Bank auditor Dedan Kimenyi is irritated by “opinionated and bossy” co-workers.
Jidia Gasana, an engineer, says strong perfume in the office is her pet peeve. “It is like people douse themselves with perfume overnight,” she says.
These folks work in Kigali, Rwanda, proving that no matter where you are or what you do, there’s always some annoying co-worker around.
A U.K. food company commissioned a study of office workers in the nation of stiff upper lips finding (a coincidence you suppose?) 57% of them agreeing noisy eating to be the most offensive trait of their co-workers. (The company, Ainsley Harriott Cup Soup, makes, yes indeed, soup, which can be noisily slurped.)
Next most annoying was messiness, followed by a failure to wash up. Ughhh.
The U.S. has its own office food issues. What most offends workers here, say 65% of those in a LinkedIn poll, is taking someone else’s food from the office fridge. Which reminds me of a time I had to referee a dispute over pizza leftover after a late night work session. Three pieces, two workers, and both felt entitled to the extra slice as neither had gotten any pizza the night before. (They had both gone home.)
Ever so Solomon like in my wisdom, I ate the third piece, pleasing neither of them, but satisfying both my appetite and my managerial instincts.
Ultimate Branding
What a tough time to be a recruiter in the financial industry. The big Wall Street firms and banking powerhouses are raking up big profits, but hiring? Oy! The news stories say things like “droves of recent layoffs” and the financial news sites have “layoffs” tags and sections for “Layoffs Watch ’13.”
Accounting firms? Doing better in the hiring area (87% of the lost private firm jobs have been regained), but, as a AICPA MAPS survey found, growth lies ahead.
Then there’s WithumSmith+Brown. Right there on the firm’s homepage, is that stolid statement of significance, so reassuring to CEOs and CFOs: “As CPAs and Consultants, we are well versed in the disciplines relevant to doing business in today’s world. With unwavering integrity, our Firm brings a uniquely WS+B level of quality to every engagement.”
Scroll down just a bit and it’s showtime!