Angels in the Workplace - be the one to make the impact!

Promotable and Fireproof

Your source for quick, actionable advice on maximizing your potential in the age of

fast change, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and uncertainty.

Read time: 3 min.

Steve Degnan here, Advisor Board Member

and former Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO).

Relationships, Reputation and Results

are what I see as the driving forces in becoming

Promotable and Fireproof.

Let’s dig in to some quick take advice to make this real.

I’m glad you’re here. Let’s go!

Learn more on SteveDegnan.com

Relationships: Are angels real?

Ever met someone that seemed to be able to give you (or anyone else) a boost exactly when they needed it? Early in the pandemic, Spring of 2020, when all hell was breaking loose and my head was spinning, one of our employees stopped me in a hallway (he may have been the only one in the building) and told me I was doing a good job and he appreciated me.

Not something that happens to the head of HR frequently. I was dumbfounded and grateful. Paul , the employee in question, sadly passed away in 2024. When I went to his obituary, I found that he’d been doing the same thing he did for me for many others. He was literally an angel.

Can you be that for others? Set a goal to give some needed praise once per week. The impact will be far reaching.

Reputation: Work hard, play hard. But . . .

Many of us aspire to work in cultures where some fun and partying get mixed in with work and achieving. I was truly blessed in my career to get that almost immediately upon my entrance into the US Army, and many more years of it in my professional career, where I met some true professionals when it came to getting results AND having a good time.

But – it can go wrong - like this story about a Netflix executive. If partying exists on a scale of 1 to 10, you might want to make sure you never take it over about a 6 on that scale at work. Be careful out there.

Results: Required breaks.

I worked in management at several unionized facilities and learned that their local contracts covered many seemingly small things, one being break times. As a young leader I was always amazed at the discipline applied to break times in union shops, with those not really wanting to take breaks having to take them anyway, in compliance with the contract, be they machine operators or mechanics in the midst of an important task.

Now use that lens on your own accumulated vacation/paid time off if you have that benefit: make sure you use it and do not try to bank it. It is there for a reason.

Some have a mindset that it must be used in weeklong increments – in most cases it does not. Schedule mental health breaks and days off for yourself well in advance in addition to longer vacations. Use up all the days you have by year end. Consider the break mandatory.

Your Quick Take Clip!

Are angels real? I believe that certain people come into our lives at certain times to serve a purpose, to remind us what our true purpose is, and to help inspire us to be better.

Take this mentality with you into the workplace. Don’t fall into the trap of joining workplace gossip, of creating rivalries, or workplace grievances. Be better than this. Choose to inspire and not to succumb to pettiness . . . be the angel you would hope to meet.

Avoid the gossip, the grudges, and the rivalries!

#ThatsWhatSteveSaid

“A reasonable boss who leads in a reasonable work culture

is probably the best ‘policy’ an organization can aspire to.”

In this article Steve pulls on past experiences, recalling the importance of leadership to company culture - culture has to start from the top, and senior leadership has to model the culture they want the business to experience.