主動出擊 5大溝通技巧讓身在遠方的老闆看到你

“You don’t get what you deserve. You get what you negotiate.”

“所得並非所值，有所求才能有所得。”

“Communication works by repetition. Repeat, repeat, and repeat.”

“重複才能實現溝通。重複、重複、再重複。”

Recently Fortune China received the following email from a reader in China:

最近，一位來自中國的讀者給我們發來了下面這封電子郵件：

"I‘m a marketing executive. My boss is not in the same office with me. I never received bad comments from her and I thought she’s satisfied with my work result. But when I asked for a raise recently, she refused and told me she didn't see many highlights in my work. Actually, I worked hard and finished many difficult tasks without any guidance because she was so busy. How can I let her know that? I don't want to argue." – Frustrated

“我是一位營銷業務負責人，跟老闆不在同一間辦公室。我從來沒有聽到過她對我有什麼負面評價，所以我想她對我的工作成績感到滿意。但最近我要求漲工資時遭到了她的拒絕。她告訴我，她沒有在我的工作中看到多少亮點。實際上，我工作很努力，而且在沒有任何指導的情況下完成了許多困難的任務，因爲她非常忙。我怎麼才能讓她瞭解到這些情況呢？我不想跟她發生爭執。”——失意之人

From this short note it is easy to sense that the writer is working very hard, is very committed to delivering results and also very frustrated that her work is not being recognized by her boss. Sound familiar? I hear this kind of thing quite frequently---Asia is a big region and its very common to report to a boss that lives and works in a another country, another city or even far across town. As such, it’s easy for an employee to be “out of sight, out of mind.”

從這一小段文字中能很容易地感覺到，這位讀者在工作時非常努力，而且非常願意做出成績。但她的工作沒有得到老闆的認可，這讓她非常沮喪。聽起來很熟悉吧？我聽到這種事的頻率相當高——亞洲地域廣闊，自己的老闆在另一個國家、另一座城市或者同一座城市的另一端生活和工作的現象比比皆是。因此，員工和老闆之間很容易出現“看不見，想不到”的情況。

Here are five tips for managingcommunication with an Absentee Boss.(In fact, these tips will work find even if your boss sits right next to you in the same office!)

以下是跟不在眼前的老闆進行溝通的五項建議。（實際上，如果你的老闆跟你同處一室而且就在你身邊辦公，這些建議也同樣有效！）

No. 1. Negotiate Crystal Clear Performance Criteria with Your Boss.

1.跟老闆清清楚楚地把績效標準講明白。

I am always surprised when I ask people that I coach about their agreed performance criteria for their job and they aren’t able to articulate the standards of success for me. Often no written document exists. Usually they will refer to their job description! In reality, your job description outlines the kind of work you will be doing, the competencies required, key job focuses, etc. It spells out your role in the organization.

給人做培訓時，我會問對方他們跟老闆商定的績效標準是什麼，他們卻說不清楚自己怎樣纔算完成了工作，這讓我很意外。在這個問題上，很多時候都沒有形成文字。這些人經常把自己的職位描述作爲參考！實際上，職位描述的內容是員工要做什麼樣的工作，需要具備哪些能力以及工作的主要重心等等。它界定了員工在企業中的作用。

But a job description is not enough to clarify “What specific results is the boss expecting from me in the next 12 months and over the longer term?” To get that level of clarity requires a Goal Setting Conversation. Sometimes such a conversation happens as part of the company’s Performance Management process, if such a process is in use. Often, these conversations never happen at all. Without clearly defined performance expectations, written in black and white, how are you going to get a fair evaluation of your work? You won’t! You will have zero leverage to manage their perception of your performance. And its likely you will end up frustrated.

但職位描述並不足以說明“今後12個月以及更長時間內老闆對員工的具體績效有什麼樣的期望？”要明確這樣的問題，員工和老闆就得針對工作目標進行探討。有時，如果公司制定了績效管理流程，這樣的對話就會成爲這個流程中的一環。很多情況下，老闆和員工從來都不探討這些問題。在沒有明確績效預期，更沒有白紙黑字寫下來的情況下，你們怎麼去公平地評價自己的工作呢？做不到！你沒有任何辦法來左右老闆對你工作表現的印象。到最後，你很可能會成爲失意的人。

If you don’t have such crystal clarity, I urge you to request a Goal Setting Meeting with your boss and insist on clarifying:

如果沒有把這個問題講得明明白白，我建議你們馬上要求跟老闆開個會，確定績效目標，而且你們要堅持明確以下問題：

o What specific results will you hold me accountable for delivering in the next 12 months

o 今後12個月你要求我取得哪些具體成績

o What specific success criteria will be applied in order to evaluate if the results were delivered as expected?

o 如果我的工作表現達到預期，對我進行評估時將採用哪些具體的績效標準？

o In other words, how will you know, beyond all doubt that I have met your expectations.

o 換句話說，怎樣才能徹徹底底地確定我已經達到了你的預期。

Don’t accept vague answers and generalizations like “just do good work and everything will be fine.” Often bosses haven’t really asked themselves these questions and so they won’t have a ready answer. If that’s the case, ask them to come back to you in a week (or other agreed time-frame) with some answers.

不要接受含糊不清的答案和籠統的回答，比如“做好工作就萬事大吉”。很多時候，老闆們並沒有真正考慮過這些問題，因此他們也不是有備而來。在這種情況下，建議他們一週後（或者一段時間以後，具體由你們商定）帶着答案再來和你見面。

“But what if they never come back with the crystal clear success criteria?”I can hear people saying! In that case, sit down and draft your own success criteria for your work and send it to them for consideration. Talk to people who have more experience and ask them to review and comment on your draft. In any case, its up to you to ensure that clear performance benchmarks are in place if the boss or HR can’t provide them for you. Show your commitment by taking the lead instead of ‘suffering in silence.’ Are you a Leader? Then lead.

“要是他們再也不跟我徹底講清楚我怎樣纔算完成了工作，那該怎麼辦？”我就知道會有人這麼說！要是出現這樣的情況，你們就坐下來，自己起草一份工作績效標準，然後請他們過目，同時作出評價。無論如何，如果老闆或人事部門不能爲你提供明確的績效標準，你們自己就要承擔起責任，確保這些標準得到確立。你們要採取主動，而不是“默默忍受”，要通過這樣的行動來展示自己的責任感。你們具有領導力嗎？那就採取主動吧。

Remember:you don’t get what you deserve, you get what you negotiate.

記住：所得並非所值，有所求才會有所得。

2. Send Your Boss a Written Copy of Your Performance Goals and Success Criteria

2. 給老闆一份書面績效目標和完成工作的標準

Once you have agreed crystal clear performance goals and benchmarks with your boss, send them a copy via email and be sure to keep a copy posted in your workplace where you can see your goals every day. Let your boss know you are committed to achieve these, and more, and you will stay focused on the agreed goals. Refer to your goals several times a day and make sure you organize around priority work that will lead to achieving your goals. (See my previous Fortune China article onSwallowing 3 Frogs.)

跟老闆一清二楚地商定了績效目標和標準後，用電子郵件給他們發一份，同時一定要在自己工作的地方貼一份，以便每天都能看到自己的目標。讓老闆知道你決心實現這些目標，而且一定要專注於這些你和老闆商定的目標。每天多看幾次，確保自己先做那些能讓你實現這些目標的重要工作（參見此前我在財富中文網上發表的文章《時間管理是空話，集中精力吃青蛙》）。

3. Advertise Your Progress.In the case of the frustrated reader, above, it seems clear that she was focused on doing great work and achieving her goals. But since her boss is far away in another location, its likely that her performance did not achieve a very high “Share of Mind.” The reality is, bosses are human and very busy and you cannot rely on them to simply remember your good work, especially when they don’t see you everyday and they have a thousand other things on their mind. So, as the saying goes “It pays to advertise.” Here are some ways to stay on your bosses radar:

3. 爲自己取得的進展打廣告。拿上文中那位自稱“失意之人”的讀者來說，她的注意力顯然都放在了出色完成工作和實現自己的目標上。然而，由於老闆離她很遠，她的表現在老闆的心裏可能沒有佔據太多的位置。實際上，老闆也是人，而且非常忙。你們不能指望他們記住你在工作上的出色表現，特別是在他們不會每天都見到你而他們自己又“日理萬機”的情況下。因此，就像人們常說的，“廣告值得一做”。你們可以通過下面這些辦法來引起老闆的注意：

o Send an email every time you achieve something significant, giving specifics and linking them to your agreed success criteria. Keep it short and sweet. Save a copy.

o 每實現一個重大目標就給老闆發一封電子郵件，說明詳情，同時把它們跟你和老闆商定的完成工作的標準聯繫起來。郵件要簡短，措辭要親切，還要把這些郵件備份。

o Send a brief report every month with details of progress you have made towards your a copy.

o 每個月都向老闆提交一份簡報，具體說明你在向着目標邁進的過程中取得了哪些進展。簡報同樣也要備份。

o When there is something tangible involved, make photographs and send them via a copy.

o 涉及具體事務時，拍張照片，然後用郵件發出去，同時備份。

o When your boss is not available and you need advice, proactively seek it out, get ideas and suggestions and feedback from people in your location. Type up some notes on what you are learning and doing and send to your boss. Save a copy.

o 當你需要建議卻找不到老闆時，積極地去找建議，從身邊的人那裏收集思路、建議和反饋。把自己從中學到了什麼，做了什麼，都形成文字並打印出來，然後交給老闆。自己留個備份。

Over time you are steadily building a strong case file, full of evidence of your good work and your commitment, and of course, your achievements. Naturally you will bring this material to your boss’s attention when it is time for a review.

久而久之，你就能穩步建立起一份有力的檔案，其中記錄的事例都能證明你工作出色，有責任感，當然也能證明你的成就。進行工作考評時，你自然就會把這份材料擺在老闆的面前。

4. Insist on Regular Reviews.In many organizations, once goals are set there may be only one formal review of their progress after 6 months, or, quite often there is a review only after 12 months. If the boss is far away, that is never going to work out well. Perhaps this is what happened to our Frustrated Reader!

4. 堅持定期考評。許多企業在制定了目標後，可能只會在6個月以後對工作進展進行一次正式考評。如果老闆身在他鄉，這樣的做法永遠也不會有什麼好的效果。也許那位“失意”讀者就碰到了這樣的情況。

What Can You Do?Arrange a 30-minute phone call with your boss at least once a month to quickly review your performance and any issues you are having. Use the opportunity to flag any issues you are having and ask for coaching and feedback. I can’t stress enough the value and importance of explicitly asking your boss, on a regular basis “How do you feel I am doing based on our agreed success criteria.” If the feedback is vague, such as “Well Done!” ask them “what, specifically did you think I did well?” Write it down. Write up a report of the call, including any positive comments and areas for improvement, and send it to your boss. Save a copy.

這時你們能做什麼呢？安排跟老闆在電話上進行30分鐘的交流，每個月至少一次，讓老闆快速考評一下你的表現，同時瞭解一下你都有哪些問題。利用這個機會來提出自己面臨的問題，同時請老闆予以指導和提供反饋。要定期向老闆明確提出這樣的問題：“根據我們商定的完成工作的標準，你覺得我幹得怎麼樣？”如果反饋很模糊，比如“幹得不錯！”，那就對他們說：“你覺得我具體在哪些方面幹得不錯？”把老闆的回答寫下來。就這次通話寫一份報告，內容包括所有的積極評價和需要改進的地方，然後把報告交給老闆。自己留個備份。

5. Plan for some ‘Quick Wins’ and Celebrate Your Successes.As soon as you have clarity about the results you need to deliver, sit down and brainstorm 2-3 ‘Quick Wins’ that fit the agreed performance criteria. Commit yourself to achieving these benchmark achievement that demonstrate tangible progress within the first four months of the year. They may be small, but they need to be real evidence of progress and they need to be unambiguous: anyone seeing these results would be convinced you are achieving momentum in the right direction. When you achieve a Quick Win, get a few people together over a cake and drinks and take a photo to commemorate your victory. Use this as part of your Advertising Campaign to say on your boss’s radar throughout the year.

5. 準備好‘速勝’併爲自己取得成功而慶祝。明確了自己要實現的目標後，立即坐下來，開動腦筋想出兩、三個符合績效標準的“速勝”點。專心致志地在每年的前四個月做出這些基準績效，以便實實在在地展現工作進展。它們可以是一些小成就，但必須是反映工作進展的真憑實據，而且要一目瞭然：任何看到這些業績的人都會相信你正在沿着正確的方向加速前進。取得一場速勝後，請幾個人來吃個蛋糕，喝上幾杯，再拍張照片來慶祝你的勝利。以此作爲你“廣告攻勢”的一部分，以便讓自己一年到頭都受到老闆的關注。

From these 5 tips, its easy to see that creating awareness of your performance achievements is your responsibility and it isn’t going to happen by itself. Communication works by repetition. Let me repeat that: Communication Works By Repetition. Without becoming a nuisance, use every opportunity to maintain open communication channels with your boss and keep your good work on their radar screen throughout the year. Is this a lot of trouble? Perhaps. But successful people know that managing ongoing communication with the boss is the only way to be sure you will be fairly evaluated when its time to talk about a raise.

從這五項建議中很容易看出，讓別人注意到你的表現和成就是你自己的責任，這種情況不會自動出現。重複才能實現溝通。讓我再說一遍：重複才能實現溝通。在不惹人討厭的情況下，利用所有的機會來保持跟老闆的順暢溝通，讓他們一年到頭都能看到你出色的工作。這樣做是不是非常麻煩呢？也許吧。但成功人士都知道，要想確保自己跟老闆探討加薪問題時得到公平的評估，唯一的辦法就是設法跟老闆保持溝通。

Finally, to our Frustrated Reader:it may too late for this year but you could go back through the year and assemble a Case Study that demonstrates your notable achievements and the many contributions you made even though you had an Absentee Boss. Put it all in a PowerPoint and send it to your boss and ask for the chance to present your case to them. Better still, organize yourself proactively around these 5 tips and you will be much more confident of getting the recognition you deserve next year.

最後，我要對那位“失意”讀者說：今年也許太晚了，但你可以回顧一下今年初以來的情況，同時整理出一份案例分析，以此來說明儘管老闆不在場，你仍然取得了重大的工作成果，而且還做出了許多貢獻。把這些都放進一個PowerPoint文檔裏，再把這個文檔發給你的老闆，同時請他們給你一個機會，向他們做一番介紹。此外，積極圍繞這五項建議來安排自己的工作，這樣你的信心就會大增，就會相信明年自己能夠得到應有的認可。

A Note to the Bosses:

致老闆：

o If you are hoping to get better performance from your team and are trying to do so without setting crystal clear performance objectives with each and every member, please wake up and start acting like a real leader.

o 如果你希望自己的團隊有更好的表現，卻又不給每一名團隊成員設定一清二楚的績效目標，請醒醒吧，從現在開始就要表現得像一位真正的團隊負責人。

o It is in your best interests as well as your team’s best interests to take the time to really think about what you want and how you are going to evaluate performance. People need clarity to perform and if they don’t perform its going to be your job on the line.

o 花點兒時間來認真考慮一下你想要什麼，你要怎樣來考評他們的表現，這對你和你的團隊來說都是最好的做法。人們需要清晰的績效目標，如果他們表現不好，你就可能丟掉工作。

o Fuzzy goals will get you fuzzy performance and the best people are going to take their skills elsewhere.

模糊不清的目標會帶來含糊的表現，最優秀的員工就會帶着自己的技能另謀高就。

o When your team members reach out to you and ask for clarity, give it to them and give them regular feedback and coaching throughout the year. That’s the very least to expect from a boss in the 21st Century.

o 當你的團隊成員向你尋求幫助，同時要求澄清績效標準的時候，滿足他們的要求，而且還要定期向他們提供反饋並且自始至終地予以指導。對21世紀的老闆來說，這是最低的要求。