{"id":2487,"date":"2010-05-23T15:44:11","date_gmt":"2010-05-23T19:44:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.officepolitics.com\/advice\/?page_id=2487"},"modified":"2010-05-23T16:23:59","modified_gmt":"2010-05-23T20:23:59","slug":"blog-business-world-interviews-franke-james","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.officepolitics.com\/advice\/blog-business-world-interviews-franke-james\/","title":{"rendered":"Blog Business World interviews Franke James"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Dear<\/a><\/p>\n

Wayne Hurlbert, founder of Blog Business World<\/a><\/strong>, a leading blog about current business books, interviewed Franke James<\/a>, Office-Politics.com Founder about her award-winning game-book <\/em>Dear Office Politics<\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n

Also read Wayne Hurlbert’s Review of Dear Office-Politics<\/a>.
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

The Interview<\/h2>\n

By Wayne Hurlbert<\/em><\/p>\n

Speaker and author on office politics, the environment, and social change Franke James<\/a>, was kind enough to take the time to answer a few questions about her fascinating and 2010 Axiom Award winning book Dear Office-Politics: the game everyone plays<\/a>. The author describes how she employs a game within a book format, to tackle the most frequent and troubling issues that arise in office politics and their effects on organizations and their employees.<\/p>\n

Thanks to Franke James for her very comprehensive and informative answers about her book on one of the most challenging of ethical dilemmas that face employees everywhere: that of office politics.<\/p>\n

BBW\/Wayne:<\/strong> What was the background to writing the book Dear Office Politics<\/em>?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"franke Writing and publishing Dear Office Politics<\/a><\/em> has been quite an adventure. It\u2019s taken 7 years for it to come to fruition, and required collaboration with people from around the world \u2014 on a topic that is universally regarded as touchy.<\/p>\n

Back in 2002, I read a news article about Dr. John Burton<\/a>, a professor who was teaching Ethics at a business school. John talked about Ethics as a skill that requires practice. Just like weight lifters who gain strength and build muscle by regularly lifting heavy weights, John explained that people need to practice making ethical decisions. Wow! I loved that analogy. It made perfect sense to me. I contacted John, and he agreed to work with me to answer letters sent into OfficePolitics.com<\/a>. The Ethics area was meant as a companion to our online game, however it quickly became the main attraction. It really was addressing a need.<\/p>\n

Over the years, the site has attracted many more experts (business authors and executive coaches) who were willing to share their expertise. Dear Office Politics<\/em> features seven of the Office-Politics Advisers (Erika Andersen,<\/a> Rick Brandon,<\/a> Jennifer Glueck Bezoza,<\/a> John Burton,<\/a> Timothy Johnson,<\/a> Marty Seldman,<\/a> and John Challenger<\/a>) who have worked with me to answer hundreds of letters.<\/p>\n

However, the game-book as you see it now almost didn\u2019t get published. In 2008, I had a book contract from a major U.S. publisher and a $20,000 book advance. But the book I\u2019d worked years to create was being changed from a colorful role-playing game into a standard, gray-text, \u201cbusiness\u201d book. This suited the publisher just fine. But for me, it was the antithesis of what I\u2019d dreamed of. I\u2019d beta-tested a new type of training book that merged entertainment and education. It got people talking about touchy office politics issues and practicing ethical decision-making. That was the book I had a burning desire to publish.<\/p>\n

I felt torn. So, I used the game questions to arrive at a solution. I stepped into the publisher\u2019s shoes. I put it to the TV News test. I analyzed the power structure. And, I found a solution that was in everyone\u2019s best interests. I canceled the contract and paid back the advance. One year later, I self-published and started selling Dear Office-Politics<\/em> on Amazon<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Considering the journey, it\u2019s especially satisfying that it just won a 2010 Axiom Business Book Award<\/a> for HR training. And it makes me feel great to see how it\u2019s helping people improve their political skills and their ability to make ethical decisions.<\/p>\n

BBW\/Wayne: You follow a letter to the Dear Office Politics<\/em> expert, in the form of a game, as your format. Why did you choose that technique for sharing information?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Office-Politics is such a touchy issue. Nobody wants to discuss it. Almost everyone says smugly, \u201cI don\u2019t play office politics.\u201d But office politics is all around us. You can\u2019t duck it. That will only ensure you don\u2019t see it coming when you get whacked in the head. Being politically savvy is a critical life skill and it can be a positive force if you approach it with integrity. It\u2019s all about influencing people, selling your good ideas and getting into power so you can do the right thing.<\/p>\n

So \u2013 why did I choose a game format? Because games allow people to wear a mask. Players can discuss touchy office politics issues openly without fear.<\/p>\n

Each player gets to step into the role of \u201cOffice-Politics Adviser\u201d and offer their advice on thorny issues. (Many people think they know what the other person should do to fix their problems \u2013 so this game is their chance to step up and give advice.) The game format provides a safe way to discuss difficult workplace issues and the opportunity to practice ethical decision-making and creative problem-solving. It also gives workers the opportunity to observe how their colleagues make ethical decisions \u2014 which can be very revealing and fascinating!<\/p>\n

The game-book is structured into two parts. The first half of the book contains the Ethical Evaluation Grid<\/a> and the Dilemmas<\/strong> \u2013 which are actual letters that have been sent in from workers around the world. The second half are the Answers<\/strong> provided by the advisers. However, players can come up with their own solutions to the Dilemmas<\/strong>. The advisers\u2019 answers are offered as a guide to show how problems can be analyzed and suggestions given. They are not intended as \u201cThis is the one and only solution.\u201d<\/p>\n

There are a wide range of Dilemmas<\/strong> to choose from. My suggestion is to customize the game by pre-selecting the Dilemmas<\/strong> that are most relevant in your office.<\/p>\n

BBW\/Wayne: <\/strong>Many people discover too late that office politics exist in every office setting. How does your book prepare people so they can avoid the pitfalls of office politics?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Many people write into the site and say how disillusioned they are that they can\u2019t seem to avoid office politics. And they\u2019re right. Because it\u2019s everywhere. Office-Politics Adviser Dr. Rick Brandon has a quote that always makes me laugh: \u201cEven though some companies are less political than others, none have repealed the laws of human nature. Even in the Girl Scouts of America, we hear there are lots of politics. If there are no politics, check the people\u2019s pulse in your company since they are probably dead!\u201d<\/p>\n

So the truth is we can\u2019t duck office politics by pretending it doesn\u2019t exist. Those who do will just miss the social signals \u2013 the early warning signs that something is afoot. And they\u2019ll get hammered. Office politics is everywhere, from big businesses to small. It crosses all cultural boundaries, and even affects the self-employed \u2013 if that individual has to deal with clients and or suppliers.<\/p>\n

My advice is to become politically skilled and learn to play the game with transparency and integrity. Dear Office-Politics helps people to do that. They are able to read the Dilemmas. And then practice coming up with ethical and workable solutions. The game rules include a four-part evaluation grid. Those four questions are the key to become politically skilled.<\/p>\n