Tag: Teamwork
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Mutual learning: let’s give it a chance in 2023!
Mutual learning: let’s give it a chance in 2023! As 2023 starts, let me wish you all a great year and assure you all of my support! The CERN community is very keen – and rightly so – to underline that collaboration is in our DNA. This is something that I am particularly proud of,
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Videoconferencing and creativity: a wobbly coupling
Videoconferencing and creativity: a wobbly coupling Creativity is one of the five values of CERN. That’s why, when I heard on my favourite radio programme that Nature had published an article1 on the impact of virtual interactions on creativity, I reached out to the online journal to find out more about this piece of research.
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The two faces of Janus
The two faces of Janus When I took on the role of CERN Ombud, I was not prepared to encounter what I now call the “Janus” effect. Let me give you two examples*: Adam comes to my office to share his difficulties with his supervisor, Sandra: “She’s such an ill-minded, manipulative person. She takes all
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Why didn’t you tell me before?
Why didn’t you tell me before? Some visitors to the Ombud’s Office tell me they don’t feel entirely comfortable expressing their ideas, concerns and opinions within their team or to their supervisor or project leader. The thing is, such teams are probably losing out on early warnings of risks, game-changing ideas and thought-provoking views on
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Three powerful tools to meet the challenges of 2022!
Three powerful tools to meet the challenges of 2022! As this brand new year starts, I would like to offer my best wishes, from the Ombud’s Office, for a healthy, happy and successful 2022! In addition to such traditional (and highly appreciated) wishes, what else could we wish each other as colleagues? Looking back on
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Seven ways to protect your team from conflicts
Seven ways to protect your team from conflicts Conflicts within a team have repercussions not only for its members’ well-being, but also for the achievement of work objectives, resulting in loss of efficiency, lack of collaboration, absenteeism, damage to the team’s reputation, etc. That’s why it’s important that you, as a manager, do your utmost
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Don’t sweep conflicts under the carpet
Don’t sweep conflicts under the carpet Conflicts are a normal part of workplace life. They are unavoidable and inescapable because we all have different expectations and needs. However, depending on how a conflict is managed, it may be either constructive or destructive, hence the importance of understanding how a conflict evolves. The earliest stage of
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Oh no, a new boss!
Oh no, a new boss! “Since Joanne* took over from Serge* as our team leader, things haven’t been going well. Serge knew our work inside out. We understood each other without having to spell everything out. It was only to be expected – he was our supervisor for 12 years. But we don’t know what
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Fourth Letter from Ombudsland – bystander action matters
Fourth Letter from Ombudsland – bystander action matters I’m just back from the annual conference of the International Ombudsman Association, and this time the keynote presentation was focused on the role of the ‘bystander’ or the person who witnesses an unacceptable or potentially harmful situation and does nothing. Yet they have an influence simply by
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Between colleagues
Between colleagues Following a reorganization in their Department, Don* and Sam* found themselves working in the same unit. Given their complementary competencies, they were asked to collaborate on the same project. At the beginning, they both appreciated being able to exchange ideas and progress as they learned to get to grips with their new challenge.