Humor for Program Managers

Program words of wisdom:-
Program Managers ability to reason through many different manufacturing & business issues was aided by the ability to relax under pressure and see the lighter side of life.


Humor can change the attitude of individuals and provide a healthy, productive atmosphere when used properly. Business situations, however, often lend themselves to humor that changes the way a person looks at the environment.

Humor in the work place can improve the efficiency and effectiveness of a program/business team when used appropriately and people can laugh at themselves. Humor can be used to defuse tense situations and to suggest correction to behavior that is counter to the team’s goals. Demeaning or vicious humor can, however, destroy the unity of a team and isolate individuals because of perceived criticism.

During a Business trip to China, one Chinese man humor to question the credentials of a woman in the company because of the manner in which she was conducting herself.
He stated, “Her resume says ‘doctor of philosophy,’ I think there is a mistake.”
I responded to the statement, “No, she has a Ph.D. in management science.”
The Chinese interpreter came back with the statement, “Oh no, I think that she is doctor of complexity.”
Of course we laughed, which meant that I agreed with him. Through humor, the Chinese interpreter and I had achieved a common understanding to criticize about this person’s competence.

Humor plays an important role in getting team members to relax and not dwell on the negative side of management challenges. A team member cannot laugh and still be angry or have negative feelings about what is happening. Obtaining a laugh should be a goal to change how a situation looks.

The Chinese are masters at criticism with humor, which causes the person to recognize the bad situation without losing face. In all cultures, perhaps, humor at the right time and right place can lead to better relationships among team members as long as the humor is not demeaning or off color.

Properly used humor can build on relationships in programs, smooth over rough edges, and promote productivity. The wrong type of humor, however, can work to the detriment of the project/program team by isolating an individual through criticism. Humor should not be used as a substitute for coaching or mentoring, but as a way of getting individuals to look at challenges through a different prism.


Kacak5 Management