What Is Professionalism
Much Is Spoken About Behaving Professionally. Professionalism Is Actually An Essential Trait Both In Business And Society. It’s The Best Quality Which Gives A Person’s Appearance, Professional And Personal Interactions, And Which Provides Others With A First Impression.
The Word Professionalism Is Associated With Being Professional In Terms Of Exhibiting An Outcome That A Particular Profession Demands. A Person Can Be Associated With Any Profession But He Would Not Be Termed As Professional Till The Time He Demonstrates The Standards Of Highest Degree That A Particular Profession Requires.
Knowledge, Exhibition, Demonstration Of Professional Capabilities And The Experience Which People Derive From Such Professionals Gets Reflected In Form The Of Professionalism.
You Remove The Word Professionalism And What You Have Is An Experience That In No Way Reflects The Intricacies Associated With A Profession
There Would Be Different Meanings For This Particular Word ‘profession But Each Is True In Its Own Sense But What They Miss Is An Experience.
The Experience That One Get When One Deals With A Professional Vis-à-vis Normal Person. It Is In This Experience Lies The True Essence Of Professionalism.
Examples
A Patient Goes To A Doctor:
1) The Doctor Without Hearing Anything Asks The Patient To Get Admitted To His Hospital.
2) He Talks Of Everything But Ailment.
3) He Does 10 Different Tests And Keeps The Patient Clueless.
4) The Doctor Is Non-approachable And Always Busy In One Thing Or Other.
5) Doctor Charges A Hefty Fee And Puts Huge Medical Charges.
6) Doctor Does Cure The Patient But The Satisfaction Was Missing.
Now This Unhappy Patient Experiences The Same Problems Again. Instead Of His Previous Doctor He Goes To A New, Well Known, And A
Renowned Doctor:
1) The Doctor Genuinely Hears The Problems Faced By The Patient.
2) The Doctor Asks The Patient To Get Admitted So That He Can Keep Him Under His Supervision.
3) He Starts The Medication And At Each Step Briefs The Patient About The Situation.
4) The Doctor Is Available At All Times And Takes Proper Interest In The Patient.
5) When The Patient Gets Cured The Doctor Charges Him The Right Amount Justifying Each Part Involved In The Treatment.
6) While Leaving The Doctor Gives His Number To The Patient And Asks Him To Call In Case Of Any Associated Problem.
You Would Find A Difference In Approach Taken By The Two Doctors:
1) The Way They Diagnose
2) The Way They Listen
3) The Way They Treat
4) The Way Charge Etc.
The Difference In Approach Reflects In The Form Of Experience And It Is This Experience That Separates The Professionals From The Novices And Provides True Meaning To The Word Professionalism.
The Second Doctor Demonstrated Professionalism In Its Truest Form.
Hence, A Professional Must Have The Following Qualities:
A Good Role Model For Others Including. Their Behavior, Attitude And Relationships.
- Dresses Appropriately For The Role.
- Speaks In An Appropriate Way To Different Audience Without Being Patronizing Or
- Putting People Down. Knowledgeable About The Job, Organization, Etc.
- Good With People.
- Communicate Effectively, Whatever The Circumstances – Actively Listens.
- Manages Their Time Well.
- Works Well Under Pressure.
- Fulfils Deadlines.
Is Able To Run Effective Meetings- They Are Well Versed In When To Speak And When Not Speak In A Meeting.
They Are Open To Views And Suggestions Of Others And Make Decisions On The Best Interest Of The Organization.
If You Are Keen To Succeed In Any Business, You Need To Demonstrate That You Have The Potential To Fulfill That Role. Just Want The Job, Status And Money Is Simply Not Enough.
Tips For Professionalism In The Workplace
So, Now That We Know What Professionalism In The Workplace Is All About, It Is Important To Know How To Induce It In The Employees. The Employees That Make An Organization, It Is Very Important To Ensure That Professionalism Is Understood By Them.
So How Do You Conduct “Professionalism Training In The Workplace”?
Keep A Uniform Environment – For Communication. If You Wish To Refer To Each Other With Formality (That Is With The Surname, Or Using “Sir” And “Ma’am”). Then Let That Be Constant For All, In The Workplace. If You Want A More Friendly, Environment, Then Let Everyone Use The First Name. Whatever You Choose, It Has To Be Constant And Uniform For All.
- Employees Should Be – Told To Abstain From The Concept Of Competition Bashing. Often In The Heat Of The Moment, Employees, Go About Bashing Their Competition’s Reputation. This Would Include Complaining To The Management About Certain Aspects About Them, Or Spreading Rumors Via The Grapevine. This Should Be Avoided At All Times. If Anyone Is Found Indulging In Such Activities, Strict Action Should Be Taken At The Earliest.
- Punctuality Is Very Important. If The Office Has Fixed Working Hours, It Should Be Abided By All The Employees. In Case There Is A Deviation By Any Employee, Either They Should Inform Before Hand, Cover Up The Work In The Near Future, Or Complete Their Day’s Target In The Span Of Time.
- Professional Dress Code Should Be Maintained. Luring Seniors By Wearing Provocative Clothes, Is A Very Well Tried And Tested Method. If One Wishes To Avoid The Use Of Such Tactics At The Workplace, And Avoid The Possibility Of Fraternizing Within The Workplace, It Is Important To Make Sure That Everyone Dresses In A Certain Manner, That Is Acceptable By All In The Management.
These Tips Are To Show How To Keep The Environment Professional, Yet Flexible. A Professional Environment Does Not Necessarily Have To Be A Restricting One:
Lack Of Professionalism In The Workplace
Professionalism In The Workplace Is Responsible For Several Positive Actions In The Organization. As A Flip Side To The Coin, Lack Of Professionalism, Will Be Responsible For Several Negatives.
Lack Of Motivation At Work, Often, Occurs Due To Lack Of Professionalism.
Lack Of Professionalism Will Lead To Employees Not Thinking Of The Organization As Their Own, But As A Place Where They Are Till Something Better Comes Up. It Will Lead To Declining Job Satisfaction.
Lack Of Professionalism Leads To Unethical Acts In The Company That Would Mar Its Reputation.
Lack Of Professionalism Leads To Higher Attrition Rate, Which Keeps The Organization’s Recruitment Budget In Use At All Times, Causing It A Financial Strain.
A Case Study
“Gaurav Was Not Of The Same Ethnicity As The Others In His Office. Nonetheless, Due To His Acumen In The Field And Great Communication Skills He Was Posted At A Fairly Coveted Position. His Seniors Seemed To Like His Work And Appreciate The Work That He Put In. But, This Was Only Until Their Position Was Not Threatened By His. Gaurav Was A Man Of Free Speech, In A Diplomatic Way. He Did Not Believe In Sweet Talking His Way Into The Social Circles In The Office. Due To This, He Was Not Really Favored By The Juniors. When The Time For Promotions Arrived, Gaurav Was At A Loss, In Spite Of Deserving The Promotion.
For What Seemed Like, No Reason At All!”
Do You Really Think There Was No Reason Why Gaurav Faced Problems At Work? As Per The Ordinary Code Of Conduct Regarding Professionalism At Work, It Was Due To His Differences With A Few Others. This Is Definitely Not An Uncommon Sight In The Corporate World. As Such The Concepts Of Sweet Talking And, Occasionally, “Compromising” Have Become Household Terms When It Comes To The Office.
