jenk

I saw some praise for Corporate Confidential at http://minimsft.blogspot.com/, so I took a look at the ToC & read the excerpts available on the website...and had a few observations I wanted to ~~rant~~ share.

Are these actually secrets? Or was I a manager too long?

    Gossip can make you look like a traitor.
    Work friendships can be dangerous.
    If you're in the wrong "camp" you could be mistaken for the enemy.
    There's no right to free speech in the workplace.
    Companies have very short memories.

That said, there are ones that sound a bit "new" to me and/or I'm interested in seeing what she has to say, like Expense reports hold a secret test of loyalty. and You CAN have an office romance without breaking your career.
The cover & ToC sound rather confrontational, possibly inflammatory. What do I mean?

    Introduction: Breaking The Corporate Code of Silence.

Yes, Virginia, there is a Secret Cabal and they ARE out to get you. Then there's some of the "secrets":

    Why no one will tell you when your job is in jeopardy
    It's dangerous to do what your company says
    Talking to HR can cost you your job.

Hey, let's get paranoid!
The excerpts read pretty reasonably, tho. One example I've had experience with on both sides is Sharing personal information could undo all you've worked for - and her excerpted commentary seems right on target:
What most employees don’t realize is that any information they share will affect the company’s perception of them. The company won’t separate the personal from the professional, they’ll take it all in and judge accordingly. [...]

This can seem strange and unfair to most, but put yourself in a manager’s shoes for a moment and look at it from the other side: A manager has been listening to one of her key employees tell everyone about his terrible divorce and all that’s going on with it. A big project comes up. The manager may feel she’s doing her distraught employee a favor by passing him up for the opportunity. She may be thinking: “This employee is having to deal with so much in his personal life right now, how could I give him a big project that will only add to his stress?” Or, even worse: “I’d be crazy to give him an important project when he can’t even manage his personal life effectively.”

The harsh truth is: whenever a manager assigns an important project, or otherwise puts her faith in one of her employees, her reputation is on the line. Her success depends on how well she delegates. She’s not going to jeopardize her success for an employee dealing with personal “issues.” She just can’t.
The site also includes an article the author published in the Seattle Times that I liked.