Gina Arens had a wide variety of experience working in all aspects of retail operation before starting her own fine wine retail store. She learned from the ground up what it takes to manage store operations, including purchasing, inventory management, marketing, sales, and supervision of staff

Question

From her experience of working with and managing new employees, her advice for succeeding at a new job is to “take time to learn and understand the business processes and procedures. Meet and exceed expectations that are set for you.” She says the fastest way to appear unprofessional is to “show up to work with an untidy appearance and treat customers in a rude manner,” whether these customers are internal or external.
If you do have problems adjusting, organizations will help you improve job performance. Gina says for performance improvement, she will try to “meet and discuss on a regular basis and have someone work with the person to try to improve their understanding, skills, and performance.” Additionally, timeliness is an important focus for performance. “We try to address performance immediately (good or bad) rather than wait for annual reviews.” For new employees, the organization enables success “by providing training and enrichment opportunities from seasoned employees and knowledgeable vendors.”
When it comes to long-term success, Gina says, “Those who are promoted demonstrate a high level of commitment to the company. They are dependable, trustworthy, and hardworking. They are creative thinkers who solve problems and increase business in innovative ways.” While promotion is demonstrated through talent, employees who are laid off or fired often make simple errors such as being “not dependable, not honest, and not productive.” Often, they “may have lacked the skills we initially thought they had to do the job.”
It’s important to be cautious on the job as well. The office grapevine can often get you in trouble. Gina’s advice is to “Stay out of it! Be careful of people who try to draw you into commenting about other employees. You should never say anything about anyone that you wouldn’t say to them directly. That includes electronic communication as well!” Another area that often poses issues is building a relationship with your manager. Gina especially highlights the need to be “careful about being critical of current business practices because you could be insulting your boss who initiated these practices and get off on the wrong foot with your relationship.”
To make an impact at your job, Gina says, “Watch, listen, and learn before you start trying to reinvent the wheel. Try to understand why things are being done a certain way before making suggestions to do things differently. When you do, you will be able to address the objections that may come up and may just see some change happen!”

According to Gina, what characteristics do employees demonstrate that are important for promotion?

What are some things to be cautious about in the workplace?

Answer 1

Those who are promoted demonstrate a high level of commitment to the company. They are dependable, trustworthy, and hardworking. They are creative thinkers who solve problems and increase business in innovative ways.

The office “grapevine” or gossiping, both offline and online; suggesting ideas before having the full background on the topic; and damaging your relationships, especially with your manager.