Working Well with Your Corporate Peers: The Basics for Beginners

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This post is because not only is my own son solidly working his way up the corporate ladder, but I have been lucky enough to recently do work experience with some new starters in the corporate world, and felt that the tips I gave them would work well written down.
Ever notice how some people treat their coworkers like one-dimensional obstacles rather than human beings on the same team? It’s more common than you’d think.
Yet, in most professional settings, you need the help of peers, managers, and subject-matter experts to get things done. Here are a few foundational tips to ensure you build strong, collaborative relationships with those around you, without resorting to office politics or generally being unprofessional.

1. Don’t Build Empires

What does “empire-building” look like? It’s when someone hoards responsibilities, people, and power to climb the corporate ladder at any cost. Sure, it might seem like a fast track to the top, but it usually backfires in the long run.
Why avoid it? People will notice if you’re grabbing for power or credit, and they’ll start throwing up roadblocks. A lot of energy that should go toward delivering results ends up wasted on infighting.
Better approach: Show that you’re there to deliver on your tasks and goals, not to trample others. Collaboration is more sustainable and garners respect.

2. Publicly Acknowledge Help

Why is this important? When you’re working across departments, you’ll rely on others for information, extra resources, or simply the benefit of their expertise. If someone helps you, be vocal about it.
How to do it: At the next team meeting, in reports, or in a conversation with your manager, highlight the support you received. This makes your colleagues feel valued and more likely to help again.
Bonus benefit: You won’t come across as someone who takes all the credit. Instead, you’ll earn a reputation as a team player who appreciates contributions from others.

3. Keep a Fair Tally of Favors

In some places (like in England), there’s a social custom of buying rounds of drinks instead of everyone just buying their own. People mentally keep track of whose turn it is. The same principle applies in the workplace when it comes to favors.
What this means: If you receive help, be prepared to return the favor down the line.
Why it matters: No one likes a freeloader. If you only take and never give, you’ll quickly gain a reputation for being self-serving, and people will be less inclined to support you in the future.

Final Thoughts

Working effectively with your peers isn’t just about delivering projects on time; it’s about fostering an environment where people genuinely want to help each other succeed. By avoiding empire-building, openly acknowledging the help you receive, and keeping fair tabs on favors,
you’ll cultivate relationships that propel everyone forward. At the end of the day, its wins all round.

Why People Tune Out in Meetings (And What to Do About It)

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We’ve all witnessed (or been) that person in a meeting who suddenly snaps back into reality when asked a question and says, “Sorry, could you repeat that?” It can be a little embarrassing,

but it’s more than just a momentary lapse in attention. In fact, it often reveals deeper problems in how we structure our time and our meetings.

I have found that there are a bunch of reasons why people tune out in meetings and how you can help fix that

1. They’re Too Busy

Sometimes, people use meeting time to catch up on “real work” because it’s the only break they get from constant interruptions.

They end up splitting their attention, doing neither their work nor participating in the meeting effectively. As Ron Swanson famously said, “Never half-ass two things. Whole-ass one thing.”

How to Fix It:

Is the meeting a necessity? Before scheduling a meeting, ask if it’s truly needed or if an email or chat message would suffice.

Set Clear Agendas: Let everyone know exactly what you’ll cover so participants can decide for themselves if their attendance is essential.

Create Focus Time: Encourage blocks of uninterrupted time in people’s schedules so they can tackle key tasks without needing to multitask during meetings.

2. There Are Too Many Meetings

In many organisations, calendars are jam-packed with back-to-back calls. Important stakeholders or subject matter experts get invited to every discussion, leaving them no room for actual work.

When people have too many meetings, they’re forced to do work at the edges—sometimes during meetings themselves.

How to Fix It:

Be Selective with Invites: Only invite those who genuinely need to be part of the discussion.

Combine or Shorten Meetings: If a meeting’s purpose overlaps with another, consider combining them or shortening its length.

Empower ‘No’: Create a culture where it’s acceptable to decline meetings when you’re not truly needed.

3. The Meetings Are Boring

Meetings that drone on about status updates or walk through slide after slide can cause people to tune out. If half the attendees aren’t actively involved, the meeting is probably unnecessary or poorly structured.

How to Fix It:

Keep It Interactive: Use formats that encourage participation, such as discussions or needing decisions

Stick to the Point: Share status updates or documents ahead of time so meeting time can focus on decision-making or problem-solving.

Ensure Relevance: If someone’s input isn’t required, let them skip the meeting. Their time will be better spent elsewhere.

In Summary

When someone stops paying attention in a meeting, it’s often a sign that the meeting—or the way work is organised, isn’t serving its purpose. Instead of assuming the individual is lazy or unprofessional, consider looking elsewhere for the cause.

Corporate perspectives

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Have you ever felt like your workmates in other departments just don’t get how important your work is? Chances are, they feel the same way about their work and you. In many organizations, especially large ones, teams tend to break down into three main perspectives, each with its own priorities and pressures. Let’s call them:

  • The Project Perspective (Mr. Project)
  • The Service Perspective (Mr. and Mrs. Service)
  • The Audit Perspective (Mrs. Audit)

They’re all trying to do their jobs. Yet because they don’t see eye to eye on how to accomplish their goals, they often clash. To illustrate this, let’s head to the “IT Coffee Shop.”

The IT Coffee Shop Analogy

1. Mr. Project and the Sweet Coffee
Imagine you’re in a coffee shop. Mr. Project rushes in with a special order: a super sweet, strong coffee needed in 1 minute. He spots an entire stack of sugar packets, perfect! If he dumps them all in, he’ll get exactly what the order needs and be out of the door on time.
But just as he’s about to pour them in, Mr. and Mrs. Service step in and stop him.

2. Mr. and Mrs. Service: Balancing Supplies
Mr. and Mrs. Service object to Mr. Project taking all the sugar. it is all they have left for the day, and other customers will need some too. Their job is to keep the coffee shop running smoothly for everyone, not just this single urgent request.
But Mr. Project sees it differently: he has a deadline, a client to keep happy, and isn’t it the coffee shop’s job to ensure everything he needs is available? He has paid his money for coffee after all, hasn’t he?

3. Mrs. Audit: The Enforcer
Suddenly, Mrs. Audit arrives with new regulations: “No more than two packets of sugar per coffee cup, or the shop risks getting shut down!” Now, nobody is happy, but Mrs. Audit is thinking of all coffee shops and is trying to deal with the sugar crime wave that is affecting the country:

  • Mr. Project can’t get all the sugar he wants. and now faces an angry client who was promised their sweet coffee.
  • Mr. and Mrs. Service have even more hoops to jump through and work overhead just to hand out sugar.
  • Mrs. Audit is just doing her job to ensure compliance but is now the “bad guy” from everyone else’s perspective.

Everyone’s intentions are good, but they’re completely at odds. Multiply this dynamic across dozens of simultaneous projects, and you can imagine the chaos.

So, how does this analogy translate into the real corporate world?

Project Delivery (Mr. Project)

  • Focused on a clear start and end (Point A to Point B).
  • Driven by tight deadlines and specific deliverables.
  • Success = completing the project on time and on budget, no matter what.

Service & Support (Mr. and Mrs. Service)

  • Responsible for ongoing operations (networks, servers, maintenance, the “day-to-day”).
  • Must keep systems stable for everyone, not just one project.
  • Success = minimal downtime, efficient resource use, balanced workload.

Audit & Security (Mrs. Audit)

  • Charged with ensuring compliance, governance, and protection.
  • Enforces rules and standards, even if it slows down a project or adds overhead to day-to-day services.
  • Success = avoiding breaches, fines, or shutdowns.

Each group sees its own success metrics as paramount. And that’s where most conflicts spring up.

The Escalation Trap

When someone escalates an issue (and let’s face it, everyone does exactly that), “This is now top priority!” they assume the receiving team can just drop everything and do more.

That might work if they have spare capacity. But in reality, most teams are already stretched thin. If you ask someone working at 100% to give 110%, you’re pushing them into overload.

A more practical approach:

  • Ask What Can Be Deprioritized – If you genuinely need more help, figure out what tasks can be dropped or delayed.
  • Communicate Clearly – Explain why this new priority matters and the benefits it will bring.
  • Negotiate Responsibly – Don’t treat every need like an emergency. Instead, coordinate so all parties know where to flex.

Why This Matters

Projects hit bottlenecks, services get overwhelmed, and audits seem meddlesome when we’re not seeing the bigger picture. Recognizing each perspective, and acknowledging its validity, helps us collaborate better. Whether you’re Mr. Project, Mrs. Service, or Mrs. Audit, here’s the takeaway:

  • Understand each team’s constraints and goals.
  • Communicate openly about priorities and resources.
  • Be willing to compromise and shift priorities, rather than just piling on more “urgent” tasks.
  • Our imaginary coffee shop is a silly example of what happens when departments can’t see beyond their own needs. By stepping back and sharing the sugar more strategically (so to speak),

If we understand each other’s perspectives, we can deliver better results that work for all departments.

How to be an Integration Manager: learning from Accountants

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Integrations manager, technical lead, technical project manager, this role goes by many names. It’s a position I’ve held 1 for years.

One of the ways we do it slightly differently is that we approach integration management in a way that breaks from the typical corporate, top-down style.

Traditional, hierarchical methods often suggest one of two paths:

  • Appease everyone: Soothe all stakeholders, go along with their demands, and hope that everything falls into place.
  • Assert strict authority: Take charge, dictate tasks, and remind everyone who’s boss.

I’ve found neither approach sustainable, especially when dealing with numerous teams, vendors on fixed price contracts, and strong willed personalities who each have their own “hill to die on.”

In the short term, shouting loudly may yield results, but it ultimately leaves you (and everyone else) burned out.

Think Like an Accountant

The most effective long-term strategy I’ve discovered is to act more like an accountant. Let me explain:

Accountants have authority, but not their own

A good accountant commands respect, not because they threaten or bully, but because everyone recognises they’re there to help and protect the business.

You wouldn’t lie to them or ignore them because their effort will genuinely help you.

They Serve a Larger Purpose

Despite their authority, accountants are effectively servants to the organisation’s financial well-being. They clean up receipts, balance books, and ensure everything is in order. They facepalm when you make mistakes, but they roll up their sleeves and fix them anyway.

They Don’t Fight Every Battle

Accountants know how to focus on what matters: ensuring the right information gets to the right place. An Integration Manager who works the same way, helping teams overcome hurdles rather than forcing them to comply, earns trust and cooperation.

How This Approach Applies to Integration Management

Stay Neutral Yet Helpful

When you position yourself as a neutral servant to each team’s delivery, they’re more likely to talk with you, because they know you’re here to make their lives easier. You’re not there to push your own agenda; you’re the facilitator who ensures all the pieces fit together.

Build Trust, Not Resentment

If you rely on top down pressure, you might get short term compliance but not genuine collaboration. Teams will hide mistakes or resist input. If you build trust by showing you can clean up issues (like an accountant with a messy ledger), they’ll be more willing to keep you in the loop.

Give Credit

One of the worst mistakes you can make as an Integration Manager is to claim other people success for yourself. Pass credit to the teams that do the groundwork. Acknowledge their efforts publicly, and you’ll gain their respect. Ironically, you’ll also earn more recognition in the long run for not being a jerk.

Maintain Your Sanity

Shouting at a dozen people all day is draining. Acting as the calm, reliable, and solutions orientated go-between can save your energy and keep your morale high, even in the face of challenging projects and clashing personalities.

Final Thoughts

Being an Integration Manager is a balancing act. You need to keep multiple teams on track, handle tricky vendor relationships, and ensure tight deadlines are met, all while respecting everyone’s unique perspectives. Traditional authority structures might push you toward either being overly accommodating or overly authoritarian.

In my experience, the sweet spot is to adopt the stance of a dependable accountant: neutral, solutions focused, and committed to serving the collective goal. You’ll stand on firmer ground, earn respect, and create a healthier environment for everyone involved. And most importantly, you’ll be more effective, without burning yourself out.

  1. and that many of my colleagues at LDC Via have also held[↩]

Basic Corporate skills 101: How to book a meeting

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Booking a meeting might sound like a no brainer, but surprisingly its done poorly more often than its done well.

Below are some straightforward tips for booking meetings in a respectful, efficient way that values everyone’s time.

Use the Scheduler

Nearly all modern email and calendar systems offer built in scheduling or “find a time” features. Instead of throwing a dart at your own calendar and hoping others are free, use these tools to see when your invitees are available.

If you’re dealing with external people, a quick email request for free time slots will simplify the process.

If You Must Overlap Another Meeting, Acknowledge It

Sometimes there’s no perfect option and you have to book a meeting that conflicts with someone else’s schedule. If that happens:

  • Apologize in the invite or body of the email.
  • Explain briefly why your meeting takes priority or is time-sensitive.
  • This shows you respect their time, even if circumstances force you to overbook.

Attach All Relevant Documents to the Invite

If attendees need to see a spreadsheet, review a proposal, or refer to any document:

  • Include it in the meeting invitation itself.
  • Update the invite (and the attachment or link) if anything changes.
  • Don’t hide vital info in random emails or chat threads—people will miss it or lose track.

Give a Brief Outline of the Meeting’s Purpose

Nobody likes a cryptic invite with no context. Include a short summary explaining:

  • Why the meeting is happening.
  • What you hope to accomplish.
  • Who needs to be there (and why).

This helps attendees see the value in joining and prepares them to participate meaningfully.

Steer Clear of “Ambush” Meetings

Inviting someone just to corner or blame them in front of others is a surefire way to breed resentment. It also makes people dread your future invites.

Always keep meetings constructive and solution oriented, rather than using them for public scolding.

Confirm Attendance from Key Players

Every so often, a meeting’s success hinges on one or two extremely busy people. If that’s the case:

  • Reach out individually to ensure they can (and will) attend.
  • If they can’t make it, adjust the time if possible.
  • It’s far easier to coordinate in advance than to reschedule when your crucial person is missing.

Wrapping Up

Being thoughtful about booking a meeting can save everyone a ton of frustration. Respecting others’ commitments and clearly stating your intentions, people will actually turn up to your calls rather than just ignoring them