middle of a workday, please don’t call again multiple times. I have been in meetings where the phone vibrates incessantly, leading to interruption of the meeting. If someone does not respond to your first attempt, send them a message. Explain who you are (if they may not know you) and why you’re calling. Which leads me to...
3. In a meeting, switch off the ringer on your phone. It doesn’t matter who the meeting is with - with your boss, with your subordinates or with your peers. It is simply a matter of respect to whoever you are meeting with.
4. If you think you will be interrupted in a meeting (say your child is ill and someone may call with an update; or something of that nature), it may be good practice to warn the chair of the meeting appropriately, such that if you do get up to take the call, s/he will understand.
5. Do NOT answer your phone in a meeting. Excuse yourself and walk out. And when you do, keep it low. There are people who have been known to walk out of a meeting and then a loud voice is heard from the other side of the door ‘NILIKUAMBIA NI CARBURETTOR, SIO GASKET! SIJAWAHI ONA FUNDI MJINGA KAMA WEWE!!’ (For non-Kiswahili speakers, this is a robust discussion between a rather impolite person and their mechanic).
6. If you forward someone your CV, rule number 1 applies. It doesn’t matter that you are sending your CV to your uncle’s best friend. A simple two-line paragraph introducing yourself and the role you seek is invaluable. Why? Your uncle’s best friend may, most likely, forward the e-mail to someone else. That person does not know who you are, so an e-mail that said ‘Baba Ouma, ndio hii’ makes no sense.
7. Temper your expectations when it comes to seeking a job, or even an internship. There are several issues to note: First, the market is brutally competitive nowadays. There is an internship programme I know that takes only seven people per cohort. The last intake had twenty three thousand applicants. Second, many institutions have put in place hiring processes. This means that even if your aunt is the CEO, or your best friend’s father is HR Director, you will most likely have to go through the hiring process, including some automated bits, an interview and the rest of the rigmarole. Don’t send in your CV, sit back and expect to be called back with a reporting date.
8. By the same token, if someone has sent you their CV (hopefully not unsolicited), please give them realistic feedback. Being jobless is extraordinarily stressful and dispiriting. Don’t offer false hope - it’s simply cruel.
9. Respect someone’s workspace, regardless of where that person is on the totem pole. If your pal is a waiter, don’t turn up at the restaurant expecting them to drop everything (presumably not a fully-laden tray) so that they can sit with you and recount last week’s escapades. Wait until s/he has a gap in their schedule, and they may give you a few minutes. If your dad is the CEO of a blue chip company, don’t just barge into his office on the executive floor with an air of self importance. Say hello to his PA. S/he is the one who knows if he’s on an important, private call and needs privacy, or that it’s OK to walk in. If your girlfriend works in a hardware shop, you may think it’s romantic to show up mid morning thrice a week to woo her and give her flowers. Once may be an ‘awww’ moment. Too often, she’ll be jobless.
10. Language is a minefield. We all are (or should be) proud of our languages, including Sheng’. However, workplaces are public spaces. Unless everyone in that space understands a language, please don’t use it. We have two national languages for a reason. Even if you’re sharing a private joke with a colleague, imagine being the poor sap who watches people laughing uproariously and not knowing whether they are the subject (and the butt) of the joke.
I hope these help.
Here goes:
1. When you make a phone call, especially a business-related one, please introduce yourself, and your affiliation. A quick ‘Hello, this is Wallace Kantai of the Central Bank’ takes two and a half seconds (I have timed it), and it saves the other person endless head-scratching, trying to figure out who you are. A variant is ‘Hello, this is Wallace Kantai, we met at the nyama choma conference in Kenyatta Market last week’ also helps someone to figure out who you are, and thus align their thoughts to the conversation.
2. If you call someone and they do not answer, especially in the middle of a workday, please don’t call again multiple times. I have been in meetings where the phone vibrates incessantly, leading to interruption of the meeting. If someone does not respond to your first attempt, send them a message. Explain who you are (if they may not know you) and why you’re calling. Which leads me to...
3. In a meeting, switch off the ringer on your phone. It doesn’t matter who the meeting is with - with your boss, with your subordinates or with your peers. It is simply a matter of respect to whoever you are meeting with.
4. If you think you will be interrupted in a meeting (say your child is ill and someone may call with an update; or something of that nature), it may be good practice to warn the chair of the meeting appropriately, such that if you do get up to take the call, s/he will understand.
5. Do NOT answer your phone in a meeting. Excuse yourself and walk out. And when you do, keep it low. There are people who have been known to walk out of a meeting and then a loud voice is heard from the other side of the door ‘NILIKUAMBIA NI CARBURETTOR, SIO GASKET! SIJAWAHI ONA FUNDI MJINGA KAMA WEWE!!’ (For non-Kiswahili speakers, this is a robust discussion between a rather impolite person and their mechanic).
6. If you forward someone your CV, rule number 1 applies. It doesn’t matter that you are sending your CV to your uncle’s best friend. A simple two-line paragraph introducing yourself and the role you seek is invaluable. Why? Your uncle’s best friend may, most likely, forward the e-mail to someone else. That person does not know who you are, so an e-mail that said ‘Baba Ouma, ndio hii’ makes no sense.
7. Temper your expectations when it comes to seeking a job, or even an internship. There are several issues to note: First, the market is brutally competitive nowadays. There is an internship programme I know that takes only seven people per cohort. The last intake had twenty three thousand applicants. Second, many institutions have put in place hiring processes. This means that even if your aunt is the CEO, or your best friend’s father is HR Director, you will most likely have to go through the hiring process, including some automated bits, an interview and the rest of the rigmarole. Don’t send in your CV, sit back and expect to be called back with a reporting date.
8. By the same token, if someone has sent you their CV (hopefully not unsolicited), please give them realistic feedback. Being jobless is extraordinarily stressful and dispiriting. Don’t offer false hope - it’s simply cruel.
9. Respect someone’s workspace, regardless of where that person is on the totem pole. If your pal is a waiter, don’t turn up at the restaurant expecting them to drop everything (presumably not a fully-laden tray) so that they can sit with you and recount last week’s escapades. Wait until s/he has a gap in their schedule, and they may give you a few minutes. If your dad is the CEO of a blue chip company, don’t just barge into his office on the executive floor with an air of self importance. Say hello to his PA. S/he is the one who knows if he’s on an important, private call and needs privacy, or that it’s OK to walk in. If your girlfriend works in a hardware shop, you may think it’s romantic to show up mid morning thrice a week to woo her and give her flowers. Once may be an ‘awww’ moment. Too often, she’ll be jobless.
10. Language is a minefield. We all are (or should be) proud of our languages, including Sheng’. However, workplaces are public spaces. Unless everyone in that space understands a language, please don’t use it. We have two national languages for a reason. Even if you’re sharing a private joke with a colleague, imagine being the poor sap who watches people laughing uproariously and not knowing whether they are the subject (and the butt) of the joke.
I hope these help.
That's a beautiful piece of writing right there which we ought to apply in our everyday life.
ReplyDeleteI read the whole thing looking for 'econmiums' ...
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