The Squeeze Play on American Black Men…

Posted by by Staff February 13, 2011 1 Comment Misc. News Opinion Weekly Columns
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(ThyBlackMan.com) American Black men have been systematically squeezed out of the workforce for many years. We are faced with new competition approximately every 10 years. First, there was calling the white female a minority. Not only did she become our competition, she got the promotion we worked hard for and then she became our boss. Then the Asian boom became fashionable, and politically correct, primarily in technical positions. A lot of black men had technical degrees and expertise at the time. We were engineers, field service techs, data center managers, etc., pushed out because of the politics that U.S. corporations were playing with Japanese and Korean hi-tech manufacturers. Big time politics. Dig what I’m saying?

Currently Latino’s are driving the bus. Joblessness for qualified black men has reached a pinnacle. The once hot coffee in the office has turned to ice [coffee]. Those who had been fortunate to work for many years are scratching to survive, dipping into retirement funds, annuities, and other once treasured resources to keep their heads above water. Not to mention the pressure that our women are faced with. For better, for worse; for richer or poorer is being tested now more than ever.

As the workplace continues to make its changes, we are now seeing other minorities in positions that we once had that control hiring . From the late 70’s to early 90’s token positions were created for black men, and later black women, i.e., VP of Diversity, Manager of Conflict Resolution, and Assistant  HR Manager, which were high paying positions in most cases, but the difference was that these black men had ‘better not’ hire or promote other black men to policy changing positions or open the flood gates for black in general. However, the new minority non-black recruiters and hiring managers are hiring his own to get the jobs we once had or still desire. Bilingual is now a new prerequisite. Spanish, Korean, and Farsi are currently the ‘must know’ languages as part of job requirements. A lot of these jobs have absolutely nothing to do with serving the general public.

Part of the problem is American black men have shot themselves in the foot being more concerned about the cars we drive, the clothes we wear, the clubs we frequent than working your way into the board room, or setting your eyes on a policy changing position. Don’t get me wrong, we work hard for the things we want, and we deserve it, but don’t take your eye off the prize. A policy changing position is one that affects departments or an entire organization. When you can revise an existing procedure or develop and implement a new policy you become invaluable, and you’ve proven that you can make a difference. You certainly make your boss look good. Know what the current policies are. Find holes in the current policies to fill. Change could mean streamlining processes to cut costs, integrating resources with other departments, development of a new policy or procedure. If you see a position where you feel you can make a change, go after it.

Let’s talk a little man talk now.
Remember several seasons ago the Clippers made it to the playoffs, going toe-to-toe with the best of the west. Elton Brand was a monster. The team was clicking in over-drive. They were less than a minute from making it to the conference finals when then Clipper and perennial seasoned championship caliber pro named Sam Cassell cost them advancement to the next round. With a big ole kool-aid grin, thinking they had the game in the bag, Sam took his time advancing the ball past the half court line in the required eight seconds. The violation was a turnover, giving the opponent momentum to score and ultimately winning the game. The all-pro took his eye off the prize. You don’t take your eye off the prize until you have it in your hand. Even then you have to protect it to keep it. American black man, we will always have an opponent. I was middle management, in positions that affected policy, and usually wrote my own ticket. I was fortunate to direct report to top level management for the majority of my professional career, so I know how the game is played. Take the prize back. Here’s how.
 
 
Stay where you are.
Stay put. Leaving your job is what some supervisors want. Stop playing into their hands. You leaving for another position means you’ll have to start all over again to gain seniority, and consideration for promotion. You may make a little more money going to another company, but you may pay for it down the line, unless you can negotiate a guaranteed path for success, paid vacation, personal leave and other perks you are walking away from.
 
 
Use of the pen is protection.
Learn how to write. Meaning, do more communicating in writing, i.e., interdepartmental correspondence, email, external letters. Stop making verbal requests, because when you get no response, you don’t have a trail to prove your requests. Document verbal promises from colleagues, and follow up meetings with an email to those you met with to be certain that everyone is in agreement with what was discussed. Always take notes. If colleagues don’t respond to your written requests, try a second time. If still no response, don’t be afraid to [cc:] their supervisor. Always reply to written correspondence directed to you. Purchase a [Franklin] planner to keep track of assignments, meetings, phone calls and messages, daily tasks, and other notes. Guard it at all times. It will help get you organized. Use it for personal matters as well.
 
 
The performance appraisal is your secret weapon.
Most people get nervous at appraisal time. You should. They go into your personnel file. The appraisal is the biggest weapon company’s use against employee’s upward mobility. Turn that around. Most performance reviews are conducted once per year. It’s very unfair that you have to wait an entire year to find out that your performance is sub par. Sub par performance means what? A smaller annual monetary pay increase, and in some cases nothing at all. This is how you counter that. This year, tactfully ask your boss for “an off the record” mid-year review. Reason, you don’t want to wait until next year to find out where you stand or need improvement. You want to know now so you have the next six months to correct any issues. You want a flawless review next year. Most managers will appreciate your willingness to do a superior job. Volunteer for additional assignments. Be realistic with an estimated completion date and provide daily or weekly status until completion. Set realistic goals for the next cycle, and challenge unrealistic goals set for you by your supervisor. Be prepared to give an explanation why you feel its not feasible. Don’t be afraid to ask for additional manpower or resources to ensure your success. Create a spreadsheet to track all of your accomplishments and completed tasks throughout the performance year. When appraisal time arrives, you don’t have to try to remember everything. Transfer those milestones to the appraisal, no matter how small the task.  
 
 
Participate in the fluff.
Most meetings are fluff and a waste of time. Well, go to as many meetings as you can to take part in time wasted by accepting an assignment. Then you’ll be invited back to another meeting to waste more time to give a status report. Always use charts and other media tools to report your progress or results. Some individuals are not use to seeing black men in meetings, so they tend to make off-color jokes and references. If that happens, feel free to call the jokester an “ignorant S.O.B” in front of everybody.
The “B” stands for biscuit. Leave the meeting the same way you came in – with a smile. Trust me, there will be no retaliation. If there is, everyone in the room is liable. If your boss was in attendance and tries to reprimand you, then ask him “why didn’t you say something to the jokester immediately?” That will put his loyalty on the line.
 
 
Don’t be late, stay late.
Arrive to work on time. Return from lunch on time. Stay late as often as you can. If you’re a non-exempt employee, you may have to ask for permission to stick around to do extra work. If you’re exempt, do your thing. The reason to stay late is to see who else is staying late, on a regular basis. You see, a lot of impromptu meeting takes place a couple of hours after the shift ends. The boss is there and usually that one individual who is brown nosing, talking about everybody else’s short comings, and promoting themselves. Of course they’ll wonder why you’re working late. Let nosey know that you’re getting some work done. From now on, that will be the person to keep your eyes on and mouth shut in their presence. You have witnessed a contrast between business hours and after hours demeanor.
 
 
You are who you are.
Lastly, be who you are, but with dignity. Be proud of who you are. Realize that you don’t have to play golf to get ahead. You don’t have to attend social dinners or go to happy hour to get ahead. Your work should speak for itself. If your boss is serious about your welfare, then see what happens when you invite him to your house for dinner with you and your family. I did that all of the time. Not one boss took me up on the invitation, and I didn’t have to play golf either.
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Written By S. E. Masters

Official website; http://yhoo.it/g4Al3e


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